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Call Me Joe
Call Me Joe is a science fiction novella written by Poul Anderson and published in 1957. The plot involves an attempt to explore the surface of the planet Jupiter using remote-controlled artificial life-forms. It focuses on the feelings of a disabled man who operates an artificial body. The story was published in Astounding Science Fiction magazine by its editor John W. Campbell.
The Science Fiction Writers of America selected Call Me Joe for The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two.
The Science Fiction Writers of America selected Call Me Joe for The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two.
34 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1957
22 people are currently reading
461 people want to read
About the author
Poul Anderson
1,614 books1,095 followersPseudonym A. A. Craig, Michael Karageorge, Winston P. Sanders, P. A. Kingsley.
Poul William Anderson was an American science fiction author who began his career during one of the Golden Ages of the genre and continued to write and remain popular into the 21st century. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy, historical novels, and a prodigious number of short stories. He received numerous awards for his writing, including seven Hugo Awards and three Nebula Awards.
Anderson received a degree in physics from the University of Minnesota in 1948. He married Karen Kruse in 1953. They had one daughter, Astrid, who is married to science fiction author Greg Bear. Anderson was the sixth President of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, taking office in 1972. He was a member of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America, a loose-knit group of Heroic Fantasy authors founded in the 1960s, some of whose works were anthologized in Lin Carter's Flashing Swords! anthologies. He was a founding member of the Society for Creative Anachronism. Robert A. Heinlein dedicated his 1985 novel The Cat Who Walks Through Walls to Anderson and eight of the other members of the Citizens' Advisory Council on National Space Policy.[2][3]
Poul Anderson died of cancer on July 31, 2001, after a month in the hospital. Several of his novels were published posthumously.
Series:
* Time Patrol
* Psychotechnic League
* Trygve Yamamura
* Harvest of Stars
* King of Ys
* Last Viking
* Hoka
* Future history of the Polesotechnic League
* Flandry
Poul William Anderson was an American science fiction author who began his career during one of the Golden Ages of the genre and continued to write and remain popular into the 21st century. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy, historical novels, and a prodigious number of short stories. He received numerous awards for his writing, including seven Hugo Awards and three Nebula Awards.
Anderson received a degree in physics from the University of Minnesota in 1948. He married Karen Kruse in 1953. They had one daughter, Astrid, who is married to science fiction author Greg Bear. Anderson was the sixth President of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, taking office in 1972. He was a member of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America, a loose-knit group of Heroic Fantasy authors founded in the 1960s, some of whose works were anthologized in Lin Carter's Flashing Swords! anthologies. He was a founding member of the Society for Creative Anachronism. Robert A. Heinlein dedicated his 1985 novel The Cat Who Walks Through Walls to Anderson and eight of the other members of the Citizens' Advisory Council on National Space Policy.[2][3]
Poul Anderson died of cancer on July 31, 2001, after a month in the hospital. Several of his novels were published posthumously.
Series:
* Time Patrol
* Psychotechnic League
* Trygve Yamamura
* Harvest of Stars
* King of Ys
* Last Viking
* Hoka
* Future history of the Polesotechnic League
* Flandry
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews
February 15, 2021
I still see it through the eyes of a 9-year-old discovering a whole new universe - the amazingly fascinating world of science fiction, first glimpsed through the eyes of Joe, a remote-controlled artificial life form on Jupiter's enormous bulk.
5 stars for being my introduction to sci-fi that survived the test of the years. It was simple and clear enough for a nine-year-old to enjoy it, and well-written enough for a woman in her late twenties to still read it with fondness. Give it a try - after all, it is only $0.99 in the Kindle store.
In this 1957 sci-fi classic, Poul Anderson plays with the traditional sci-fi notion of the importance of humanity above everything else. No matter what alien places we visit and how many alien races we see, humanity remains above all, the most important, the vital, what we cling on, what we cannot afford to lose. Encountering something unfamiliar, something not human, naturally alarms us and sends us clinging to our humanity in defense. Anderson's character, however, finds something in the alienness that he does not get through his humanity. He embraces the alienness with everything he has, finally able to fully live through it.
"Jupiter lay across a fifth of that sky, softly ambrous, banded with colors, spotted with the shadows of planet-sized moons and with whirlwinds as broad as Earth."
"Imagine walking under a glowing violet sky, where great flashing clouds sweep the earth with shadow and rain strides beneath them. Imagine walking on the slopes of a mountain like polished metal, with a clean red flame exploding above you and thunder laughing in the ground. Imagine a cool wild stream, and low trees with dark coppery flowers, and a waterfall - methanefall, whatever you like - leaping off a cliff, and the strong live wind shakes its mane full of rainbows! Imagine a whole forest, dark and breathing, and here and there you glimpse a pale-red wavering will-o'-the-wisp, which is the life radiation of some fleet, shy animal, and... and...[...] Imagine being STRONG!"If my description of a remote-controlled (by a paraplegic, no less) artificial life form somewhat reminds you of that blue-alien movie "Avatar" - well, there is a reason for that. Call Me Joe undoubtedly served as an inspiration for it. But the major difference here is that Call Me Joe is what "Avatar" could have been if the movie was a bit less blatant wish-fulfillment fantasy. If the feline romance, breathtaking (for humans, of course) landscapes, frolicking among flowers, and alien dragon rides were removed, and there was no clumsily constructed preachy story about a clearly black-and-white conflict. If instead we were left with trying to live in the harsh but beautiful reality, with a new personality emerging out of the two that share the same brain and mind.
“Perhaps you don't realize what a nightmare planet Jupiter is. Not just the surface gravity - a shade under three gees, what's that? - but the gravitational potential, ten times Earth's. The temperature. The pressure. Above all, the atmosphere, and the storms, and the darkness!”Jupiter in this story is an inhospitable alien planet, breathtaking only in its unsuitability for human life. But Joe, specifically created to thrive in this environment, sees something else - a home.
