This Island Earth

by Raymond F. Jones

The Original, Unedited, Magazine THE ALIEN MACHINE—Cal Meacham was proud of his scientific talents till he found himself faced with alien products that could only have come from another culture! THE SHROUD OF SECRECY—Cal Meacham’s new job is an engineer’s heaven, until he’s led to peer beneath— THE GREATER CONFLICT—At last Cal Meacham of the Peace Engineers finds the answer to his problem, but he does not find it anywhere on Earth! Published as three short novelets in Thrilling Wonder Stories in 1949-50, these three stories were later combined, slightly rewritten, and a fourth part added on to form the complete novel published in 1952—later to become a major motion picture from Universal-International.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Classics, Speculative Fiction, Ebooks, Science Fiction Fantasy

182 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1952

About the author

Raymond Fisher Jones (November 15, 1915, Salt Lake City, Utah - January 24, 1994, Sandy, Salt Lake County, Utah) was an American science fiction author. He is best known for his 1952 novel, This Island Earth, which was adapted into the 1955 film This Island Earth and for the short story "The Children's Room", which was adapted for television as Episode Two of the ABC network show Tales of Tomorrow, first aired on February 29, 1952.

Jones' career was at its peak during the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. His stories were published mainly in magazines such as Thrilling Wonder Stories, Astounding Stories, and Galaxy. His short story Noise Level is known as one of his best works. His short story "The Alien Machine", first published in the June, 1949 Thrilling Wonder Stories, was later expanded into the novel This Island Earth, along with two other short stories, "The Shroud of Secrecy", and "The Greater Conflict", known as The Peace Engineers Trilogy, featuring the character Cal Meacham. Jones also wrote the story upon which the episode "The Children's Room" was based for the television program Tales of Tomorrow in 1952.

Reviews

[Bill · Rating 2 out of 5]

This may not be one of the best science fiction novels ever written, but it's a short read & is quite entertaining. There's a good plot, but I must admit that I found the 1955 film version to be far superior.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the basis for my favorite sf film when I was a kid; the film is fairly faithful to the first part of the book. It wasn't any kind of a great literary classic, but it sure was great fun.

[Wreade1872 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good 50's sci-fi. An engineer gets involved with a company that seems to have some extraordinarily advanced equipment but whats their secret?
It occasionally approaches greatness with analogies of how small nations get used in the wars of great nations. The author also seems to have a major issue with unions. It does feel a little serial at times, there's some late developments which i'm sure weren't planned from the start.
The writing is bit simple, it also tries to keep up the mystery elements for a lot longer than it needs too. It constantly teases plot turns which don't usually occur.
It's female character is... i don't know what she is. She has multiple degrees and is usually shown to be the smartest person in the room but nobody listens to her and she doesn't seem to mind, she has a weird submissive nature. The whole thing felt feminist and misogynistic at the same time.
Not much else to say without giving away the plot, this was turned into a B-Movie but i don't know how similar it is to the book.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the reprint of the book that was used to make the film of the same name and i must admit I really enjoyed it - there is something about the sheer thrill of the adventure when all the modern trappings of a story are suspended and instead swapped for the what can only really be described as pulp adventure - where science, society and even human nature are suspended and instead you just go for out and out adventure. The book is surprisingly faithful to the film (ok I know its the other way around but you know what I mean) and I think this just adds to it - as I remember my early adventures in to science fiction and this was one of the milestones in the genre so to be able to read the book it was based on. Ok it may not be a classic but for me it epitomises the science fiction of the era.

[Jim Dooley · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1955, Universal released THIS ISLAND EARTH, a science fiction film that never has done much for me. The basic concept was interesting, but there was so much talk and so little happening that even its relatively short running time failed to hold my interest. There was a stalking mutant creature that looked cool, yet it seemed “tacked on” to the storyline.

Despite all of that, I’ve gone back to the film every 5- to 10-years. There must be SOMETHING there for me.

Well, there was ... and it is the book from 1952. In every way, it is the story that should have been told in the film. It is something of a cross between ATLAS SHRUGGED and CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND ... with a touch of SIGNS thrown in to add a chilling spice. The Universal film was faithful to the opening, but then it shot off into its own orbit.

Cal, the very model of a prize 1950’s engineer, is recruited to join a group known as the Peace Engineers. They are dedicated to clearing the way for serious engineers to reach their full potential, and they have an impressive backlog of devices that are technically advanced. For Cal, it is a dream job. He even shares the Group’s anti-war bias. However, the longer he is with them, the more he becomes certain that the Peace Engineers are not exactly what they seem.

There are many twists and turns, mysteries galore, and insidious spies that all manage to keep Cal exceptionally busy. There is also romance in the form of Ruth, a psychologist who sees things from a very different perspective.

