Third from the Sun

by Richard Matheson, Gene Szafran (Illustrator)

Text on rear cover:

"Extraordinary, hair-raising science fiction that makes you believe you are there!

*Meet Loolie from Venus - she ads in mags for mates with like fixtures!
*Move with the time traveler to a civilization where dirty postcards are pictures of... food!
*Ride on the last space ship leaving... for earth!
*Fall in love with Lover - she wants to wrap her warm, pink mind around yours!
*Live dangerously and adventurously with Richard Matheson who can make the unbelievable seem true."

Genres: Science Fiction, Horror, Short Stories, Fantasy, Fiction, Collections, The United States Of America

180 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1954

About the author

Born in Allendale, New Jersey to Norwegian immigrant parents, Matheson was raised in Brooklyn and graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School in 1943. He then entered the military and spent World War II as an infantry soldier. In 1949 he earned his bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Missouri and moved to California in 1951. He married in 1952 and has four children, three of whom (Chris, Richard Christian, and Ali Matheson) are writers of fiction and screenplays.

His first short story, "Born of Man and Woman," appeared in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 1950. The tale of a monstrous child chained in its parents' cellar, it was told in the first person as the creature's diary (in poignantly non-idiomatic English) and immediately made Matheson famous. Between 1950 and 1971, Matheson produced dozens of stories, frequently blending elements of the science fiction, horror and fantasy genres.

Several of his stories, like "Third from the Sun" (1950), "Deadline" (1959) and "Button, Button" (1970) are simple sketches with twist endings; others, like "Trespass" (1953), "Being" (1954) and "Mute" (1962) explore their characters' dilemmas over twenty or thirty pages. Some tales, such as "The Funeral" (1955) and "The Doll that Does Everything" (1954) incorporate zany satirical humour at the expense of genre clichés, and are written in an hysterically overblown prose very different from Matheson's usual pared-down style. Others, like "The Test" (1954) and "Steel" (1956), portray the moral and physical struggles of ordinary people, rather than the then nearly ubiquitous scientists and superheroes, in situations which are at once futuristic and everyday. Still others, such as "Mad House" (1953), "The Curious Child" (1954) and perhaps most famously, "Duel" (1971) are tales of paranoia, in which the everyday environment of the present day becomes inexplicably alien or threatening.

He wrote a number of episodes for the American TV series The Twilight Zone, including "Steel," mentioned above and the famous "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet"; adapted the works of Edgar Allan Poe for Roger Corman and Dennis Wheatley's The Devil Rides Out for Hammer Films; and scripted Steven Spielberg's first feature, the TV movie Duel, from his own short story. He also contributed a number of scripts to the Warner Brothers western series "The Lawman" between 1958 and 1962. In 1973, Matheson earned an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for his teleplay for The Night Stalker, one of two TV movies written by Matheson that preceded the series Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Matheson also wrote the screenplay for Fanatic (US title: Die! Die! My Darling!) starring Talullah Bankhead and Stefanie Powers.

Novels include The Shrinking Man (filmed as The Incredible Shrinking Man, again from Matheson's own screenplay), and a science fiction vampire novel, I Am Legend, which has been filmed three times under the titles The Omega Man and The Last Man on Earth and once under the original title. Other Matheson novels turned into notable films include What Dreams May Come, Stir of Echoes, Bid Time Return (as Somewhere in Time), and Hell House (as The Legend of Hell House) and the aforementioned Duel, the last three adapted and scripted by Matheson himself. Three of his short stories were filmed together as Trilogy of Terror, including "Prey" with its famous Zuni warrior doll.

In 1960, Matheson published The Beardless Warriors, a nonfantastic, autobiographical novel about teenage American soldiers in World War II.

He died at his home on June 23, 2013, at the age of 87

http://us.macmillan.com/author/richar...

Reviews

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great collection of stories! My absolute favorite was the title story, Third From The Sun. A test pilot, his neighbor and their families plan to leave earth forever. "In a few years, probably less, the whole planet would go up with a blinding flash. This was the only way out." The story was written in the 50s. Now we are in the 90s. Covid struck and everything seems slowly go to hell... if you want to escape mentally I would highly recommend reading those stories here. Classics!