"What I can't put in is how Jupiter looks through a Jovian's infrared-seeing eyes. [..] Just remember that everything about Jupiter which is cold and poisonous and gloomy to us is right for Joe."Joe is a Pseudocentaurus sapiens created to be functional in the Jupiter high-pressure atmosphere (breathing hydrogen and drinking methane, all that) for the purpose of transmitting valuable knowledge to humans. Made with a fully functional brain, he is mentally controlled by a paraplegic scientist Ed Anglesey, who - as a psychology-type Cornelius figures out - imprints his entire personality on Joe's brain. And Cornelius worries that Joe's nascent personality is taking over Anglesy in the - of course, what else can it be? - monstrous fashion. "Because, I suppose, of normal human fear of the unknown, we assumed that any personality in so alien of a body had to be monstrous." But is there more to it? The answer is yes, of course.
"I, the cripple, feel all the tiredness, anger, hurt, frustration, of that wonderful biological machine called Joe. The others don't understand. When the ammonia gale flays open his skin, it is I who bleed."Call Me Joe is written simply and straightforwardly, with skillful juxtaposition of Jupiter scenes and events at the human space station. It deals with the questions of identity and importance of quality of life (not a very politically correct subject, I must admit) in an insightful way. The traditional sci-fi exposition is integrated into the story quite nicely and does not feel forced or clunky. Granted, I understand that the happy ending of the story has all the potential to become quite problematic - but then every time I decide to put aside my world-weary cynicism and simply enjoy this pure beautiful sci-fi story.
5 stars for being my introduction to sci-fi that survived the test of the years. It was simple and clear enough for a nine-year-old to enjoy it, and well-written enough for a woman in her late twenties to still read it with fondness. Give it a try - after all, it is only $0.99 in the Kindle store.
“I've seen these cases before. People who simply resign from life. This is the first one I ever saw that went out smiling - smiling all the time.”
April 7, 2019
I have been on a Poul Anderson journey, reading all I can find of the SFWA Grand Master and visionary writer.
What I have been most amazed at is how influential he was and nowhere is that influence more quietly overwhelming than in his 1957 short story “Call Me Joe”. There is no doubt that either James Cameron or someone close to him used this story, over 50 years old, to help with his conception of the blockbuster film Avatar. In both works, a paraplegic man remotely controls a giant alien in a hostile environment, and Cameron even had the Na'vi be blue, just like Joe’s skin. Written when Anderson was in his late twenties / early thirties, his powers of invention were humming along nicely and his writing would only get better with time and experience.
It is also noteworthy, and I am not the only one who has noticed this, but James Cameron also blatantly borrowed from Philip K. Dick in the development of the Terminator series. Two PKD short stories, The Crystal Skull – where an assassin goes back in time to try and kill a future world leader; and The Second Variety – where killer robots where formed to resemble humans for infiltration purposes – were too close to Cameron’s later work to be a coincidence.
An excellent short work, this would make a great introduction to Anderson's canon and is a must read for a fan.
What I have been most amazed at is how influential he was and nowhere is that influence more quietly overwhelming than in his 1957 short story “Call Me Joe”. There is no doubt that either James Cameron or someone close to him used this story, over 50 years old, to help with his conception of the blockbuster film Avatar. In both works, a paraplegic man remotely controls a giant alien in a hostile environment, and Cameron even had the Na'vi be blue, just like Joe’s skin. Written when Anderson was in his late twenties / early thirties, his powers of invention were humming along nicely and his writing would only get better with time and experience.
It is also noteworthy, and I am not the only one who has noticed this, but James Cameron also blatantly borrowed from Philip K. Dick in the development of the Terminator series. Two PKD short stories, The Crystal Skull – where an assassin goes back in time to try and kill a future world leader; and The Second Variety – where killer robots where formed to resemble humans for infiltration purposes – were too close to Cameron’s later work to be a coincidence.
An excellent short work, this would make a great introduction to Anderson's canon and is a must read for a fan.
July 28, 2020
Wow, hard to believe this sophisticated tale was written in 1957! Chocked full of science and ideas this was surely a major influence on James Cameron's movie "Avatar". In brief, scientists have created a bluish-gray feline centaur with a thick prehensile tale, that has been bio-engineered to thrive on Jupiter. They are using psionic technology to remote 'control' the creature from an orbiting space station. The main character is a strong-willed handicapped man who is controlling this blue 'avatar' remotely -- sound familiar?
The story is more interesting than the movie and the ending is more thought-provoking, imho. (not to say I didn't enjoy the eye candy visuals in Avatar!) Anyway, this is a wake-up call that I must read more Poul Anderson, especially since he lived in Minnesota and is an alumni of University of Minnesota - Go Gophers! Top notch short - five stars.
The story is more interesting than the movie and the ending is more thought-provoking, imho. (not to say I didn't enjoy the eye candy visuals in Avatar!) Anyway, this is a wake-up call that I must read more Poul Anderson, especially since he lived in Minnesota and is an alumni of University of Minnesota - Go Gophers! Top notch short - five stars.
January 27, 2023
This work has been anthologized everywhere, but if you want a free, online copy, here's one possibility: https://www.baen.com/Chapters/9781625...
This was a wonderful novella about a man who transferred his consciousness into a created being in order to control an avatar on Jupiter. The writing and vocabulary was of a very high order. It's clear Poul Anderson revised this work several times and put a lot into it. The result is a consummate achievement by any standard.
First, every other review (than mine) compares this story to the movie Avatar and accuses Cameron of ripping Anderson off and not giving credit where credit was due. This is nonsense. If I write a time travel story and my protagonist goes thousands of years into the future, do I have to acknowledge H. G. Wells? Of course not! Wells doesn't deserve credit for every time travel story ever to be written. Every author writing about a time traveler to the future isn't ripping Wells off, they're just writing a time travel story.
