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Known Space (Publication Order) #tboks.3
Wait It Out
The tragic story of the first manned expedition to Pluto, and the fate of the surviving astronaut who finds a unique way to prolong his lifespan in hopes of rescue.
20 min.
20 min.
1 pages, Audiobook
Published September 19, 2017
1 person is currently reading
58 people want to read
About the author
Larry Niven
689 books3,322 followersLaurence van Cott Niven's best known work is Ringworld (Ringworld, #1) (1970), which received the Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics. The creation of thoroughly worked-out alien species, which are very different from humans both physically and mentally, is recognized as one of Niven's main strengths.
Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes The Magic Goes Away series, which utilizes an exhaustible resource, called Mana, to make the magic a non-renewable resource.
Niven created an alien species, the Kzin, which were featured in a series of twelve collection books, the Man-Kzin Wars. He co-authored a number of novels with Jerry Pournelle. In fact, much of his writing since the 1970s has been in collaboration, particularly with Pournelle, Steven Barnes, Brenda Cooper, or Edward M. Lerner.
He briefly attended the California Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics (with a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas, in 1962. He did a year of graduate work in mathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has since lived in Los Angeles suburbs, including Chatsworth and Tarzana, as a full-time writer. He married Marilyn Joyce "Fuzzy Pink" Wisowaty, herself a well-known science fiction and Regency literature fan, on September 6, 1969.
Niven won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story for Neutron Star in 1967. In 1972, for Inconstant Moon, and in 1975 for The Hole Man. In 1976, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette for The Borderland of Sol.
Niven has written scripts for various science fiction television shows, including the original Land of the Lost series and Star Trek: The Animated Series, for which he adapted his early Kzin story The Soft Weapon. He adapted his story Inconstant Moon for an episode of the television series The Outer Limits in 1996.
He has also written for the DC Comics character Green Lantern including in his stories hard science fiction concepts such as universal entropy and the redshift effect, which are unusual in comic books.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/larryn...
Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes The Magic Goes Away series, which utilizes an exhaustible resource, called Mana, to make the magic a non-renewable resource.
Niven created an alien species, the Kzin, which were featured in a series of twelve collection books, the Man-Kzin Wars. He co-authored a number of novels with Jerry Pournelle. In fact, much of his writing since the 1970s has been in collaboration, particularly with Pournelle, Steven Barnes, Brenda Cooper, or Edward M. Lerner.
He briefly attended the California Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics (with a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas, in 1962. He did a year of graduate work in mathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has since lived in Los Angeles suburbs, including Chatsworth and Tarzana, as a full-time writer. He married Marilyn Joyce "Fuzzy Pink" Wisowaty, herself a well-known science fiction and Regency literature fan, on September 6, 1969.
Niven won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story for Neutron Star in 1967. In 1972, for Inconstant Moon, and in 1975 for The Hole Man. In 1976, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette for The Borderland of Sol.
Niven has written scripts for various science fiction television shows, including the original Land of the Lost series and Star Trek: The Animated Series, for which he adapted his early Kzin story The Soft Weapon. He adapted his story Inconstant Moon for an episode of the television series The Outer Limits in 1996.
He has also written for the DC Comics character Green Lantern including in his stories hard science fiction concepts such as universal entropy and the redshift effect, which are unusual in comic books.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/larryn...
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
March 15, 2022
Short story about a man trapped on Pluto when their expedition came to a calamitous end. Think The Martian but much, much shorter and without the happy ending.
Like many SF short stories, it tries to wrap up an entire story and a clever premise in too few words. Niven comments at the end that this is the closest he came to a "New Wave SF story" because the main character never actually moves a muscle, which is not really enough to make it memorable.
Like many SF short stories, it tries to wrap up an entire story and a clever premise in too few words. Niven comments at the end that this is the closest he came to a "New Wave SF story" because the main character never actually moves a muscle, which is not really enough to make it memorable.
October 1, 2021
What do you do when your spaceship gets disabled on Pluto and you don’t have the resources to survive until a rescue ship can get to you? Niven’s answer is both unique and clever.
January 17, 2020
Oh, how I wish this book would of went on a bit longer. I really enjoyed the creative and unique story line of this book. The story follows a mission sent to Pluto comes to a horrible end with a lack of oxygen and how one man comes up with a plan to survive. I highly recommend this short story.
April 13, 2025
3 Stars because it’s just too short to rise to a higher level. Larry Niven touches on some great themes and I think a longer story could have really dug into them. The horrifying ending, is just touched upon, leading the read to imagine the terror accompanying the realization of the rest of the characters “life”
July 11, 2021
Short, simple, awesome concept.
December 23, 2020
An expedition to Pluto goes wrong and a man is trapped on the surface. He must figure out a way to stay alive until a rescue mission can reach him.
The ending was good, but it wasn't completely thought out. (That is the problem with many short stories.)
The ending was good, but it wasn't completely thought out. (That is the problem with many short stories.)
November 12, 2022
Great New Wave short story. I love how this could have been a technical article about the science of traveling and landing on Pluto given what was known back then. Niven managed to wrap it into a simple short story from a very unique perspective. Great writing and a fast read that is well worth it.
March 4, 2020
Short story. Excellent. Guy on Pluto.
January 25, 2021
This seemed artificially short, even for a short story. Man goes to Pluto. It is very cold. He comes to term with a fundamental fact of existence.
March 1, 2022
Damn, it's cold.
April 9, 2022
The first book I read by Larry Niven was A World Out of Time. Clearly, all these decades later he is still fascinated by frozen people. :)
November 22, 2023
To be beautifully sad and lonely.
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May 5, 2025* i review with words, not stars*
Color me confused. I had no idea this was a short story. And I still don't understand the orbit of Pluto.
Color me confused. I had no idea this was a short story. And I still don't understand the orbit of Pluto.
November 17, 2021
Another pretty good story, but I'll be honest, probably going to be unmemorable. I've enjoyed Niven's other shorts more.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews