Reason.com
Robert Sheckley, RIP
Robert Sheckley, the author of hundreds of satiric science-fiction stories and Borgesian fables, died in Poughkeepsie this morning. It's been a couple decades since I last cracked open one of his books, but in his honor I just took Is That What People Do? off the shelf and read a bit. The prose was a little more awkward than I remembered, but the jokes were still dry and sly; in a better world, their author would be a household name.
Most Popular Stories
- 5 Classic Teen Sex-and-Drug Freakouts: Rainbow Parties, Butt-Chugging, And So Much More (By Which We Mean Less) (5.27)
- Government Beneficiaries and Other Fairy Tales (5.26)
- Are We Headed for a Fight with China? (5.28)
- Lessons From the United Fruit Company (5.28)
- Do Organic Consumers Shop Exclusively at the Jerk Store? (5.26)
Reason RUPE: Public Opinion Survey
- Reason-Rupe: Wisconsinites Favor Increasing Public Union Retirement Contributions to Address Budget Deficit (5.25)
- Reason-Rupe Poll Finds Support for Public Union Reforms (5.25)
- New Poll: Obama Leads Romney In Wisconsin, But Gary Johnson Could Impact the Race (5.24)
- Wisconsin Recall: Walker Leads Barrett 50-42 Among Likely Voters (5.24)
- Reason-Rupe Poll: Walker Leads Barrett 50-42, Obama Leads Romney 46-36 (5.24)
advertisements
Reason on Facebook
Reason on Twitter
Reason on YouTube
Reason RSSGet Reason E-mail Updates!
Manage your Reason e-mail list subscriptionsSite comments/questions:
Media Inquiries and Reprint Permissions:
(310) 367-6109
Editorial & Production Offices:
3415 S. Sepulveda Blvd.
Suite 400
Los Angeles, CA 90034
(310) 391-2245
Editor's Note: We invite comments and request that they be civil and on-topic. We do not moderate or assume any responsibility for comments, which are owned by the readers who post them. Comments do not represent the views of Reason.com or Reason Foundation. We reserve the right to delete any comment or disable your ability to comment for any reason at any time.
|12.9.05 @ 4:50PM|#
His Dimension of Miracles is an extremely funny book, one of the best humorous sf novels ever. Anyone who liked The Hitchhiker's Guide novels will enjoy it.
|12.9.05 @ 5:40PM|#
Actually, Dimension of Miracles is a lot better than Hitchhiker's Guide. I need to reread it in Sheckley's memory.
|12.9.05 @ 5:51PM|#
I read "The Status Civilization," a novel, a few years or so ago, and thought it merely OK. Not good enough to inspire me to look into other Sheckley books. Maybe somebody can reccomend to me his most impressive and/or important work.