Similarly, Cameron cannot logically be accused of stealing from Anderson. To do so only shows how little one has read in this literature. Even when Anderson wrote this story, his concept of operating other beings by remote control wasn't original. James Blish wrote in 1956 a novel called They Shall Have Stars in which a bridge is being built on Jupiter by remotely controlled mechanical workers. Jupiter's gravity is too intense for we delicate carbon-based organisms to withstand. That has long been understood.
Anderson didn't bother to change the planet from Blish's when he wrote Call Me Joe. Why would he? Blish didn't own the concept. Anderson did take the concept one step further, however, by making Joe more organic. Did Anderson rip Blish off? I don't think so. Besides, Blish probably got his idea from some other author's short story.
That's what science fiction writers often do--borrow one another's ideas. It's not stealing. It's called writing in a particular sub-genre. This sub-genre is shared by a number of authors and their works, including by the inventors of the Rock-Em Sock-Em robots boxing game, so popular in the 1970s. It continues today in the real world every time a drone pilot eliminates another terrorist target.
I think Anderson's contribution to this sub-genre is superior to Cameron's. Anderson's moral point, and he has one, is richer than Cameron's shallow, didactically liberal statement. I appreciate that Anderson's primary purpose was to entertain while portray a vastly different, beautifully constructed alien world. His theme is the inevitable however sub-conscious human desire Scalzi later takes to far greater lengths in Old Man's War. Decisions regarding the morality of implanting memories and personality into synthetic beings, with all its attendant ethical implications, may be closer than we realize.
Please allow me to warn you against trying to "read" this book by listening to it as an audio book. I tried, and so can you, but I quickly realized I wasn't getting the story. By listening to it on audio, you are going to miss more of the content than you get. This short book is a novella, but it really shouldn't be. It contains a full novel's worth of ideas and rich characterizations of the three principals. The reason the work is a novella is because Anderson wrote it extremely densely. So many sentences, especially in the first ten percent of the book, carry two or three ideas, many of which barely relate to one another. The best listener can't possible grasp all the ideas at the speed listening to the story imposes.
I'll give two examples:
1) "He pulled a decapod body off a shelf and ate the meat raw, pausing for long gulps of liquid methane from a jug." So far, we've been reading about a guy who doesn't have the equipment he needs and is tired. A few statements seem off and we're wondering about that, when this sentence hits us. Now the mind has to process that this person is drinking methane, has decapods--whatever those might be--to eat, and doesn't cook for some reason. Oh, and while you're thinking about that, the next sentence or two has just gone by, and they too contained information you needed to know.
2) "He had been here, in the almost nonexistent pull of Jupiter V, breathing oxynitrogen. It was Joe who lived down there and filled his lungs with hydrogen and helium at a pressure which could still only be estimated because it broke aneroids and deranged piezo-electrics."
Most of the writing is just this dense. If you can digest all the information in those two sentences while the next one comes at you, you're more capable than me. It's a hard story to listen to cold the first time. If you have previously read the story and remember it pretty well, then audio book could be a good way to go.
So, what makes this story a five-star? The writing is just as crisp and technically accurate today as it was when Anderson wrote it, which is amazing considering all the technical advances we have made in psychology and medicine since then. The three characters Anderson limits himself too have such distinct personalities different from one another that come so alive I feel I know all three of these guys. The Jupiter world Anderson portrays is so vivid, realistic, and utterly alien for being formed on a different yet plausible chemistry and physics basis than ours. Finally, I understand and sympathize with the protagonist's plight and love the solution Anderson finds for him.
This was a wonderful novella about a man who transferred his consciousness into a created being in order to control an avatar on Jupiter. The writing and vocabulary was of a very high order. It's clear Poul Anderson revised this work several times and put a lot into it. The result is a consummate achievement by any standard.
First, every other review (than mine) compares this story to the movie Avatar and accuses Cameron of ripping Anderson off and not giving credit where credit was due. This is nonsense. If I write a time travel story and my protagonist goes thousands of years into the future, do I have to acknowledge H. G. Wells? Of course not! Wells doesn't deserve credit for every time travel story ever to be written. Every author writing about a time traveler to the future isn't ripping Wells off, they're just writing a time travel story.
Similarly, Cameron cannot logically be accused of stealing from Anderson. To do so only shows how little one has read in this literature. Even when Anderson wrote this story, his concept of operating other beings by remote control wasn't original. James Blish wrote in 1956 a novel called They Shall Have Stars in which a bridge is being built on Jupiter by remotely controlled mechanical workers. Jupiter's gravity is too intense for we delicate carbon-based organisms to withstand. That has long been understood.
Anderson didn't bother to change the planet from Blish's when he wrote Call Me Joe. Why would he? Blish didn't own the concept. Anderson did take the concept one step further, however, by making Joe more organic. Did Anderson rip Blish off? I don't think so. Besides, Blish probably got his idea from some other author's short story.
That's what science fiction writers often do--borrow one another's ideas. It's not stealing. It's called writing in a particular sub-genre. This sub-genre is shared by a number of authors and their works, including by the inventors of the Rock-Em Sock-Em robots boxing game, so popular in the 1970s. It continues today in the real world every time a drone pilot eliminates another terrorist target.
I think Anderson's contribution to this sub-genre is superior to Cameron's. Anderson's moral point, and he has one, is richer than Cameron's shallow, didactically liberal statement. I appreciate that Anderson's primary purpose was to entertain while portray a vastly different, beautifully constructed alien world. His theme is the inevitable however sub-conscious human desire Scalzi later takes to far greater lengths in Old Man's War. Decisions regarding the morality of implanting memories and personality into synthetic beings, with all its attendant ethical implications, may be closer than we realize.
Please allow me to warn you against trying to "read" this book by listening to it as an audio book. I tried, and so can you, but I quickly realized I wasn't getting the story. By listening to it on audio, you are going to miss more of the content than you get. This short book is a novella, but it really shouldn't be. It contains a full novel's worth of ideas and rich characterizations of the three principals. The reason the work is a novella is because Anderson wrote it extremely densely. So many sentences, especially in the first ten percent of the book, carry two or three ideas, many of which barely relate to one another. The best listener can't possible grasp all the ideas at the speed listening to the story imposes.
