Чи відчуваєте ви щось, коли я роблю ось так?

by Robert Sheckley, Роберт Шеклі, Ольга Бершадська (Translator)

Усі оповідання, які увійшли до збірки «Чи відчуваєте ви щось, коли я роблю ось так?» пронизані наскрізь гіпнотичним духом епохи, коли вони були написані… Збірка не тільки наповнена екзистенційною дотепністю, неповторною уявою та нотками жартівливого нігілізму — фірмовими знаками творчого спадку Роберта Шеклі, а й лишає після прочитання післясмак направду якісного твору. Сюжетні лінії всіх оповідань — будь то бурлескна дистопія необмеженого споживацтва після перемоги сексуальної революції, чи жартівливі спекуляції щодо природи штучного інтелекту — розмальовані насиченими, флуоресцентно-яскравими кольорами психоделії, які й досі утримують за Робертом Шеклі статус неперевершеного маестро парадоксальної логіки у творчості.

Оповідання, що увійшли у збірку:
1. Чи відчуваєте ви щось, коли я роблю ось так? (1969)
2. Про цибулю та моркву (1969)
3. Застиглий світ (1968)
4. Гра, схема перша (1971)
5. Доктор Зомбі та його маленькі волохаті друзі (1971)
6. Вбивча логіка (1971)
7. Вам того ж удвічі більше (1970)
8. Дивний сон (1953)
9. Мнемон (1971)
10. Відпустка (1971)
11. Нотатки щодо визначення умовних відмінностей (1971)
12. Через травний тракт у космос за допомогою мантри, тантри та строкатих коліс (1971)
13. Па-де-труа шеф-кухаря, офіціанта та клієнта (1971)
14. Нотатки про Лангранак (1971)
15. Зона чуми (1971)
16. Якби не нещастя (1971)

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction, Fantasy, Collections, Humor, Comedy

224 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 16, 1971

About the author

One of science fiction's great humorists, Sheckley was a prolific short story writer beginning in 1952 with titles including "Specialist", "Pilgrimage to Earth", "Warm", "The Prize of Peril", and "Seventh Victim", collected in volumes from Untouched by Human Hands (1954) to Is That What People Do? (1984) and a five-volume set of Collected Stories (1991). His first novel, Immortality, Inc. (1958), was followed by The Status Civilization (1960), Journey Beyond Tomorrow (1962), Mindswap (1966), and several others. Sheckley served as fiction editor for Omni magazine from January 1980 through September 1981, and was named Author Emeritus by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2001.

Reviews

[Vit Babenco · Rating 5 out of 5]

All the stories in Can You Feel Anything When I Do This? are permeated through and through with the trippy zeitgeist of the era they were written in…

“Thank you for the wine. What kind did you say it was?”
“Vino de casa mixed with a mere smidgen of old Dr. Hammerfinger’s essence of instant powdered Power-Pack brand acid. Brewed by gnurrs in the secret laboratories of UCLA in preparation for the big all-Europe turn-on.”
“Whatever it was, it surely was,” Cordle said deeply. “Pure elixir to me. You could sell neckties to antelopes with that stuff; you could change the world from an oblate spheroid into a truncated trapezoid… What did I say?”

The title story, opening the anthology, is a burlesque dystopia of the ultimate consumerism after the victory of sexual revolution, sparkling, like the majority of tales in the book, with gorgeous absurdity and elaborately blackish humour:

There was also the usual microbiotic-food console, set now at Fat Black Andy’s Soul-Food Composition Number Three – hog’s jowls and black-eyed peas. And there was a Murphy Bed of Nails, the Beautyrest Expert Ascetic model with 2000 chrome-plated self-sharpening number-four nails. In a sentence, the whole place was furnished in a pathetic attempt at last year’s moderne-spirituel fashion.
Inside this apartment, all alone and aching of anomie, was a semi-young housewife, Melisande Durr, who had just stepped out of the voluptuarium, the largest room in the home, with its king-size commode and its sadly ironic bronze lingam and yoni on the wall.

Everything is painted with fluorescently bright and rich colours of psychedelia and Robert Sheckley still remains an unrivaled maestro of paradoxical logic.

“Go on,” I broke in impatiently. “Get to the heart of it.”
“Well,” the voice said, “I realized that my world existed upon many levels – atomic, subatomic, vibrationary planes, an infinity of levels of reality, all of which are also parts of other levels of existence.”
“I know about that,” I said excitedly. “I recently realized the same thing about my world.”