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an early collection of thirteen fantasy and sf short stories by Matheson; it is primarily a reprint of his 1954 hardcover collection Born of Man and Woman but omits four of the stories. Most of them appeared in the genre digests of the early 1950s (Galaxy, Fantastic, Beyond, and F&SF), but a couple were original to the hardcover book, and one, the Foodlegger (listed here as F___), was printed in Thrilling Wonder Stories, a true pulp magazine. The two titular stories are the best known, of course, but Matheson's easy, facile style that stood him in such good stead throughout his long and prolific screenwriting career mixes the humorous with the horrific smoothly, and while there are some unavoidable issues of dating here and there in all of the tales, they're still a fun read.

[Olethros · Rating 3 out of 5]

-Inicios, solo inicios, pero vaya inicios.-

Género. Relatos.

Lo que nos cuenta. El libro El tercero a partir del sol (publicación original: Third from the Sun, 1954) es una recopilación de trece relatos de los inicios de Matheson, escritos entre 1950 y 1954, todos publicados previamente en distintas revistas de género excepto dos que eran inéditos para este volumen, y que nos permitirán conocer que algunas vivencias son eternas e inmutables, costumbres desagradables para las personas de otras épocas, la huida de unas personas lejos de su planeta, un par de viajes en el tiempo, cómo las creencias y manías afectan a una boda o, entre otros, los problemas en una colonia espacial.

¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:

https://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com...

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

BORN OF MAN AND WOMAN - This isn't the first time that I read this short story, and I have to say it doesn't get old. You are left dying to know....what is it? Your heart breaks for it's treatment, and yet wonder's if you possibly wouldn't do the same in those people's shoes? Excellent story! (5 stars)

THIRD FROM THE SUN - I loved this episode of Twilight Zone and it's really cool to finally read the actual story it originated from. Great story and the final punchline...if you didn't know it already...will make you speechless! (5 stars)

LOVER WHEN YOU'RE NEAR ME - This story really surprised me in the direction that it took. What starts as a simple science fiction story becomes a classic story about a sort of fatal attraction. Well done. (5 stars)

SRL Ad - With our world where people use Match.com, Harmony, and probably a dozen other single's type ads to meet people, here's a quite unique take. The fact that it is about half a century old, only ads to the genius of Matheson. (5 stars)

MAD HOUSE - What an interesting premise. Is This house haunted? Possessed? Or can it simply affect a person's mood? It makes you wonder. (5 stars)

F--- - This story surprised me and even made me laugh. Not that it's a comedy, but the item that is so taboo in this story will make you laugh. Of course, if you look past that, it could be anything....something closer to home....and it wouldn't be so funny then. (5 stars)

DEAR DIARY - This fairly short piece is very interesting. It is 3 similar diary entries, but from 3 very different time periods. Things just never change. (4 stars)

TO FIT THE CRIME - This story left me wondering until the end. I was wondering where the story was going. But when we got there.....WOW....it really gives new meaning to "What goes around, comes around!" (4 stars)

DRESS OF WHITE SILK - This story starts off with a child missing her mother, who we gather is deceased. She likes to spend time in her mother's room, touching her soft bedspread, smelling her perfumes, looking at her dress. But it ends so much darker than that! (5 stars)

DISAPPEARING ACT - What a nightmare! I don't want to give anything away, because the charm in this story is the gradual unveiling....or disappearing...that takes place. Well done! (5 stars)

THE WEDDING - This is the story of Frank and Fulvia, who are getting ready to be married. Frank is more than a little supersticiious. That's even putting it mildly. Just to start off, he can't marry on a Wednesday or a Thursday, and it get's weirder from there. Are there consequences for not taking all these things into consideration? Or is he just crazy? (5 stars)

SHIPSHAPE HOME - This story reminded me of Stephen King's House On Maple Street. Now, I know where Uncle Stevie must have gotten his inspirations. Nice. (5 stars)

