Aliens! edited by Gardner R Dozois & Jack M Dann. 1980
ALIENS!
RATED 89% POSITIVE. STORY SCORE 4.07 OUT OF 5
14 STORIES : 4 GREAT / 7 GOOD / 3 AVERAGE / 0 POOR / 0 DNF
Tales at a spaceport bar. Brutal tales of alien sexual obsession, slave-like control, and viral genocide. Close encounters of the optimistic and generous kind. Aliens! edited by Gardner Dozois and Jack M Dann is a wonderfully diverse collection of Alien stories. Single theme anthologies can sometimes overstay their welcome, and become quite a slog to finish, but the breadth of themes in these strong stories makes this quite the nice book to read.
Most everything here is worth reading, but these four stories make my Great List.
Assimilating Our Culture, That's What They're Doing • [Draco Tavern] • (1978) • short story by Larry Niven . At Earth’s spaceport bar, the bartender ask a member of the first contact team why he hates the aliens from that mission and learns something he’d rather not ever have known. Quite short, but with a powerful and interesting take on a classic SF trope.
And I Awoke and Found Me Here on the Cold Hill's Side • (1972) • short story by James Tiptree, Jr. A reporter meets a ragged worker at a spaceport who tells about how fascination with aliens has lead to his ruin …. and will lead to the ruin of humanity. Brilliantly written with incredible things to say about humanity, culture, sexual addiction, and much more.
Angel's Egg • (1951) • novelette by Edgar Pangborn. A beautiful and hopeful epistolary story about a man who is mentored towards goodness by an alien that hatches in his backyard. Quiet and encouraging about human/alien interaction and the purpose of life.
Rule Golden • (1954) • novella by Damon Knight. An absolute masterpiece with an interesting alien, great suspense, intrigue, adventure, and an extraordinary premise based on the nature of human society. All of this is interrogated with utmost thoughtfulness and rigor. Across Missouri, people are dying of the same violence they just inflicted on another person. The owner of a small newspaper is given access to a government facility and the alien that is located within. From there, an adventure begins that with sprawl across the continents and change the world forever.
ALIENS! IS RATED 89% POSITIVE
14 STORIES : 4 GREAT / 7 GOOD / 3 AVERAGE / 0 POOR / 0 DNF
How do I arrive at a rating?
Assimilating Our Culture, That's What They're Doing • [Draco Tavern] • (1978) • short story by Larry Niven
Great. At Earth’s spaceport bar, the bartender ask a member of the first contact team why he hates the aliens from that mission and learns something he’d rather not ever have known.
Grammar Lesson • [Draco Tavern] • (1977) • short story by Larry Niven
Good. A discussion with aliens about how that lack of possessive articles in their language allowed victory in an interstellar war.
The Subject Is Closed • [Draco Tavern] • (1977) • short story by Larry Niven
Good. A priest learns from an alien why they are no longer interested to learn whether there is life after death.
Cruel and Unusual • [Draco Tavern] • (1977) • short story by Larry Niven
Average. Humans and aliens don’t want to drink together in the spaceport bar because of the brutal torture of human criminals.
We Purchased People • (1974) • short story by Frederik Pohl
Good. Aliens pay to take over the bodies of humans for commerce, negotiation, and other activities. This is because the time needed for interstellar travel is so long. This story tells of a man who tries to have a romantic relationship during the rare moments of freedom that he is allowed. However, as the story progresses, darker things are revealed about this man.
Guesting Time • [Habitable Worlds] • (1965) • short story by R. A. Lafferty
Average Lots of aliens have started showing up and the sheer numbers are causing issues.
And I Awoke and Found Me Here on the Cold Hill's Side • (1972) • short story by James Tiptree, Jr.
Great. A reporter meets a ragged worker at a spaceport who tells about how fascination with aliens has lead to his ruin …. and will lead to the ruin of humanity. Brilliantly written with incredible things to say about humanity, culture, sexual addiction, and much more.
Angel's Egg • (1951) • novelette by Edgar Pangborn
Great. A beautiful and hopeful epistolary story about a man who is mentored towards goodness by an alien that hatches in his backyard.
Oh, to Be a Blobel! • (1964) • novelette by Philip K. Dick
Good. A soldier who was transformed to spy behind alien lines, find himself turning into one of aliens every day. A touching parable.
Be Merry • (1966) • novelette by Algis Budrys.
Good. Aliens crash-landed in escape pods and brought devastating disease to Earth. An alien and human duo investigate a city that appears to be minimally affected by the disease, but may be hiding a horrible secret.
Pattern • (1954) • short story by Fredric Brown
Good. Enormous aliens have come to earth and they are totally ignoring humans.
An Honorable Death • (1961) • novelette by Gordon R. Dickson
Average. It’s a colonial holiday for humans on an alien planet, but the ‘savage’ natives seem to be acting strangely. The host of the party thinks they want to perform a dance.
The Reality Trip • (1970) • novelette by Robert Silverberg
Good. An insectoid alien lives within a fake human body while doing reconnaissance on earth. Against regulations, he starts a friendship with a human woman down the hall and she is pushing for the relationship to become sexual.
Rule Golden • (1954) • novella by Damon Knight
Great. An absolute masterpiece with an interesting alien, great suspense, intrigue, adventure, and an extraordinary premise based on the nature of human society. All of this is interrogated with utmost thoughtfulness and rigor. Across Missouri, people are dying of the same violence they just inflicted on another person. The owner of a small newspaper is given access to a government facility and the alien that is located within. From there, an adventure begins that with sprawl across the continents and change the world forever.