I'll give two examples:
1) "He pulled a decapod body off a shelf and ate the meat raw, pausing for long gulps of liquid methane from a jug." So far, we've been reading about a guy who doesn't have the equipment he needs and is tired. A few statements seem off and we're wondering about that, when this sentence hits us. Now the mind has to process that this person is drinking methane, has decapods--whatever those might be--to eat, and doesn't cook for some reason. Oh, and while you're thinking about that, the next sentence or two has just gone by, and they too contained information you needed to know.
2) "He had been here, in the almost nonexistent pull of Jupiter V, breathing oxynitrogen. It was Joe who lived down there and filled his lungs with hydrogen and helium at a pressure which could still only be estimated because it broke aneroids and deranged piezo-electrics."
Most of the writing is just this dense. If you can digest all the information in those two sentences while the next one comes at you, you're more capable than me. It's a hard story to listen to cold the first time. If you have previously read the story and remember it pretty well, then audio book could be a good way to go.
So, what makes this story a five-star? The writing is just as crisp and technically accurate today as it was when Anderson wrote it, which is amazing considering all the technical advances we have made in psychology and medicine since then. The three characters Anderson limits himself too have such distinct personalities different from one another that come so alive I feel I know all three of these guys. The Jupiter world Anderson portrays is so vivid, realistic, and utterly alien for being formed on a different yet plausible chemistry and physics basis than ours. Finally, I understand and sympathize with the protagonist's plight and love the solution Anderson finds for him.
April 4, 2025
"Call Me Joe" is a science fiction story set on both Jupiter's surface, and on a space station orbiting the planet. Joe, a genetically engineered life form which looks like a centaur, was designed to explore and thrive on Jupiter. Humans cannot survive Jupiter's harsh conditions so a disabled scientist, Ed Anglesey, is controlling the intelligent life form through mind-linking technology from the space station. The artificial life form, Joe, has been picking up Ed's knowledge and personality during several years of training. Another scientist, Jan Cornelius, arrives at the space station to determine why a part of the mind-linking technology has been malfunctioning.
This is a well-written 1957 novella from Poul Anderson. The story has some psychologically interesting characters, some gorgeous descriptions of Jupiter, and a great ending. "Call Me Joe" can be found in several science fiction anthologies.
I have not seen the movie "Avatar," but its basic idea is similar to this story.
This is a well-written 1957 novella from Poul Anderson. The story has some psychologically interesting characters, some gorgeous descriptions of Jupiter, and a great ending. "Call Me Joe" can be found in several science fiction anthologies.
I have not seen the movie "Avatar," but its basic idea is similar to this story.
December 14, 2019
A real gem of a short story from SFF grandmaster Poul Anderson that almost certainly inspired James Cameron's hit film Avatar. Anderson brings to bear some intriguing science in this story of a paraplegic fully integrated with, and in remote control of an engineered life form sent to explore the surface of Jupiter. The boundaries of identity between the two become tangled, with some very unexpected results and broad ramifications for humanity. Highly recommended to fans of classic sci-fi!
February 14, 2021
Online copy of this 1957 classic:
https://www.baen.com/Chapters/9781625...
If you have never read it, well, you should! SFWA picked it for their Science Fiction Hall of Fame, which is where (I think) I first read it.
And you should read my friend Nataliya's account of reading this story at age 9!
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Here's another Jupiter story this one made me think of: "Desertion" (1944) by Clifford D. Simak . Online copy:
https://archive.org/details/Astoundin...
First published 1944, so quite a bit earlier than "Joe". Same issue as Sturgeon's "Killdozer", which you should definitely read! Cover: https://i1.wp.com/corabuhlert.com/wp-...
So: three* classic SF shorts for a full price of $0.00. Can't beat that. We aim to please!
-----
* see comment #3 for a bonus freebie. Modern and a total hoot!
https://www.baen.com/Chapters/9781625...
If you have never read it, well, you should! SFWA picked it for their Science Fiction Hall of Fame, which is where (I think) I first read it.
And you should read my friend Nataliya's account of reading this story at age 9!
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Here's another Jupiter story this one made me think of: "Desertion" (1944) by Clifford D. Simak . Online copy:
https://archive.org/details/Astoundin...
First published 1944, so quite a bit earlier than "Joe". Same issue as Sturgeon's "Killdozer", which you should definitely read! Cover: https://i1.wp.com/corabuhlert.com/wp-...
So: three* classic SF shorts for a full price of $0.00. Can't beat that. We aim to please!
-----
* see comment #3 for a bonus freebie. Modern and a total hoot!
April 6, 2025
I have no doubt that this is an excellent example of early science fiction and it obviously contains some of the seminal ideas that have taken root and blossomed in the genre. I think, for the most part, science fiction and I simply do not agree with either the roots of man or the future of man, and I find that somehow hard to set aside while I am reading it.
There is a premise set forward in this story that a man consists entirely of his thoughts. You must accept this in order to make the leap that the end of the story suggests. As a result, this ends up reading more like a fairytale for me than an examination of humanity itself.
It is well-written and perfectly capable of holding one's interest, and I imagine it is exactly what a science fiction fan looks for. I wanted to step outside my comfort zone, and I certainly did that with this one. What is most interesting to me is that I am also reading Ray Bradbury's The Illustrated Man and I am not having the same issues with it. I think the difference is that Bradbury's men remain human, completely, while Anderson is exploring something quite different.
There is a premise set forward in this story that a man consists entirely of his thoughts. You must accept this in order to make the leap that the end of the story suggests. As a result, this ends up reading more like a fairytale for me than an examination of humanity itself.
It is well-written and perfectly capable of holding one's interest, and I imagine it is exactly what a science fiction fan looks for. I wanted to step outside my comfort zone, and I certainly did that with this one. What is most interesting to me is that I am also reading Ray Bradbury's The Illustrated Man and I am not having the same issues with it. I think the difference is that Bradbury's men remain human, completely, while Anderson is exploring something quite different.