THE TRAVELLER - This story was pretty amazing, in my opinion. Imagine you could go back and time to witness not only a famous historical moment....but a life-changing one? Wow! (5 stars)

[Sophie Pajakowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a lovely time with this collection of short stories! Honestly, at first I only read it because I loved the cover and I wanted to look cool in the subway, but then I really started loving each short story for how different and transformative they all were, separately of each other! As with any collection of short stories, some were better than others. I particularly enjoyed SRL AD, F—-, SHIPSHAPE HOME, and THE WEDDING. I have to really admire Matheson’s ability to make the truly unbelievable seem true!!

Also wow I only now realize that Matheson was a writer on The Twilight Zone…. that makes a lot of sense

[G.A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Belle storie tra la fantascienza e l'horror. Alcune delle vere perle, altre meno, ma per una raccolta di racconti è normale.

[Edward · Rating 5 out of 5]

Richard Matheson's Third from the Sun is a masterclass in compact, chilling, and wildly imaginative storytelling.

This collection of 13 weird, horrific, and sci-fi tales (pulled from his earlier work) grabs you from the very first page with "Born of Man and Woman" – that haunting, childlike narration of a mutant's existence is pure nightmare fuel, raw and unforgettable. From there, it's a relentless ride through paranoia, apocalypse, alien encounters, and the darkest corners of the human (and inhuman) mind.

Every story packs a punch: the title tale's tense escape to what turns out to be our own doomed world is clever and haunting in its irony, "Lover When You're Near Me" delivers eerie psychological dread, and "Mad House" is a claustrophobic descent into madness that lingers long after. Matheson’s prose is lean, precise, and razor-sharp – he doesn’t waste a word, yet each one lands with emotional weight.

But oh man, the finale – "The Traveller" – elevates the whole book to something transcendent. A time-traveler witnessing the crucifixion of Christ, grappling with history, faith, and awe in the most intimate, human way… it’s profound, moving, and unexpectedly spiritual. Coming after all the sci-fi horror and twists, it hits like a quiet revelation, leaving you stunned and reflective. What a perfect capstone to this wild journey.

If you love tight, unsettling short fiction that blends science fiction with horror and deep human insight – think early Twilight Zone vibes (Matheson wrote for it, after all) – this collection is essential. Pure genius. 5 glowing stars, no question. Highly recommend!

[irene ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

El primer libro que leo de Matheson y fue sólo meh. 😐

Las primeras historias me gustaron por como combina la ciencia ficción con "terror", pero luego esa fórmula se vuelve muy repetitiva. Me costó mucho terminarlo.

[Nataliia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Escaping from the wars... For what...
Emotional short read

[Ravi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great collection of short stories from a pioneering author who wrote for Twilight Zone. Of the thirteen stories presented here there are some strong and enduring works. I will include brief comments for each story.

A+
Born of Man and Woman - A story of neglect, mistreatment and cruelty to a child (or is it). Matheson deliberately constructs the story from the perspective of a child with limited vocabulary and grammar making its emotional weight that much more significant.

Lover when you're near me - Has a gothic horror feel with terror and dread at a remote space colony. The story carries a strong sense of forboding and isolation as a man is stuck overseeing the work being done at the colony by the native aliens. His predecessors all seem to have been driven insane during their terms and we see him devolve slowly as the influence of his female alien "carer" begins to grate on him.

Disappearing Act - Great twilight zoneish story with an excellent frame narrative. Written in the found-journal tradition.

Shipshape Home - Another pulpy story with a nice twist ending. This one felt more like a Goosebumps story but I enjoyed it a lot. There's a great apartment with 5 bedrooms at only $50 rent. It's fully furnished too. What's the catch?

A
F___ - Excellent time-travel story about a future where it is blasphemous to possess or consume F___. This story was slightly pulpy but I enjoyed how the last story in this collection references this one.

The Traveller - The last story in the collection about a time-traveller who goes back to witness the Death of Christ.

