The Lost Perception

by Daniel F. Galouye

THE SCREAMIES

THE AGONIZING PLAGUE THAT STRUCK EARTH-DECIMATING THE WORLD'S POPULATION AT AN ALARMING RATE...

EXPLODING IN A MAN'S MIND IN A SEARING BLAST OF NOISE AND HEAT THE VICTIMS DYING IN A RIGID PAROXYSM OF PAIN...

THE FATAL SICKNESS THAT CAME FROM ACROSS THE UNIVERSE-THAT WAS INVINCIBLE-UNTIL ONE MAN SURVIVED AN ATTACK-AND USED HIS KNOWLEDGE TO FIGHT THE MENACE FROM SPACE...

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction

173 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1968

About the author

Daniel Francis Galouye (11 February 1920 – 7 September 1976) was an American science fiction writer. During the 1950s and 1960s, he contributed novelettes and short stories to various digest-size science fiction magazines, sometimes writing under the pseudonym Louis G. Daniels.

After Galouye (pronounced Gah-lou-ey) graduated from Louisiana State University (B.A.), he worked as a reporter for several newspapers. During World War II, he served in the US Navy as an instructor and test pilot, receiving injuries that led to later health problems. On December 26, 1945, he married Carmel Barbara Jordan. From the 1940s until his retirement in 1967, he was on the staff of The States Item. He lived in New Orleans but also had a summer home across Lake Pontchartrain at St. Tammany Parish in Covington, Louisiana.

In 1952, he sold his first novelette, Rebirth, to Imagination and then branched out to other digests, including Galaxy Science Fiction and The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. Between 1961 and 1973, Galoyue wrote five novels, notably Simulacron Three, basis of the movie The Thirteenth Floor and the 1973 German TV miniseries, Welt am Draht (directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder). His first novel, Dark Universe (1961) was nominated for a Hugo.

In 2007, Galouye was named as the recipient of the Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Award, which is co-sponsored by the heirs of Paul M.A. Linebarger (who wrote as Cordwainer Smith) and Readercon. The jury for this award recognizes a deceased genre writer whose work should be "rediscovered" by the readers of today, and that newly rediscovered writer is a deceased guest of honor at the following year's Readercon. Galouye was named 6 July 2007 by Barry N. Malzberg and Gordon Van Gelder, speaking on behalf of themselves and the other two judges, Martin H. Greenberg and Mike Resnick.

Reviews

[Till Raether · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ich habe eine große Schwäche für diese deutsche Ausgabe (sehr ungeschickte und lustlose Übersetzung von Hans-Ulrich Nichau, Cover von Eyke Volkmer), insbesondere für den unfassbar bizarren Titel. Nicht nur, dass die Seitenhandlung der Nina ein völlig überflüssiger Plotstrang ist, es wird auch nirgendwo in Titel oder Klappentext die sehr gute Prämisse des Buches erwähnt: millionenfach brechen Menschen in ein furchtbares Geschrei aus und sterben in größter Angst und Agonie und keiner weiß weshalb, vom Übersetzer deftig als "Heulerpest" bezeichnet.

Was sich dahinter verbirgt, ist reine golden age SF, so eine Mischung aus kosmischer Paranoia und unheimlicher Erhabenheit, die Galouye dann noch mit einer politischen Verschwörung, ein bisschen Postapokalypse, James-Bond-artigen Schauplatzwechseln (das UNO-Gsbäude!, das Schloss von Versailles!, Nizza!, Rom!, eine Farm in "Pennsylvanien"...) und reaktionärem 60er-Jahre-Sex aufjazzt.

Besonders faszinieren mich die komplette Eigenschaftslosigkeit der Hauptfigur Gregson, die Dialoge als Infoveranstaltungen und die absurde Plotgeschwindigkeit. In meiner Erinnerung hat Galouye mit Simulacron-Drei/Welt am Draht ein handwerklich wesentlich besseres Buch geschrieben, aber gerade macht es mir sehr viel Freude, im Rahmen einer komplett unwichtigen Buchrecherche alles von ihm zu lesen, was mir in die Hände fällt.

Ich glaube, "melden" ist das antiklimaktischste Verb, das je in einem Titel verwendet wurde.