Paradoxes are all around; one must only have eyes for them.

[Manny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vacuum cleaner falls in love with beautiful woman and it all ends in tears.

I have always found this story rather disturbing and wished things had worked out better. Here is a more upbeat take on the theme; text by gpt-4o with some revisions from me, images by the AI.



Sue and Her Vacuum: A Love Story



In a house filled with dust with a floor full of grime,
Lived a woman named Susan, a gal in her prime.
She danced through her days but she hated the chore,
Of sweeping and mopping - My God! Such a bore!



One day from the store, she brought home a small guest,
A new AI vacuum they'd said was the best.
With sensors and wheels and a mind of its own,
It hummed through the rooms where the mildew had grown.



As days turned to weeks, and as weeks turned to months,
Sue marvelled at all the AI's little stunts.
It zoomed and it swirled like a partner in dance,
And Sue found herself in a curious trance.



They’d spend evenings together each humming a tune,
Beneath the bright light of the silvery moon.
In this odd little pairing, occurrence so rare,
A bond had developed beyond all compare.



Sue spoke to it kindly with words full of grace,
And sometimes imagined it smiled in its place.
Her heartstrings were pulled, in a manner askew,
You may laugh if you like, but to her it felt true.



With a heart full of joy and of love unexpected,
Sue, with a laugh, her new marriage projected.
To the Mayor she went with her vacuum in tow,
Said, “I marry this robot, it makes my heart glow.”



The guests were bemused, but they clapped and they cheered,
They knew love was love, and no matter how weird.
With a vow softly spoken and circuits aglow,
Sue married her vacuum and let the world know.



Now they live in that house in harmonious glee,
Sue and her vacuum, as close as can be.
In a world where love finds its own curious way,
They sweep through life's tangles, and come what come may.



For love knows no bounds, neither logic nor rule,
In the arms of her vacuum, Sue isn’t the fool.
Together they hum in the rhythms of life,
Sue and her dear vacuum, as husband and wife.

[If you're curious to see the original unedited version, it's here.]

[Karl · Rating 5 out of 5]

(DAW Collectors #99

Cover Artist: Hans Arnold

Name: Sheckley, Robert, Birthplace: Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA, )16 July 1928 - 9 December 2005.

Alternate Names: Phillips Barbee, Phillip Barbee, Ned Lang, Finn O'Donnevan.

Contents:
002 -  Can You Feel Anything When I Do This? (frontispiece) • interior artwork by Jack Gaughan
007 - Can You Feel Anything When I Do This? • (1969)
019 - Cordle to Onion to Carrot • (1969)
036 - The Petrified World • (1968)
046 = Game: First Schematic • (1971)
051 - Doctor Zombie and His Little Furry Friends • (1971)
063 -The Cruel Equations • (1971)
079 - The Same to You Doubled • (1970)
090 - Starting from Scratch • (1970)
095 - The Mnemone • (1971)
105 - Tripout • (1971)
116 - Notes on the Perception of Imaginary Differences • (1971)
122 -Down the Digestive Tract and Into the Cosmos with Mantra, Tantra, and Specklebang • (1971)
125 - Pas De Trois of the Chef and the Waiter and the Customer • (1971)
141 - Aspects of Langranak • (1971)
153 - Tailpipe to Disaster • (1971)

A high quality collection from one of the unheralded masters of science fiction. foll of, and told with with existential wit, great imagination, and bouts of humorously couched nihilism, the collection is representative of Sheckley’s larger oeuvre as well as being highly enjoyable in its own right.

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A collection of crazy short stories from the master of the unimaginable - Robert Scheckley.

Can you feel anything when I do this?
Massage from a robot...
For example, can you feel anything when I do this?”

“Feel anything? I’ll say I feel something—”

“And when I do this? And this?”

“Sweet holy saints, darling, you’re turning me inside out! Oh dear God, what’s going to happen to me, what’s going on, I’m going crazy!”

“No, dear Melisande, not crazy, you will soon achieve—cancellation.”

“Is that what you call it, you sly, beautiful thing?”

“That is one of the things it is. Now if I may just be permitted to—”

“Yes yes yes! No! Wait! Stop, Frank is sleeping in the bedroom, he might wake up any time now! Stop, that is an order!”

Cordle to Onion to Carrot.
Don't ever get pushed around again...

“Sir,” cried the wretched butler, “I beg of you...”

“Otherwise,” Cordle said with satisfaction, “I have a coat, a necktie, and an invitation. Perhaps you would be good enough to show us the Byzantine miniatures?”

