Of Men and Monsters

by William Tenn

Book Overview

In science fiction circles, the work of William Tenn is noted, oddly enough, for its scarcity. (Among other things, we hasten to add.) Perhaps this has been because each succeeding story was hailed... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0345295234
• ISBN13: 9780345295231
• Release Date: June 1968
• Publisher: Del Rey Books
• Length: 251 Pages
• Weight: 0.34 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A Brilliant Satire

My brother was the Sci-Fi reader in our family and I discovered this book, in the 60's, on his bookshelf. It's always been one of my favorite books thanks to the wonderful writing of William Tenn (Philip Klass) and his twisted imagination. The satirical concept of making men "vermin" and the aliens "superiors" was subversive and completely intriguing. Why this great book hasn't been made into a first-class Sci-Fi film is beyond me.

Rats, cockroachs and men.

Eric was one of the tribe of Mankind. 128 people who lived together under the feet of the Monsters. 128 people who hated anybody outside their tribe. Strangers, outsiders, wild men, none of them could be trusted. Yet Mankind one day planned to push the Monsters off the planet, the planet Earth, which the Monsters had invaded so many years ago. Yet how would they do this? With Ancestor-Science which had failed against the Monsters? Or with Alien-Science which they could not understand? Or did they need to try something new? On top of that is the infighting, between those who have power and those who did not. Men fought men, plotted against their own leaders and made themselves allies of other tribes. A amazing ending yet also a delightful and realistic one. WOW.

our ecological niche?

A science fiction novel whose premise is that we're designedto occupy the same ecological niche as rats and cockroaches,and we'd do it perfectly. I liked it.

A quick, delightful read.

On a future earth ruled by giant monsters, men have become little more than mice. We follow the adventures of the remenants of humanity as they struggle to survive as ... pests?!! A quirky POV and a strong feel for character and language are the hallmarks of this book. Highly recommended.