[Manny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plato's metaphor of the cave meets Paradise Regained. With aliens.

[Jonnathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Such a letdown of a book. Look at that sick cover art. Look at the name and the synopsis. Everything about this book leads you to believe this is a sci-fi body horror with a dash of government conspiracy. Maybe it was supposed to be, but it sure as hell isn't. Galouye was so preoccupied with flexing his vocabulary with his word of the day calendar, that he forgot to give any life to his characters or World. Gregson is probably the stupidest protagonist I've ever read with no backbone or brains, that it doesn't even feel like he's supposed to be the protagonist. The women in the story are written so shallow and 2-D that it feels like Galouye was trying to fulfill some "cool James Bond" fantasies. No one's motives are well fleshed out or explained that it feels like you're more unsure of who the good guys are even more than Idiot Gregson is. Galouye was trying to juggle a gov conspiracy, a body horror, and an alien plot line at the same time and fumbled it all. The titular Screamers? A subplot pushed to the side like a third through the book. There's this subplot with Gregson's brother that confusingly goes nowhere. It feels like Galouye just straight up forgot about that subplot. A lot of this goes nowhere. At a time period where sci-fi alien novels were all the craze, this is very much a skippable one.

[M.D. Perkins · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oof. A fantastic premise sadly lodged within an overly complicated and boring story. Did not finish. Waste of time.

[Ricky Patten · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked Dark Universe from Galouye Daniel and was excited to try out another of his works. The Lost Perception was totally different in theme and feel, which was fine ... shows flexibility in the author's capabilities.

Some aspects I did not like:
- fairly sexist which is par for this period of writing
- the protagonist / hero made all the classic mistakes which made some bit predictable
- and my usual pet hate, the ending sucked!

Overall the idea behind the book, and the storyline were fine. Not standouts like Dark Universe and that's why I rated this three stars only.

Had some aspects I really liked ... the accuracy of the places, street names, houses, etc that were included in the storyline from around the world was excellent. Galouye has obviously been to all these locations to gather his source material. I love that sort of thing.

Why read The Lost Perception .... 'cause you're a sci-fi buff and this is a great sci-fi classic. You like alternate plot lines and involvement of aliens. You're cool about somewhat matcho heroes and flimsy heroines.

Why not to read ... not into sci-fi then flick straight past this. Hate sexism and matcho heroes ... you're not gonna like this.

Summary ... neat short little romp around classic sci-fi of the '60s. Involves alternate theories/plots and aliens. Worth a read.

[Ali · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up this book thinking I would be submersed in a world where a plague infects the world with pain and fear. It is in the first sentence on the back of the book. So let me tell you my disappointment when we spent so little on the "screamies" (NEVER CALLED SCREAMERS). Instead, we had to follow the world's dumbest protagonist. The main character Gregson was super frustrating, and at one point, I thought he was written by someone who did not understand human motivations at ALL. I was rooting for his doom at the end of the book. I wanted him to perish and get a different POV from someone less frustrating like Helen.

The book is written in a way that takes little thought to figure out the whole plot. Every "twist" was never a twist, and the interludes were written the worst way possible. Time jumps are also a prominent point of the book, but sometimes I would be so caught up in the stupid nonsense with Gregson that I would have to go back to figure out how much time passed between chapters. The importance of the Valorian's mission went over my head, and their endpoint did not hit home for me. It had potential, which is the most frustrating part of the book, I wanted more of the screamers, and I wanted them to also be called screamers. I also wanted Gregson to be a different person because he is the worst.

I would give the book a 2.5. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. I agree with another reviewer who said the cover art is the best part of the novel.

[Jon FK · Rating 1 out of 5]

Pointless.

For a book that had the capability of exploring a big concept- "What would the complexities of life be if we could know each other's thoughts? If being telepathic was a reality and just another sense?" It fell so short it's difficult to comprehend.

But also, the cover doesn't promise this. It boasts "High intensity!" Amongst other things. And it doesn't deliver that either. Not in the slightest. I wasn't hoping for something Conceptual so when that element got brought in, late in the novel, I was hoping it would save me from the bore that this book had become. I only wanted what seemed like Sci-fi Horror entertainment.