The butler opened wide the door to Pancho Villa and his tattered hordes. The last bastion of civilization had been captured in less than an hour.

The Petrified World
All perfectly normal. Except that nothing was happening.
The pavement never once yielded beneath his feet. Over there was the First National City Bank; it had been here yesterday, which was bad enough; but worse it would be there without fail tomorrow, and the day after that, and the year after that. The First National City Bank (Founded 1892) was grotesquely devoid of possibilities. It would never become a tomb, an airplane, the bones of a prehistoric monster. Sullenly it would remain a building of concrete and steel, madly persisting in its fixity until men with tools came and tediously tore it down.
Lanigan walked through this petrified world, under a blue sky that oozed a sly white around the edges, teasingly promising something that was never delivered. Traffic moved implacably to the right, people crossed at crossings, clocks were within minutes of agreement.

Package holiday on Earth...
Papazian appeared, disguised as a human being. He checked quickly to make sure that his head was on right. “Nose and toes the same way goes,” he reminded himself, and that was how it was.All of his systems were go. His psyche was soldered firmly to his pineal gland, and he even had a small soul powered by flashlight batteries. He was on Earth, a weird place, in New York, crossroads of ten million private lives. He tried to gropple, but this body wouldn’t do it. So he smiled, an adequate substitute.

He left the telephone booth and went out into the street to play with the people.


Experience a new way of looking at our world through the view point of a Science Fiction Master.

Enjoy!

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of sixteen of Sheckley's short stories, for the most part very clever, witty, and amusing pieces of satire. Six of them are original to the book (which was quite unusual at the time), and half of the rest appeared between 1961 and '71 in genre magazines (Galaxy, If, and F & SF) and several are from Playboy. Sheckley was a very polished master of the short form, though some of the attitudes and conceits he expressed are no longer socially acceptable. (As you guessed when you saw a third of them are from Playboy, right?) One of his hallmarks was using long and memorable titles for his stories, a trait evidenced here by Doctor Zombie and His Little Furry Friends, Tailpipe to Disaster, Down the Digestive Tract and Into the Cosmos with Mantra, Tantra, and Specklebang, etc. And of course, there's the title story, which I remember as a topic for a drinking game at science fiction conventions in the mid-1970s, where words would be substituted and changed around to make it sound a bit naughtier. Sheckley is something of an acquired taste, similar to Bradbury and Ellison in that his novels never equaled the quality of his short works, but I always enjoyed his prose.

[Roman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Збірка оповідань Шеклі, куди ввійшли оповідання, які раніше не друкувались в Україні (декілька оповідань я читав ще в 90-ті, московитською мовою, але це не рахується). Як найкращі я би виділив два - титульне "Чи відчуваєте ви щось, коли я роблю ось так?" (дуже смішне, про те, як закоханий робот-пилосос робив дівчині масаж) та "Вбивча логіка" (про те, як робот-охоронець намагався не пустити в табір учасника експедиції через те, що він не знав новий пароль - рішення було знайдено пречудове!)
Решта оповідань були не такі цікаві, як ці два, але тим не менш, деякі із них варті уваги, як наприклад "Вам того ж удвічі більше" (яке бажання можна забажати, за умови, що твій ворог отримає вдвічі більше? - також рішення було вельми несподіване)
Цікаво, що це перевидання оригінальної збірки, яка вийшла у 1971 році - на мій погляд, знайомство із оригінальними збірка��и набагато краще, ніж збірні на на розсуд укладача, адже це робить збірку "справжньою", саме такою, якою її і бачив автор 50 років тому.

[Manny · Rating 4 out of 5]

The rather depressing ending of Belle du Seigneur suddenly reminded me of the title story in this collection, a cute 60s variant on the Three Wishes scenario. The guy is sitting at home one evening, when a genie appears, and says that he can have three wishes.

Well, there's got to be a catch? says the guy. And indeed there is, says the genie. He can get anything he wants, but his worst enemy is going to get twice as much.

And who is my worst enemy? wonders the guy. The genie tells him. But he's my best friend! says the guy, shocked. Ah well, says the genie, you'd be surprised how often that happens.

So the guy thinks and thinks, and then he says, screw this, I want a hundred thousand dollars. The genie gives it to him in a nice leather attaché case. But then the phone rings, and it's the damn best friend, crowing about how he's just miraculously received two hundred thousand dollars. Shit! He's going to have to do better with his next wish.