September 9, 2025
4⭐
Possibly my favorite Anderson story and considered by more than a few as the uncredited source of the Avatar movie.
A centaur like creature is trying to survive in the savage environment of Jupiter
It turns out there's a lot more to the story.
Possibly my favorite Anderson story and considered by more than a few as the uncredited source of the Avatar movie.
A centaur like creature is trying to survive in the savage environment of Jupiter
It turns out there's a lot more to the story.
April 13, 2025
This science fiction short story centers around a paraplegic man, Ed, who becomes psychically linked to a synthetic being called Joe. Joe is on the surface of Jupiter working to prepare for a future colony. Ed is located on the 5th moon of Jupiter on a station where he is able to connect to Joe through the machines which keep breaking down (basically remotely controlling him). Joe is a creature described as a centaur with a prehensile tail. Ed’s body no longer works, yet when he is connected with Joe, his body is no longer a problem. Ed is controlling Joe who is basically an artificial life-form. But their connection seems to be through their minds – controlled by thoughts. Joe appears to be adopting Ed’s thoughts and even his personality.
Questions of humanity – what does it mean to be human – come in to play in this short novella. This short story has been linked to the movie Avatar as having similarities.
Questions of humanity – what does it mean to be human – come in to play in this short novella. This short story has been linked to the movie Avatar as having similarities.
May 10, 2025
“After all my time here, I’ve yet to see any problem, however complicated, which when you looked at it the right way didn’t still become more complicated.”
Somehow, someway, I missed all the Avatar hype of around fifteen years ago and never ended up seeing James Cameron’s film. I mention this because I hear by word of mouth via reviews and online that there are many similarities and ties of this film to Paol Anderson’s 1957 science fiction novella “Call Me Joe.” So, in a way, I proceeded reading this one “cold,” and that made a bigger impact in the end.
I suppose critics can scoff all they want about the “science” of Jupiter being a solid mass in the story and what not, but, to me, there is so much more going on. This short work is just a very intelligently presented and thought-provoking tale that has deep reaching implications and thinking points, and asks several questions about the nature of the self, identity, and the existence of being human.
It is also very innovative, as it represents one of the earlier “virtual reality” science fiction I believe. In the story, a select group of individuals are on Jupiter conducting an experimental project involving a prototype-synthetic creature (a centaur like being called Joe) being controlled by a human who is disabled (Ed Anglesey). One man (Jan Cornelius), an expert in this field of psionics, has come in to investigate and try to fix some of the issues that have led some of the equipment to short out and the technology to go astray during these experiments, and so he gets an upfront look at what seems to be transpiring.
The story shifts back and forth between scenes at the space station on Jupiter between Cornelius’ investigation into this matter and his talks with others, and scenes with Anglesey and Joe.
To me, probably the most gripping angle to the story was the dynamics between Anglesey and Joe. As the story progresses, Cornelius continues to have to adjust his theories, take a deeper and more introspective approach to producing a possible explanation of what is happening. It’s difficult to go further without possible spoilers, but there are some eye-opening realizations that come into focus by the story’s end.
Probably the only knock against the novella is that it is just that: a novella. I felt like this story could have been flushed out so much more and gone deeper into the themes explored here. This has enough material to be a full-length novel.
Overall, though, Call Me Joe is an intriguing classic science fiction with quite a few thoughts, philosophies, and ideas packed into a very small space. One surely to check out for all classic science fiction fans. I’d be interested in picking up another Anderson title in the future.
Somehow, someway, I missed all the Avatar hype of around fifteen years ago and never ended up seeing James Cameron’s film. I mention this because I hear by word of mouth via reviews and online that there are many similarities and ties of this film to Paol Anderson’s 1957 science fiction novella “Call Me Joe.” So, in a way, I proceeded reading this one “cold,” and that made a bigger impact in the end.
I suppose critics can scoff all they want about the “science” of Jupiter being a solid mass in the story and what not, but, to me, there is so much more going on. This short work is just a very intelligently presented and thought-provoking tale that has deep reaching implications and thinking points, and asks several questions about the nature of the self, identity, and the existence of being human.
It is also very innovative, as it represents one of the earlier “virtual reality” science fiction I believe. In the story, a select group of individuals are on Jupiter conducting an experimental project involving a prototype-synthetic creature (a centaur like being called Joe) being controlled by a human who is disabled (Ed Anglesey). One man (Jan Cornelius), an expert in this field of psionics, has come in to investigate and try to fix some of the issues that have led some of the equipment to short out and the technology to go astray during these experiments, and so he gets an upfront look at what seems to be transpiring.
The story shifts back and forth between scenes at the space station on Jupiter between Cornelius’ investigation into this matter and his talks with others, and scenes with Anglesey and Joe.
To me, probably the most gripping angle to the story was the dynamics between Anglesey and Joe. As the story progresses, Cornelius continues to have to adjust his theories, take a deeper and more introspective approach to producing a possible explanation of what is happening. It’s difficult to go further without possible spoilers, but there are some eye-opening realizations that come into focus by the story’s end.
Probably the only knock against the novella is that it is just that: a novella. I felt like this story could have been flushed out so much more and gone deeper into the themes explored here. This has enough material to be a full-length novel.
Overall, though, Call Me Joe is an intriguing classic science fiction with quite a few thoughts, philosophies, and ideas packed into a very small space. One surely to check out for all classic science fiction fans. I’d be interested in picking up another Anderson title in the future.
January 15, 2016
What is the ego but continuity of existence?
Allá cuando recién se empezaba a especular con respecto a los viajes espaciales, y cómo los humanos podrian lograr a sobrevivir en otros planetas, surgió esa idea de transformarnos o terraformar. Bueno, Anderson da otra solución.
Las naves que logran descender en Jupiter son despedazadas por el ambiente extremadamente hostil. Asi que idean despues de 50 años (y muchos millones de dólares) el mejor recolector de data que la tecnologia puede engendrar, especialmente bio-diseñado para sobrevivir alli.