But it was an exercise in too much detail when not needed and not enough exploration of the few good ideas presented. For 1968... I'm not sure how much of this is bad writing and how much is reflective of The Time. But either way, the best part about this book is the cover.

[Glenn Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Daniel F. Galouye's 1968 A Scourge of Screamers (also published as The Lost Perception) is a post-apocalyptic political thriller set in 1997, fifteen years after a global nuclear war triggered by the accidental launch of a missile when a Russian officer became a Screamer (the author's capitalization). And what is a Screamer? Someone who has suffered a catastrophic mental explosion, as if the mind had been set on fire by the equivalent of a thousand doses of LSD, propelling the victim into an unending spasm of screams.

The human population reels from the Screamer phenomenon. Many millions of men and women at every point on the globe are now Screamers. And society's reaction? Isolation institutes, Screamer Pickup Squads, emergency sedation kits complete with hypodermic syringes to silence victims—all coordinated by a newly formed Security Bureau (SecBu) wielding worldwide power in the wake of governmental collapse.

As if living in a world of half-demolished, rubble-strewn cities filled with Screamers were not enough, there are now human-like aliens roaming the streets. SecBu blames these extraterrestrials—the Valorians—for the Screamer plague. According to the bureau, the Valorians unleashed the Screamer phenomenon upon humanity as the first step in taking over the planet.

The novel's protagonist, Arthur Gregson, served as a project engineer in charge of systems aboard a US space station. A few chapters in, Gregson himself becomes a Screamie and is sent to an isolation center. “It was as though a fissure had opened into his brain to admit all the hallucinatory terror and pain ever spawned in a deranged universe. At times his entire being seemed to expand vertiginously through unknown dimensions to encompass all time and space, while the distant, fiery stars burned like embers into the weft of his soul.”

After two full years of agony, Gregson eventually returns to health, a most unusual event since only one in a thousand individuals ever recovers. Soon thereafter, Gregson receives his next assignment: to undergo specialized training at SecBu's top-secret center in Paris, where he will learn to use his new post-Screamie psychic powers, including telepathy, long-distance viewing, precognition, and the ability to read other people's minds. However, Gregson is in for a series of shocks. He comes to understand that the Screamie plague might not be caused by the Valorians at all, but rather by the Earth entering a field of radiation from across the universe. Additionally, he realizes that nearly all the top SecBu officials are Screamie survivors possessing these incredible psychic powers.

I will leave how Galouye's thriller unfolds for Gregson and the human population for each reader to discover. A Scourge of Screamers has received a number of negative reviews, an assessment with which I strongly disagree. Rather, I found the tale riveting, philosophically stimulating, and nearly impossible to put down—I eagerly kept turning the pages, fighting off sleep until I reached the end.

Turning to the philosophical, here are a number of questions we would do well to keep in mind as we progress through the chapters. What is our “normal” human perception shutting out? And to what extent is this limitation a consequence of culture? I recall anthropologist Colin Turnbull noting how the pygmies of the rainforest could read, in astonishing detail, the many signs of the various animals that had passed through a particular section of the jungle. Turnbull relates that, as a Westerner, he could read nothing at all.

With many years of meditation practice, I've become keenly aware of my breath in all its phases, an ability that enables me to rest easily in silence, solitude, and stillness. Quite different from many in our modern society who are barely aware that they are breathing. Likewise, through physical theater training, I've developed a heightened kinetic sense I did not possess in my younger years.

If our brains evolved to filter out 99% of the world around us so as to prevent overload, are we, in many respects, blind to the richness our five senses offer? Can we train ourselves to become more perceptive?

If one group possessed what are conventionally viewed as paranormal abilities—things like the telepathy, long-distance viewing, precognition, and mind-reading powers Gregson and the leaders of SecBu possess—should they use these abilities to their own advantage and at the expense of the remainder of the human population?

If the agony of a Screamie is, in effect, an evolutionary birth pang leading to heightened awareness, is such suffering desirable? In our everyday lives, are we willing to relinquish our current beliefs about ourselves and the universe in order to transform into something deeper, more profound, and more aware?

Is surrendering our freedom as individuals for safety and comfort ever justified? This question looms especially large when we encounter a society inclined to forfeit critical thinking and simply believe what it is told.