Third from the Sun - Wonderful science fiction story about a man trying to escape and save his family from a dying planet.

The Wedding - Another really great twilight zone type story. A man wants to marry his chubby fiance but he is obsessed with all manner of superstitions. He doesn't want to marry on Thursday or Wednesday, he insists that his father-in-law sell his daughter to him for $15 and he does many other things to try to safeguard his wedding from evil spirits. But will it work?

The other stories such as MAD HOUSE and SRL AD are also quite good. Overall this has a great selection of stories from a writer who really uses these stories to reach across genre while utilising multiple writing styles. Most importantly the stories are entertaining.

[N. M. D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

"With words I have knit my shroud and will bury myself within."

It was no surprise to learn that Matheson wrote Twilight Zone episodes. These tightly-crafted stories often have those exact sort of twists. Ranging from fun to wonderous to dark to sentimental, it's a pleasure to read so many stories that know exactly what they want to do, and do it. Sometimes I don't like what they had to say, in the case of the sappily Christian final entry, but it was still concise and clearly made.

I was struck with how much I was reminded of Harlan Ellison, both in prose and topics. It's almost like they used the same prompts to write different stories. Both also use snappy, biting, active language. Ellison more so, but Matheson is way ahead of his time with both style and topics. Some stories are timeless, and with minor language tweaks, most could be. You could tell me they were written in any decade from the 50s and to now and I'd believe you.

This is my third Matheson in 2022. He's now on my list of authors I'll pick up anything from.

[Sean Spooner · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was overall okay. It was comprised of many independent short stories. Some of them were interesting, and others not so much. It almost felt like he was "throwing a bunch at the wall to see if it sticks". Many of the shorter stories felt like they didn't need to be included, while many of the more interesting ones felt too short. I could certainly see others enjoying this book more than I did it certainly wasn't bad.
The Disappearing Act was probably my favorite story. More and more is revealed to the reader as it goes on, and you truly feel the protagonist's fear and confusion throughout.
Lover When You're Near Me was another great story, very suspenseful. You really feel for the protagonist as more and more is revealed to him.
Looking back over the table of contents makes me realize how little impact this book had on me. I have a hard time recalling any salient details of many of the stories besides the two mentioned above.

[Deydre · Rating 3 out of 5]

En general, los relatos no han estado mal, pero se repite el patrón mujer+hombre escritor en algunos de ellos y la verdad después de algunos relatos, eso ya cansa. Dejando a un lado esto, creo que hay relatos bastante buenos y destacables, y siempre desde una perspectiva de terror y de incertidumbre, algo que no me esperaba para nada.

Mis favoritos han sido:

· Cuando estás cerca, amor mío (este es mi favorito, es buenísimo)
· Anuncios por palabras
· "C....."
· Desaparición
· La fachada
· El viajero

Aún así, creo que el libro empieza con un par de historias originales y con mucha potencia, y conforme vas leyendo no vuelve a ser lo mismo.. pero ha sido una lectura agradable.

[Aaron Martz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shipshape Home, about tenants who begin to think their apartment building is an alien spacecraft, and The Traveler, about a time traveler who goes back in time to witness the crucifixion of Jesus, save this book from the heap. Third From the Sun and Disappearing Act are good stories that were improved upon by their Twilight Zone episodes, and Mad House has an interesting idea buried in it - about a house that feeds on the negative emotions of its inhabitants - but the story that surrounds it is poorly constructed. The rest of the stories are passable, but don't measure up to the best of Matheson.

[Ryan Diederich · Rating 3 out of 5]

The stories are great, though each does deal with the same cold war anxieties, moralities, and ethics that they become tired when read all together. I kept thinking to myself that many are a bit Twilight Zone-y, but of course Matheson was one of the ones writing that, wasn’t he?

That’s the struggle with a collection like this — iconic stories rendered plain (which is itself a great success), which would be later referenced/adapted to death that they lose some of that spark. There’s nothing outstanding about the language that gives any of the stories much life beyond the great punchline of their endings.