Imaginen un centauro/felino/de cola prensil: Joe.
Pero este explorador necesita de un controlador, un psionista que lo dirija por una conexión... algo asi como un titiretero: Edward Anglesey.
Y bueno, existe el pequeño problemita que los tubos de conexion siguen explotando, y bueno todos tienen un programa que seguir, y muchos millones metidos en esto. Asi que traen a un experto que intenta desentrañar cuál es el problema. ¿Hay algo en la siquis de Anglesey que repele estar en el planeta o se trata de otra cosa?
Demasiado corto para contar la trama, asi que les recomiendo que la lean :D
Allá cuando recién se empezaba a especular con respecto a los viajes espaciales, y cómo los humanos podrian lograr a sobrevivir en otros planetas, surgió esa idea de transformarnos o terraformar. Bueno, Anderson da otra solución.
Las naves que logran descender en Jupiter son despedazadas por el ambiente extremadamente hostil. Asi que idean despues de 50 años (y muchos millones de dólares) el mejor recolector de data que la tecnologia puede engendrar, especialmente bio-diseñado para sobrevivir alli.
Imaginen un centauro/felino/de cola prensil: Joe.
Pero este explorador necesita de un controlador, un psionista que lo dirija por una conexión... algo asi como un titiretero: Edward Anglesey.
Y bueno, existe el pequeño problemita que los tubos de conexion siguen explotando, y bueno todos tienen un programa que seguir, y muchos millones metidos en esto. Asi que traen a un experto que intenta desentrañar cuál es el problema. ¿Hay algo en la siquis de Anglesey que repele estar en el planeta o se trata de otra cosa?
Demasiado corto para contar la trama, asi que les recomiendo que la lean :D
July 15, 2018
9/10
December 8, 2016
Relato corto de Poul, que claramente Avatar toma como base de su historia. Bastante entretenido y se lee rápido. Tendré que ahondar más en éste autor del que no he leído demasiado.
June 13, 2021
Reminds me of Being John Malkovich
May 1, 2025
What stood out to me most in this story was the eco-colonial horror, probably not intended, but the more chilling for the unexamined assumptions. But first, I appreciated how the story started, throwing the reader into the action to discover and understand as the story progresses. I also enjoyed the exoterrestrial setting and the thought given to the science (keeping in mind when the story was written). This included the considerations of everyday movement in low gravity, and how furniture might logically be constructed differently for such an environment, but strangely, not whether it made sense to smoke like a chimney in an enclosed environment and around sensitive scientific equipment…
However, even as I read the descriptions of the Jovian world with wonder, that was matched by growing horror at mankind’s involvement. Here’s this amazing discovery, life and not as we know it. Yet there is zero concern for contamination or disruption of this unique and potentially fragile biosphere as mankind proceeds to create artificial life forms to send into the world, and then the ultimate, creating an artificial life form with the capacity of a human mind, one that may evolve and develop independently, and then controlling it. Of course, this isn’t Star Trek with its Prime Directive, however flawed in application. Throughout history, mankind has come, seen, and conquered, without regard for humans already living there, much less the possibility of other sentience, much less other lifeforms and the ecosystem as a whole…
However, even as I read the descriptions of the Jovian world with wonder, that was matched by growing horror at mankind’s involvement. Here’s this amazing discovery, life and not as we know it. Yet there is zero concern for contamination or disruption of this unique and potentially fragile biosphere as mankind proceeds to create artificial life forms to send into the world, and then the ultimate, creating an artificial life form with the capacity of a human mind, one that may evolve and develop independently, and then controlling it. Of course, this isn’t Star Trek with its Prime Directive, however flawed in application. Throughout history, mankind has come, seen, and conquered, without regard for humans already living there, much less the possibility of other sentience, much less other lifeforms and the ecosystem as a whole…
July 19, 2016
I only read the short story "Call Me Joe" so far. What would you have to do to be able to make the biochemical changes necessary to live on Jupiter? A lot.
The language is over-the-top imaginative! My knowledge of this type of science is limited, but it's almost believable (but not quite).
I think he brings out is that not only do you have psychological changes necessary to deal with this type of environment, but also your subconscious mind would even need to adapt.
This story will definitely make your K-tube oscillate!
The language is over-the-top imaginative! My knowledge of this type of science is limited, but it's almost believable (but not quite).
I think he brings out is that not only do you have psychological changes necessary to deal with this type of environment, but also your subconscious mind would even need to adapt.
This story will definitely make your K-tube oscillate!
March 18, 2015
This is the original Avatar; without the environmentalist mysticism drivel. Excellent short story.
February 11, 2024
I came here following the trail of James Cameron ripping people off. With terminator vs solider from Tomorrow, I was willing to give it a pass because the similarities were not central to the plot, but thematic in nature. And that happens all the time. But In this case, the wheelchair bound man would rather live out the rest of his life in a superior alien body. It's basically a prototype avatar.
I'll say, this was a much more fascinating story as it jumps into the psychology and thoughts of the characters living a double existence much deeper. There is no war, or ruthless colonialist invasions though, so there are differences.
Over all, this was a super awesome and quick read. There was some science jargon, and I'm not sure how accurate any of it was. But it felt natural. I loved the ending. Made me....smile.
I'll say, this was a much more fascinating story as it jumps into the psychology and thoughts of the characters living a double existence much deeper. There is no war, or ruthless colonialist invasions though, so there are differences.
Over all, this was a super awesome and quick read. There was some science jargon, and I'm not sure how accurate any of it was. But it felt natural. I loved the ending. Made me....smile.