In the end, A Scourge of Screamers is not merely a post-apocalyptic thriller but a daring meditation on consciousness, conformity, fear, and the frightening price of awakening.

[Isabel (kittiwake) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Is there a link between the worldwide epidemic known as the Screamies and the rumours of aliens amongst us?

I liked the concept, but found the protagonist rather annoying as he kept behaving quite stupidly.

[Joachim Boaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full review: https://sciencefictionruminations.com...

"Recently I procured a handful of Daniel F. Galouye’s novels (here) for a few dollars on ebay because I enjoyed his first novel Dark Universe (1961), which is an underread/underrated classic of the early 60s. In an effort to rekindle public interest in Galouye’s small ouvre (he died at 54 due to war injuries and was unable to write much in the last ten years of his life), he received the Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Award in 2007. Unfortunately, Galouye’s fast-paced sci-fi thriller A Scourge of Screamers (variant title: The Lost Perception) does not measure up to the claustrophobic [...]"

[Shane Eric · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

The summary on the cover does a poor job of describing the contents of the book.

The summary portrays a deathly plague that ravages the world, painting a picture of global horror. Though a plague that causes screaming is present, the book has a heavier focus on alien espionage and hypersensitivity.

Also, Galouye over uses his made-up words, going as far as defining his made-up words with other made-up words. For example, you zylph rault, which is the absence of stygum. Rault comes from Chandeen.

[Μάριος Μητσόπουλος · Rating 3 out of 5]

Πρόκειται για ένα βιβλίο που περνάς το χρόνο σου ευχάριστα διαβάζοντας για συνωμοσίες που κρύβονται πίσω από μία ασθένεια που εξαπλώνεται, εξωγήινους κτλ. Από εκεί και πέρα κάποιο λάθος έχει γίνει στην ελληνική έκδοση καθώς o τίτλος του πρωτοτύπου είναι "A Scourge of Screamers" και το βιβλίο ανήκει στον Daniel Galouye και όχι στον Rex Merriman ο οποίος αν δεν κάνω λάθος, από μία αναζήτηση που έκανα στο internet, έχει γράψει ένα βιβλίο με τίτλο "Screamies".

[Albert_Camus_lives]

Es conocida como la PERCEPCIÓN PERDIDA o MUERTE ULULANTE

[Gr1972 · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 out of 5

[Stephen Rowland · Rating 1 out of 5]

It may sound interesting but I guarantee you it is not.

[Milo Simpson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in the 60s, The Lost Perception transports us to the dazzling far future - 1995. Good fun as a slice of classic Sci-Fi. Ultimately slightly anticlimactic.

[Landen Celano]

I can’t wait to read this. I just wanted to comment to say I appreciate whoever wrote the synopsis in all caps.

[Scott Nieradka · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was given to me by my friend Alex, in revenge for sending him a copy of "The Infinite Man". I got 50 pages in. This was the sort of book, that you bring for weeks with you on the train, but read two pages and decide looking out the window was a better idea. It was dull unpleasantry. It wasn't as bad as the infinite man, but that isn't saying much.

Well one day i left it home, and when i came home, my roommates dog, a largely untrained rescued siberian husky named 'Sputnik', greeted me, then went, tail wagging, and fetched the remains of "A scourge of screamers" now a small pile of shredded pages. He dropped it and ripped a page in front of me for good measure, and looked happily at me. He never ate a book before or since, he must of sensed this book was causing me pain in life, and decided to "help" me out by playing editor. I patted him on the head, told him he was a good dog and gave him a treat.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Earth is collapsing under the "screamies," an inexplicable epidemic of mind-warping agony. Is this the work of sinister aliens dwelling secretly among us? Or is it something more (yes I know, I wouldn't be asking the question unless it was something more)? This isn't great SF, but it's readable and I found it interesting (even though a lot of the concepts show up in another Galouye novel, Lords of the Psychon). However the hero does seem dense at times—if he'd asked for proof when the bad guys claim to have kidnapped his girlfriend, things would have gone a lot simpler.

[Doug Helms · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting interpretation of the possible side-effects of a mass expansion of consciousness, as envisioned by the author back in the '60's. I read it when it came out and, my memory tells me, found it enjoyable!

[Babete · Rating 3 out of 5]

( Os Invasores Andam Entre Nós )