To say more about the plot would be revealing too much. I’ll just say that the narrative style is brisk and fun to read, and there were genuinely thought-provoking ideas that made the best of the 1950’s science fiction stand out. I expected the resolution, but I couldn’t think of how the writer would get the Reader there. Thankfully, it was accomplished without a “cheat.”

I was much too young to be enjoying science fiction in the 50’s, and THIS ISLAND EARTH wasn’t on the paperback shelves when I turned my attention to it in the 1960’s. Thank goodness it was still around as it was definitely worth the wait. Recommended.

[Thom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Collected from a serialized work, this is good but not great.

First, an engineer gets tech that is unbelievably good. Very well done, the story fits the engineer mindset. Later, he encounters mysteries in the business. This part was a bit slow. We also encounter the female lead, a combination of smart and ignored. I wanted to see her psychology degree more in the story. Towards the end, an anti-union bit that barely fits in, and finally a rushed finish to the tale.

I remember the first part of the movie (and the interocitor) but not the whole thing - I suspect the story deviated from the book and towards more action.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but the end felt more like the author just stopped writing than anything else, leaving me rather disappointed.

[Jay Goemmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jones' 1952 novel is the basis for the 1955 movie of the same name. As is often the case, the movie bears little resemblance to the book. (But for the record, that's not always a bad thing.)

Jones' narrative is more slowly paced than the movie's is. Two-thirds of the way through, he takes a major swipe against union labor, which his characters say allows incompetent workers to hang onto their jobs just because they're union members, even if they can't do the work they're assigned. (Jones' viewpoint isn't surprising given his conservative Western US background, which often holds the viewpoint that many people go to work to get paid, not to strike so they can get paid more. Your mileage may vary.)

In short, by the end of the book, protagonist Cal Meacham manages to convince the alien race behind the Interociter technology to defend Earth from the Really Incredibly Bad Aliens. That's as opposed to just one alien race (with mutants outside the city) in the movie.

The 1955 movie has its warts as well, even though it has a much more dramatic ending. I have real trouble swallowing the idea that a planet can suddenly burst into flame and become a star. (As would most contemporary astronomers.)

So in this case, I recommend watching the movie and enjoying it as simple entertainment, as opposed to reading this particular book. But if you want an old-school sci-fi read, again, your mileage may vary.

Feb. 24, 2013.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding! I loved this book. My only regret is that I waited so long to read it. I always assumed the movie and the book were close to the same thing but once you get past the interocitor bit early on, the story goes off in a totally different direction. Thinking about it, I'm not sure Hollywood could have done the book justice to pursue carrying out the story as written. Instead, they took the early interesting parts and then greatly simplified the story. I am usually against remaking films but I would love to see a modern remake of the book into a movie - staying as close as is feasible to the original plot and only modifying what advances in science and technology require. Then again, they could do it a s retro piece since no one on Earth knows what is going on out in space, That might be even better. Regardless, if you liked the movie at all (and I think it along with The Day the Earth Stood Still and Forbidden Planet are the three classics of SF) you should give the book a go.

[Mark Ford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not exactly like the classic motion picture, which was a pleasant surprise, and a slight disappointment.
The film itself, of its time, is thoroughly enjoyable, in which scientists are enticed, coerced into aiding aliens in a war to save their planet from destruction.
The book has most of the film in its covers and much more, it expands the story of the alien war that is a galaxy spanning conflict and of course was totally un-filmable @ that time. The characters have a bit more depth than the screen versions, though the female Ruth is often dismissed by the Cal Meacham character as being silly. "Different Times."
Like its contemporaries Forbidden Planet & The Day the Earth Stood Still, this is a CLASSIC that will probably be rebooted for the 21st century and ruined by the likes of Keanu Reaves or some knob like that, yes Tom Cruise I'm looking at you.
Beware the monsters of the Id!!!!!
Klaatu Barada Nikto.
Nanu Nanu.
Enjoyable read and expanded my knowledge of classic sci-fi.

[Kieran McAndrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

An apparently mixed up order of engineering components is actually an alien intelligence test for humanity's place in the wider galaxy.

Jones' novel holds its place well in the wider genre of atomic paranoid novels, but its cleverness is in realising the curiosity of the human engineers who know that they can replicate items from the components without the instructions.

Reading Two: There is an almost religious awe at the recognition that Man is not alone in the universe, quickly dismissed when the Earthers realise they are being manipulated. There is very little attempt to make the aliens feel very alien, instead making them feel venally human. The optimistic message that war is ultimately futile needs to be pushed further to the fore.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of those rare cases in which the movie is better than the book. I've always loved the famous b-movie that this book gave birth to. Frankly, I had no idea there was a book so when I found it, I picked it up and gave it a spin. I liked some of the ideas and, frankly, some things were far more realistic in the book. The backstory was obviously richer and the characters better drawn. But that said, it couldn't compete with the very-different movie. Perhaps it's not the fault of the author; it's probably more a function of my love for a cheap sci-fi flick than a problem with the novel.