June 20, 2021
Interesante especulación de un posible tipo de vida en Júpiter (con lo que se sabe actualmente, muy poco probable) y buena base astronómica sobre los satélites de Júpiter, lo que ayuda a su verosimilitud. Lo que le resta verosimilitud es esa idea de los rayos psicónicos con los que un ser humano desde una consola y con un casco puede controlar la mente de otro ser vivo. Esa idea me recordó a Avatar la película. La especulación de lo que pasa cuando una mente controla a otra hasta migrar a ese cuerpo y habitarlo es bastante dudosa, pero aún no resuelta. Es similar a lo que pasa en Avatar, de hecho muy similar porque el protagonista también es un lisiado cuyo cuerpo original no vale la pena de conservar, considerando que el cuerpo anfitrión es mucho mejor.
February 17, 2024
Sci-fi of the 1950's. It has the cigar smoking scientist visiting the space station above Jupiter, the cigarette-smoking doctor, the strong-minded, wheelchair-using scientist who has surprises in story for all, and "psi" -tech talk. LOVED IT.
Didn't actually find this published on its own but as the first of many in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame Volume 2A (edited by Ben Bova).
Didn't actually find this published on its own but as the first of many in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame Volume 2A (edited by Ben Bova).
November 15, 2024
Wow! What a concept! This short story really packs a punch and will make you think! Very, very interesting!
April 1, 2025
5 Stars
Is being human more mental than physical? Anderson does make me wonder. The best $.99 I've spent in a long time
Is being human more mental than physical? Anderson does make me wonder. The best $.99 I've spent in a long time
March 14, 2018
I am not actually reviewing an electronic version of this story but the story as it originally appeared in the April, 1957 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. My review of the story is excerpted from my review of that issue.
In Poul Anderson's "Call Me Joe," mankind has reached Jupiter and wants to explore it. But no human could live on Jupiter, so men have developed an artificial life form, a centauroid creature they have named Joe. Joe is controlled by a human who is able, with the help of machinery, to make a psychic connection with him. The human has been in a terrible accident and is crippled from the chest down.
The plan has been to eventually send other centauroids who will not need to be controlled down to Jupiter. They will be intelligent and can be the start of a new race.
However, there are problems with the current set-up. A particular tube keeps blowing up. (In 1957 when this story first appeared, people were still thinking that technology would continue to need to use vacuum tubes.) An expert on those machines, esprojectors, is sent to the command center to investigate. He suspects that the problem is not with the equipment.
"Call Me Joe" was later voted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame by the Science Fiction Writers of America. It has been reprinted in a number of anthologies. "Call Me Joe" has often been referred to as one of the sources for the movie Avatar. The beginning set-up of the story is indeed quite similar to that of Avatar. On the other hand, "Call Me Joe" also seems to have a definite resemblance to the story "Desertion," written by Clifford Simak in 1944. ("Desertion" later became a section in Simak's International Fantasy Award-winning book, City.)
In Poul Anderson's "Call Me Joe," mankind has reached Jupiter and wants to explore it. But no human could live on Jupiter, so men have developed an artificial life form, a centauroid creature they have named Joe. Joe is controlled by a human who is able, with the help of machinery, to make a psychic connection with him. The human has been in a terrible accident and is crippled from the chest down.
The plan has been to eventually send other centauroids who will not need to be controlled down to Jupiter. They will be intelligent and can be the start of a new race.
However, there are problems with the current set-up. A particular tube keeps blowing up. (In 1957 when this story first appeared, people were still thinking that technology would continue to need to use vacuum tubes.) An expert on those machines, esprojectors, is sent to the command center to investigate. He suspects that the problem is not with the equipment.
"Call Me Joe" was later voted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame by the Science Fiction Writers of America. It has been reprinted in a number of anthologies. "Call Me Joe" has often been referred to as one of the sources for the movie Avatar. The beginning set-up of the story is indeed quite similar to that of Avatar. On the other hand, "Call Me Joe" also seems to have a definite resemblance to the story "Desertion," written by Clifford Simak in 1944. ("Desertion" later became a section in Simak's International Fantasy Award-winning book, City.)
January 10, 2021
Dicen de este pequeño relato que inspiró a James Cameron para crear 𝘼𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙖𝙧 y, aunque seguramente tuvo más influencias, no se puede negar que las bases del relato y de la película parecen, como mínimo, hermanas siamesas.
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En esencia nos habla de un ser creado para colonizar Júpiter, 𝗝𝗼𝗲, el cual es dirigido por un hombre postrado en un silla de ruedas gracias a una tecnología denominada psiónica, que conecta psíquicamente ambas formas de vida. ¿Os suena? Bueno, pues hasta aquí los parecidos. La edulcorada y ecologizada 𝘼𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙖𝙧 sigue unos derroteros muy diferentes a los de 𝙇𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙢𝙚 𝙅𝙤𝙚, mucho más amarga y oscura y sin los evidentes condicionantes necesarios para asaltar la taquilla: acción, aventura, romance, maniqueísmo... No te esperes nada de eso en esta pequeña obra.
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Desde mi punto de vista, lo más interesante de este relato corto, amén de la calidad como escritor de Poul Anderson, que es capaz de condensar en unas pocas páginas una historia con mucho calado psicológico, es la utilización del concepto de "pantropía", término acuñado precisamente en 1957 por otro clásico de la ciencia ficción, James Blish, en un libro de relatos titulado "Semillas estelares".
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Hay tres formas de colonizar las estrellas: a través del envío de embriones humanos que se reproducirían en el lugar de destino; por medio de la terraformación, adaptando el entorno del planeta elegido al ser humano; y usando la pantropía, que adaptaría la biología humana al lugar de destino, que en el caso de este relato sería a las condiciones infernales de Júpiter.
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En definitiva, una pequeña obra muy interesante que nos muestra una vez más lo mucho que bebe el cine de las creaciones literarias por cortas o poco conocidas que sean.
.
