The First Reginald Bretnor MEGAPACK ®: 26 Classic Science Fiction & Mystery Stories

by Reginald Bretnor

The late Reginald Bretnor (1911-1992) was never a prolific writer -- he wrote only a handful of books and about 100 short stories (and more than 120 short-short "Feghoots" under his Grendel Briarton pseudonym) -- over a 45-year writing career. In addition to wars, weaponry, and science fiction, Bretnor's broad interests included cats. (And puns. Did we mention the horrible puns?) These subjects are all touched on in this collection. A sly sense of humor permeates Bretnor's fiction, and as we work to digitize his complete body of work and present it to readers in a series of Reginald Bretnor Megapacks, we know you'll have fun reading it all. Included in this volume

SUGAR PLUM
GNURRS COME FROM THE VOODVORK OUT
CAT
MAYBE JUST A LITTLE ONE
UNKNOWN THINGS
BUG-GETTER
AUNT'S FLIGHT
DR. BIRDMOUSE
THE MAN ON TOP
THE BEASTS THAT PERISH
WITHOUT (GENERAL) ISSUE
MATING SEASON
MRS. PIGAFETTA SWIMS WELL
THE MURDERERS' CIRCLE
PAPER TIGER
FUNGO THE UNRIGHTEOUS
ALL THE TEA IN CHINA
THROUGH TIME AND SPACE WITH FERDINAND FEGHOOT (5)
THROUGH TIME AND SPACE WITH FERDINAND FEGHOOT (9)
THROUGH TIME AND SPACE WITH FERDINAND FEGHOOT (11)
THROUGH TIME AND SPACE WITH FERDINAND FEGHOOT (13)
THROUGH TIME AND SPACE WITH FERDINAND FEGHOOT (77)
THROUGH TIME AND SPACE WITH FERDINAND FEGHOOT (95)
THROUGH TIME AND SPACE WITH FERDINAND FEGHOOT (101)
THROUGH TIME AND SPACE WITH FERDINAND FEGHOOT (108)
THROUGH TIME AND SPACE WITH FERDINAND FEGHOOT (EPSILON)

And don't forget to search this ebook store for "Wildside Press Megapack" to see all the entries in the Megapack series -- including volumes of science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, westerns, and much, much more!

Genres: Science Fiction

216 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Shaun · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bretnor, if his Wikipedia article is to be believed (and it's on the Internet, so why not?) was a really interesting type with a very wide range of interests. This is the first of two "megapack" collections of his work, and covers more than two dozen of his works, mostly short pieces.

The stories here vary a bit ("Sugar Plum" was wry and amusing, the Schimmelhorn and Feghoot pieces mostly painful), but all are infused with Bretnor’s humor. They are clearly from an earlier time. The writing style is more formal, even a bit stiff, compared to much current writing. The stories also often reflect fairly dated social sensibilities. They are, though, a reasonably engaging trip back into time -- even if not all of the stories will appeal equally to contemporary readers.

The score:
Smirk factor: All clear -- 2 pts. (3 “smirks” in 192 pages)
Immersion factor: Damp -- 0.5 pts
Writing quality: Average -- 1 pt
Character/plot development: Above-average -- 1.5 pts (At their best, these work well.)
Innovative/interesting: Average -- 1 pt
Total: 6/10 (3.0 stars)

If this didn't scare you off, there is a longer review of both Megapacks on my blog here.

[Chris Aldridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part 2 of this Mindwebs audiobook 37 is this more of a joke than even a micro-story “Through Time and Space with Ferdinand Feghoot” included in this collection. He used the pseudonym Grendel Briaton and provided further confusion by writing many many “Through Time and Space with Ferdinand Feghoot” episodes.
Apparently he often used terrible puns, this joke is no exception.

[Falbs · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, but more silly than intense in most of these stories.

[Max Nemtsov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Избранное еще одного удивительного осколка дальневосточной атлантиды. Реджиналд Бретнор родился в 1911-м во Владивостоке, папа — латышский еврей (и банкир), мама — англичанка, так что на самом деле он Реджиналд Алфред Григорьевич Кан (или Каган). Часть жизни провел в Японии, в Штатах служил в последнем кавалерийском подразделении, потом был спецпропагандистом и котолюбом (даже считал, что у него с кошками духовная связь); поговаривают, участвовал в секте Лавея и был в его «Ордене Трапезоида». Худла написал немного (это у него было хобби), но оно все качественное и неимоверно развлекательное (даже пресловутые «Фегуты»). Это такая широко понимаемая спекулятивная литература, с юмором, интригой и традицией (а жанр неважен — у него не все даже фантастика в научном смысле). В общем, сказочник он, на самом деле.
В обличие от кошек, следов Владивостока в его текстах пока не обнаружено. Как и русских переводов, за исключением пятка рассказов в разных журналах, но каково там качество — бог весть, должно быть дрянное, если они даже «Maybe Just a Little One» переводили как «Ну, может, по маленькой», умельцы хреновы (вы можете себе представить, чтобы жена в такой форме обращалась к изобретателю с просьбой сделать атомную бомбу?). Так что Бретнор, как и много что другое, остается в этой стране непрочитанным, даже переводчиками.