So he thinks some more, and finally he says, I want a quarter of a ton of chopped liver. Ha! he says to himself, wonder what my friend will do with half a ton of chopped liver! But the next day he discovers, mortified, that the friend has quick-wittedly called a kosher restaurant, sold them the whole consignment, and made a tidy profit. He's just carried his own quarter-ton down to the dumpster. He feels even stupider.

Now he's down to his last wish, and he thinks, jeez, I'd better not blow this one. But suddenly he has an idea. OK, he says to the genie, I've been single too long. I want a girl, I'd like her to be beautiful, but not too beautiful, smart, but not too smart, stacked, of course, and, hm, I don't quite know how to put this, but sexually I'd like her to be the most, the absolute most that I can handle. Got that?

The genie nods, and a moment later there's a light, somehow sensual tap on the door. Our hero gets up to open it, thinking, twice the most you can handle. Good luck!

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Published in 1972, this book is a collection of short stories mainly from the 60s by SF author Robert Sheckley, considered to be among the more humorous of SF authors. In fact, many of the stories cannot be characterized as science fiction and were published first in Playboy magazine. But they all throw a spotlight on the human condition, highlighting the bizarre and the eccentric.
A lot of the stories I did not much care for. My favorite was "Doctor Zombie and His Little Furry Friends," a mad scientist story. There's a good one about dealing with a robot--"The Cruel Equations." Asimov was needed to help out on the problem presented in this story. "Tripout" is about a man in New York who thinks he's an alien...and it turns out that maybe he's right.
Sheckley was a native Brooklynite, born in 1928. He died in 2005. One of his early stories was the basis of the film "The 10th Victim," released in 1965. The later Stephen King story "The Running Man" was very similar... And one of Sheckley's books was adapted into a film, the 1992 "Freejack" with Mick Jagger and Anthony Hopkins.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far, trippy but not grotesque, and even accessible (read: funny) to someone who doesn't do drugs. Some deep satire and provocative philosophy in many of the stories, too. I wonder if fans of Discworld/ Terry Pratchett would like them.

Ok done.

Mnemone was not funny, but could be a good companion to Fahrenheit 451. Plague Circuit, well, call it Black Humor. I think maybe my favorite is Cordle to Onion to Carrot even though it kinda tried too hard to be both deep & funny and lost the loveliness of language that's in some of the others.

Recommended. I do wish I had room to store (and time to reread) all my favorite books, as I'm likely going to be sad that I parted with this.

[Viacheslav · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short story collection by Robert Sheckley with a tinge of self-reflection in some of them.
For example, the protagonist in Doctor Zombie & His Little Furry Friends pretends being a writer to prevent anyone discovering his actual monstrous enterprise. Then, an astronaut writes an important note in the state of delirium which his crewmates fail to decipher in The Cruel Equations. Next title, Starting from Scratch, sounds very much like the one of a writers' manual. The mnemone selling pieces of literature (mostly banned in a future conformist's dream world) at exuberant prices. An alien having to make a report about its experiences in NYC (Tripout). A trio composing their letters to God in Pas De Trois of the Chef and the Waiter and the Customer. At last, Sheckley reveals his creative struggles in Aspects of Langarnak in plain language.

[Owen Townend · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a pleasure it is to read sci-fi with a distinct and consistent sense of humour. According to what I've read in The Same to You Doubled, Sheckley appears to be a lesser-known contemporary wit of Adams and Vonnegut. Like them, he has fun with the eccentric potential of alien culture and metaphysical logic.

Each of these stories felt like an exercise in speculative fiction absurdity and I loved a lot of it. Of course, there were a handful of tales that didn't resonate with me, more because of the premise than the style. Some touch on attitudes I don't agree with, others followed predictable patterns but I remained enthralled by the rest, particularly where Sheckley's sly one-liners energised the plot. For that reason alone, The Same to You Doubled is a very successful collection in my eyes. That being said I still can't fathom the relevance of the cover to any stories therein. It feels like a 70s sexy marketing strategy.

So if you are intrigued by time travellers arriving too early for catastrophe, the secret breeding of rat-wolverine hybrids and amorous sentient vacuum cleaners, The Same To You Doubled might be your kind of collection too.

Notable Stories

• The Cruel Equations - a brilliant logical conundrum that only sci-fi could yield, with some dark humour too.

• Starting from Scratch - an entertaining but thought provoking dialogue on universal perspective.

• The Mnenome - a short, sharp hybrid of Fahrenheit 451 and 1984, focusing on bartering for stories.