[Joachim Boaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

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

"I have a confession to make. I have never read Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend (1954). I do not like vampires. I do not like any movies or TV shows with vampires. Thus, as is my wont when trying a new author, I procured a short story collection to experience a range of visions.

Matheson’s collection Third From the Sun (1955) contains 13 of the 17 short SF works found [..]"

[Mariko1988 · Rating 4 out of 5]

-Nato da uomo e donna (Born of Man and Woman, 1950)
- Terzo dal Sole (Third from the Sun, 1951)
- La piovra immonda (Lover When You're Near Me, 1952)
- Venusiana sola (SRL Ad, 1952)
- La casa folle (Mad House, 1953)
- C... (F..., 1954)
- Caro diario (Dear Diary, 1954)
- Parole, parole (To Fit the Crime, 1952)
- Un vestito di seta bianca (Dress of White Silk, 1951)
- Pezzo per pezzo (Disappearing Act, 1953)
- Matrimonio (The Wedding, 1953)
-L'impossibile fuga (Shipshape Home, 1952) di
- Il viaggiatore (The Traveller, 1954)

[Matthew J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matheson is a solid short story writer. No shock he's go on to write a bunch of 'Twilight Zone' episodes. This is a nice sample of his early work. Nothing Earth shattering. No stories that should go down in stone to be remembered for all time. But it's a good collection. Several stories, like so many of 50s, deal with the disillusionment with societal expectations, particularly in relation to being a writer.

[Viktor · Rating 4 out of 5]

There seems to be a couple versions of this collection out there. I read a version with 13 stories, but with some of the above listed replaced with others. The stories in both versions are taken from the collection "Born Of Man And Woman".

So there you go.

In any case, it's a terrific collection. Interestingly, there are 2 time travel stories that have the same name for the protagonist and the same setting. They are different as night and day.

[Jose Cruz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recopilación de relatos de ciencia ficción de 162 páginas, publicada en 1954. Salvo tres, que me han parecido más flojos, el nivel de los trece relatos, de los que se componen este libro, me ha parecido muy elevado. Y en concreto el séptimo, mi favorito "Según conviene al crimen", una verdadera joya. He disfrutado de la maravillosa imaginación de Matheson y de su ágil e inmersiva prosa. De lectura muy recomendada.

[Mark D'Gabriel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Matheson's works show him as a master of the frightening and unexpected. This collection includes the origin of multiple Twilight Zone episodes, and, even after almost 70 years, will surprise you and leave you with dread. Highly recommended, especially if you want to see the history of the sf genre at its creepiest.

[Eddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short story collection highlights the diversity of Richard Matheson’s writing. Though most stories are horror or sci-fi, there are a few that are more humorous in nature and others that are dramatic set in contemporary settings. If you are a fan of the Twilight Zone then you’d appreciate the title story as well as several others in this collection.

[Xabi1990 · Rating 3 out of 5]

5/10. Media de los 3 libros leídos del autor : 5/10

la fama de Matheson creo que ha venido por "Soy Leyenda", mas gracias a que la peli la protagonizaba Will Smith que a otra cosa (creo). Pues bien, a mi los tres libros que leí suyos de chaval ni fu ni fa.

[Vee · Rating 4 out of 5]

short stories of varying quality, as is always the case. but I like Rich! he's got some cheesy humor but when it gets serious it's deadly serious. definitely enjoy those more than the light hearted ones

[Juan Fuentes · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5

Matheson fue guionista de la serie La dimensión desconocida y estos relatos tienen ese estilo, historias en los límites de la realidad con un giro sorprendente final.

https://liblit.com/richard-matheson-e...

[Netanella · Rating 5 out of 5]

For fans of Matheson and horror fiction, this is an excellent collection of his short stories.

[Bri (the short story guy) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Feels like a Bradbury right outta The Illustrated Man.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Few people create tension and build upon it as well as Richard Matheson did. For that reason, these SF stories from the early 1950s hold up better than just about any other SF from that period.

[Naila_ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un racconto davvero piacevole, ascoltato in audiobook.

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actually was the Twilight Zone Radio Drama version