En esencia nos habla de un ser creado para colonizar Júpiter, 𝗝𝗼𝗲, el cual es dirigido por un hombre postrado en un silla de ruedas gracias a una tecnología denominada psiónica, que conecta psíquicamente ambas formas de vida. ¿Os suena? Bueno, pues hasta aquí los parecidos. La edulcorada y ecologizada 𝘼𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙖𝙧 sigue unos derroteros muy diferentes a los de 𝙇𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙢𝙚 𝙅𝙤𝙚, mucho más amarga y oscura y sin los evidentes condicionantes necesarios para asaltar la taquilla: acción, aventura, romance, maniqueísmo... No te esperes nada de eso en esta pequeña obra.
.
Desde mi punto de vista, lo más interesante de este relato corto, amén de la calidad como escritor de Poul Anderson, que es capaz de condensar en unas pocas páginas una historia con mucho calado psicológico, es la utilización del concepto de "pantropía", término acuñado precisamente en 1957 por otro clásico de la ciencia ficción, James Blish, en un libro de relatos titulado "Semillas estelares".
.
Hay tres formas de colonizar las estrellas: a través del envío de embriones humanos que se reproducirían en el lugar de destino; por medio de la terraformación, adaptando el entorno del planeta elegido al ser humano; y usando la pantropía, que adaptaría la biología humana al lugar de destino, que en el caso de este relato sería a las condiciones infernales de Júpiter.
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En definitiva, una pequeña obra muy interesante que nos muestra una vez más lo mucho que bebe el cine de las creaciones literarias por cortas o poco conocidas que sean.
August 2, 2020
Poul Anderson was Science Fiction's 16th appointed Grand Master, an award for lifetime excellence in the field. And with novels such as Brain Wave, Tau Zero, The High Crusade and shorter pieces like Call Me Joe, that award is a fitting one indeed.
Call Me Joe uses an avatar specially made to be able to live on the planet Jupiter and the human operator is mind linked to the avatar. However when the human operator is a paraplegic and the avatar is a muscle bound blue hulk of a being with four legs and a tail, but extremely healthy, interesting developments occur.
Call Me Joe uses an avatar specially made to be able to live on the planet Jupiter and the human operator is mind linked to the avatar. However when the human operator is a paraplegic and the avatar is a muscle bound blue hulk of a being with four legs and a tail, but extremely healthy, interesting developments occur.
March 17, 2016
Is it just me, or did anyone else have the ah-hah moment of 'Now I know where Cameron's Avatar came from'? Fast-paced story, intriguing description of life on Jupiter - Short enough to read several times through to catch all the nuances.
January 8, 2019
Working my way through the audible book version of the science fiction hall of fame anthology, volume two. This was the first novella and quite good. Up next “Who Goes There” Which became the classic sci-fi film, The Thing.
April 21, 2025
This is copy and pasted from the Catching up on Classics read-along thread. This is a book that is similar to the movie Avatar, but written decades before, and in my opinion, better than the movie.
I just read this and really enjoyed it, thanks for choosing this, Lynn!
I know I am late to this party, but better late than never. I skimmed some of the comments a few days ago to see what I was getting myself into. To be honest I wasn't thrilled with the references to Avatar. I thought it was an alright movie, but wanted new. I was pleasantly surprised that there was a large difference between the book and the movie. Comparing apples to oranges, I'll take this book over the movie.
Like others have mentioned, the vividness and descriptions of the landscapes and scenery are enjoyable and well done. I found the character, Ed, to be compelling in his personality, and the personality change, or perhaps devolvement, was fascinating. It made me think whether Ed gave up his personality to keep living, or if Joe overpowered him and took the personality to grow more intelligent? I think probably a bit of both.
It was great being a fly on the wall for the conversations between Viken and Cornelius. As mentioned before, the problem with the "K tubes" is a great premise for this story, instead of the movies trite greed for "unobtanium." When Cornelius discovers what's going on, instead of fixing the K tubes his focus changes on the larger possibility of transplanting sentience.
I like how the book is science-heavy enough and doesn't hold your hand explaining things, but it doesn't obstruct the story or bog me down. It's a personal preference of my that my science fiction is sciency (not a word but you know what I mean).
Haha, good questions Wobbley. I like it when books get the reader thinking of grand questions like this. I, too, don't have the answers, but believe that pondering of these questions means we're moving in a positive direction.
I enjoyed reading everyone's comments and appreciated the other rec's. Looking forward to next month's book!
- T
I just read this and really enjoyed it, thanks for choosing this, Lynn!
I know I am late to this party, but better late than never. I skimmed some of the comments a few days ago to see what I was getting myself into. To be honest I wasn't thrilled with the references to Avatar. I thought it was an alright movie, but wanted new. I was pleasantly surprised that there was a large difference between the book and the movie. Comparing apples to oranges, I'll take this book over the movie.
Like others have mentioned, the vividness and descriptions of the landscapes and scenery are enjoyable and well done. I found the character, Ed, to be compelling in his personality, and the personality change, or perhaps devolvement, was fascinating. It made me think whether Ed gave up his personality to keep living, or if Joe overpowered him and took the personality to grow more intelligent? I think probably a bit of both.
It was great being a fly on the wall for the conversations between Viken and Cornelius. As mentioned before, the problem with the "K tubes" is a great premise for this story, instead of the movies trite greed for "unobtanium." When Cornelius discovers what's going on, instead of fixing the K tubes his focus changes on the larger possibility of transplanting sentience.
I like how the book is science-heavy enough and doesn't hold your hand explaining things, but it doesn't obstruct the story or bog me down. It's a personal preference of my that my science fiction is sciency (not a word but you know what I mean).
Haha, good questions Wobbley. I like it when books get the reader thinking of grand questions like this. I, too, don't have the answers, but believe that pondering of these questions means we're moving in a positive direction.
I enjoyed reading everyone's comments and appreciated the other rec's. Looking forward to next month's book!
- T
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 11, 2023
In this classic Science-Fiction short story, scientists have created their own "Jovian" - who can live on the planet Jupiter and conduct tests and gather data - controlled "psionically" by a paraplegic scientist whose behavior is becoming erratic. Modern readers will find it impossible not to think of Avatar as they read this. This novella is included in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two A edited by Ben Bova.
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