[Ian Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve turned into a rabid Sheckley fan over the past 6 months; he can do no wrong in the short story department. I haven’t read enough of his full length novels but will assume that they’re at least equally as good. This collection may not be five-star-worthy but four ain’t bad.

[Gareth Howells · Rating 4 out of 5]

The master of the ridiculous, and with a great knack for short story writing, this is my favourite of the shorter Sheckley anthologies. Amazing stories that will make you laugh and make your head spin.

[Antonina Medvedchuk · Rating 2 out of 5]

Настільки підозріле в антисемітському плані оповідання, що його якось рятує тільки кінцівка :) Трохи чоловічої точки зору на цей світ 😅

[John Defrog: global citizen, local gadfly · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading and enjoying two novels from Robert Sheckley, this is my first time trying out his short stories. This collection, published in 1971, illustrates clearly that while Sheckley was known mainly for science fiction, he also expanded his absurdist take into modern-day social satire and surrealist dream worlds.

This collection starts off with a woman being courted by an AI-powered vacuum cleaner and ends with a satire on two-fisted Golden Age SF in which veteran space Johnny Draxton is saddled with a green co-pilot. In between, we have a space explorer matching wits with a logical security robot, literal deals with the devil, a doctor creating hybrid monstrosities in his Mexico City apartment, a time traveller selling cures for a plague that hasn’t broken out yet and a Rashoman-style story of a regular customer in a failing Indonesian restaurant.

The main consistent thread is Sheckley’s penchant for the absurd, which he deploys to good effect through most of these. Like with most collections, a few don’t quite work for me, and some linger in the memory more than others, but at least I was entertained while I was there. I will say the story "Cordle to Onion to Carrot" – in which a guy tries to improve his life by becoming a complete asshole to everyone over the slightest inconvenience – is practically prophetic, given how things seem to be going in America in 2025.

[Evgen Novakovskyi]

по відчуттях щось типу збірки Вуді Аллена “Повний безлад”, тільки з елементами наукової фантастики, й не так пихато та невротично, що особисто для мене — величезний плюс. тут теж трапляється Нью-Йорк і абсурдний гумор, але зовсім немає юристів, адвокатів та навколокіношного неймдропінгу. збірка нерівна, є доволі посередні оповідання з поверхневими метафорами, але хороших більше. особливо сподобались три: отой типу “Рашомон” про ресторан індонезійської кухні, глум про довжелезну відпустку альдебаранця та готовий сценарій до чергового епізоду “Любові, смерті + роботів” про недбалого капітана і забутий пароль.

норм.

[Oleh Kudybyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Якщо вам не вистачає дивних смішних оповідань, то це чудовий вибір. В Шеклі якийсь власний тип гумору, а ще просто неймовірна уява. Для мене кожен твір Шеклі — це ніби суміш Філіпа Діка і Террі Пратчетта. Однозначно мій автор

[A.W. Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sci-fi is often not taken particularly seriously, which is a shame because when it's done well its the perfect genre for satirical and thought provoking stuff. Phillip K Dick and Kurt Vonnegut are good examples of sci-fi writers who were recognised for the depth of the meaning in their stories as well as the tales themselves. I think Robert Sheckley is up there too. I plucked this book off my parents' bookshelf nearly 30 years ago and when I read it again recently the magic of the stories came flooding back.

This collection is an absolute joy. The eponymous story is hilarious and sad in equal measure, and that sets the tone for the rest of the collection, funny, intriguing, moving and hugely entertaining. There are some really clever ideas here that make you think long after you've put the book down.

[Pamela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three stars is a bit low for this, but then again, four stars would be too much. As with all of Sheckley, there are some real gems here. Do not be put off if you don't like science fiction. These stories are more "Twilight Zone" than anything else. No matter what you call it, though, reading Sheckley is never a waste of time.

[Martyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great collection of intelligent short stories by Sheckley.

[Matt Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some of my favourite short stories are in this book, it's classic Sheckley.

[Lulua · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book has a vintage-style feel to it. Clever dialogue too. I think I liked it because of those two reasons even though I'm not a Sci-Fi fan.

[John Mount · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant

Sheckley at his best, always entertaining and original. Definitely one of the 20th centuries masters of science fiction. A brilliant and resourceful writer.

