The Gods Laughed

By Poul Anderson

Book Overview

The stories included in The Gods Laughed are: "The Martyr" (1960) Desperate for knowledge, men capture representatives of an alien race. What they find out is different than they expected to learn...... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0523485506
• ISBN13: 9780523485508
• Release Date: January 1982
• Publisher: Tor Books
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.36 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.8" x 4.1"

Customer Reviews

Inventive and cynical science fiction stories

Anderson was asked to pick his favorite stories for this collection, published in 1982. If there is a common theme in this volume, it is the idea that man faces things bigger than himself when he starts to confront the larger universe. These are worlds a long way from the notion of man as conquering hero. Poul Anderson (1926-2001) was one of the great writers of the Golden Age. Potential readers may rather begin with one of his longer works, but this is still a very strong collection. The stories included in The Gods Laughed are: "The Martyr" (1960) Desperate for knowledge, men capture representatives of an alien race. What they find out is different than they expected to learn... "Night Piece" (1961) A man doing research into ESP and other worlds lets his study take him several steps too far. "When Half-Gods Go" (1953) The Harvard Astronomy department agrees to meet a couple who claim to be representatives of an interstellar civilization. "Peek! I See You!" (1968) Sean F.X. Lindquist is fairly convinced that he just saw a flying saucer. The only question becomes what doe she do about it? (This was my favorite story in the collection.) "Details" (1956) Representatives from a distant civilization try to positively influence the historical development of Earth. "Captive of the Centurianess" (1978) An unlikely threesome from different planets gets thrown together, building the base for future Galactic expansion. "The Soldier from the Stars" (1955) A group of mercenaries from outer space appears on Earth and offers their support to the highest bidder. "The Word To Space" (1960) Earth finally makes contact with another species. Unfortunately, the conversation isn't getting very far... "A Little Knowledge" (1971) A group of pirates get more than they bargained for when they kidnap the Trillian pilot Witweet.