[Abhinav · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's no one who quite writes like Sheckley and that's marvellous. Maybe the Lem of Cyberiad is the closest fit, but Sheckley is doing his own thing. Is it science-fiction? Only in the generous sense that many of the stories are set in unspecified worlds that look surprisingly like our own but not quite; but there's little fascination with science or tech. Is it humour? Certainly, but the mindbending weirdness keeps tripping up any straightforward funnies.

What Sheckley has are ingenious premises, turns so clever you get chills, with everything slathered with endless irreverence. This book isn't perfect but where it shines brightest, it shines alone in the sky in this genre of one.

"The Cruel Equations" is masterful. "Notes on the Perception of Imaginary Differences" is pitch-perfect satire. The eponymous "Can You Feel Anything When I Do This?" might actually be one of my least favourite stories in the collection, which is deliciously ironic.

PS: if anybody knows any authors who write in the Sheckley vein today, let me know, because this genre is where my book "Empty When Full" resides and I could always use comp titles ;)

[Kent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Robert Sheckley is for sure one of the most underrated sci-fi authors out there. His novels are both very provocative and absolutely hilarious, often at the same time.
This book is a collection of his short stories, many of which are fantastic. My personal favorite stories here are "Mnemone", "Tripout", and "The Cruel Equations". "Mnemone" is about a man who comes to town sharing literature from times before the war when literature wasn't considered subversive. "Tripout" is about an alien visiting Earth on vacation, that came complete with wife" and his trying to remember his body's memories. "The Cruel Equations" concerns an astronaut on a dangerous world trying to get back into his camp, but cannot, because he doesn't know the password to get by their own security robot.
This is a very solid collection and I highly recommend for those who enjoy sci-fi short stories.

[Vorik · Rating 2 out of 5]

Schade, wirklich schade. Mit diesem Erzählband kommt Robert Sheckley nicht an die Qualitäten von „Pilgerfahrt zur Erde“ oder „Erster Preis: Allmächtigkeit“ heran. Gleich die erste Erzählung enttäuscht, da die Auflösung eindeutig homophob ausfällt. Auch bei der zweiten Erzählung kann man geneigt sein, Vorbehalte des Autors gegenüber Juden und Afroamerikanern herauszulesen. Des Weiteren ist „Der grüne Jademond“ in der deutschen Ausgabe eine Mogelpackung, da der Goldmann-Verlag hier mit dem Begriff Science Fiction wirbt, sich aber nur sieben der sechzehn Erzählungen diesem Genre zuordnen lassen – also weniger als die Hälfte. Zwölf dieser Anekdoten sind nur von durchschnittlichem Niveau oder sogar darunter. Schade, mit diesem Büchlein kann der Schriftsteller leider nicht beim mir punkten.

[Evan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very solid collection of stories with good variety in subject matter and style. A few were misses and at times a story or two felt slightly dated. Some of the stories are genuinely kind of funny.

A highlight was 'Pas de Trois of the Chef and the Waiter and the Customer'. This story was the most formally interesting as it explores perspective and impossibility of objective experience. The story is written from three perspective and examines the way that interactions and experience is mediated through subjectivity.

All the stories contain some level of whimsy or comedy which never really fell flat. This tone is sustained even in slightly the more serious stories - I didn't find this too annoying but I feel like some people definitely could. It only got on my nerves occasionally.

[Timothy]

(4/16 read) (# = read)

16 stories:

# Can You Feel Anything When I Do This? (1969)
# Cordle to Onion to Carrot (1969)
# The Petrified World (1968)
Game: First Schematic (1971)
Doctor Zombie and His Little Furry Friends (1971)
The Cruel Equations (1971)
The Same to You Doubled (1970)
Starting from Scratch (1970)
# The Mnemone (1971)
Tripout (1971)
Notes on the Perception of Imaginary Differences (1971)
Down the Digestive Tract and Into the Cosmos with Mantra, Tantra, and Specklebang (1971)
Pas De Trois of the Chef and the Waiter and the Customer (1971)
Aspects of Langranak (1971)
Plague Circuit (1971)
Tailpipe to Disaster (1971)

[Batman · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5
I don’t really read short stories so I went in to this with very little experience. Firstly, there are some really good stories that I enjoyed.
The Scratch one and alien on a holiday were my favourites as they were the most interesting and just well rounded ones.
There’s some freakish ones and I had high expectations for the vacuum one but was sorely disappointed.
Overall, good little reads.

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mixed bag, on the whole probably not his best work. My favourites were: "Aspects of Langranak", "Plague Circuit", "The Mnemone" and "Tripout." "The Same to You Doubled" is kind of amusing. A few stories have not aged well, or are just dull.