[Demerara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I cannot believe that 60 years after first seeing the movie, I finally stumbled on the book. Magical, that 1950's science fiction.

A couple of years ago I actually stumbled on the movie, and watched it again, too. Good movie, for the times. I'm too old and jaded now to see it as I did all those years ago, though; it was magical then, and just quaint now.

But the book--that has staying power. From an almost trivial opening to the sweep of an intergalactic war, fitted out with poignant musings of the human condition, or, better yet, the "intelligent being condition". Wonderful stuff. The movie never did do justice to the deeper thoughts of the book.

[Steve Wasling · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, aside from the opening section and a couple of scenes this is almost nothing like the classic film (YMMV!) I grew up with. The story in the original novel actually turns out to be much more interesting and complex, though of course it always extremely obvious in which era it was written.

Not only am I glad I read this, I'm now disappointed that a more faithful version of the story wasn't filmed, though I did keep waiting for Exeter to turn up! Still, on the plus side many more Interocitors!

Very recommended for classic SF fans.

[Long Island Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic science fiction

Some science fiction ages better than others. This Island Earth has aged like a fine wine. Much of the technology has changed, but in the other hand the Alien technology is still way above our own. The book is a classic, and still well worth reading.

[Michael Yourshaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent Golden Age of science fiction novel, stitched together from three shorter pieces. The fist third is clever and suspenseful, the rest is ho-hum space opera.

[iamjacsmusings · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was as compelled to fervently read This Island Earth as Cal was to construct his first interocitor.

The 50s adaptation is misguided.

This deserves a contemporary limited series.

[Doctor Moss · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve always wanted an interociter.

The movie version of This Island Earth has been a staple of science fiction movies on television for a very long time. It’s even been immortalized by Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie. I didn’t even know that the movie was based on a book from one of the “golden ages” of science fiction.

It’s a pretty simple story by science fiction standards, but it’s fun to read, keeping in mind that this is 1940s-1950s science fiction.

The novel was originally published in serialized form in Thrilling Wonder Stories, with its first installment appearing in 1949. That date is probably significant in accounting for some of the differences between the book and the movie. The movie dates from 1955.

IN 1949, World War II was still fresh in American minds. The very title, This Island Earth, is meant to express an analogy between the small Pacific islands used by the great military powers of World War II and Earth’s place in the intergalactic war at the core of the book.

The story begins, like the movie, with Cal Meacham. Here Meacham has a relatively run-of-the-mill job as an engineer, with production responsibilities for run-of-the-mill radio and electronic products. In response to an order to a supplier for condensers, his office receives some inexplicable substitutes from some place called “Electronic Service - Unit Sixteen.”

Meacham tries to figure out who Unit 16 is and gets a catalog sent to him containing all sorts of exotic sounding electronic components. He orders the parts (over four thousand of them) to build something in the catalog called an interociter. He has no idea what an interociter is or what it does. But it sure seems like a great idea to build one, turn it on, and see what happens! What could go wrong?

Meacham assembles the interociter, and it turns out that in doing so, he’s passed an aptitude test and earns a job offer from a secret group called the Peace Engineers. He takes the job and a pilotless airplane flight to his new job in Arizona overseeing production of those very same interociters.

Everything seems a little bit off with the Peace Engineers, and Meacham, with his new girlfriend, Ruth Adams, gradually figure some things out. The more they figure out, the more is revealed to them by the Peace Engineers’ local leader, Jorgasnovara.

All is eventually revealed — the intergalactic war that the Peace Engineers are involved in, what the interociter really is (mostly), and what Earth’s place in this bigger picture is. Things will come to a head as Earth’s insignificance in the bigger picture becomes painfully obvious. Remember what happened to those Pacific islands in World War II.

Then it’s up to Cal to save the day.

The first half of the book is pretty faithfully portrayed by the movie. There are differences. Cal is a brilliant radio engineer, but in a run-of-the-mill job before he meets the Peace Engineers, as opposed to the “VIP” scientist he is in the movie. The author, Raymond F. Jones, was himself a radio engineer, and Cal Meacham seems to be a hero version of himself.

But things in the second half of the book are very different from what came out in the movie. In the movie, Earth is enlisted to help in a “small” war between two planets, the inhabitants of Metaluna (the interociter folks) and their enemies. Here, the war is intergalactic in scale, with many planets and intelligent races combined — that giant stage of war with Earth an insignificant and unknowing player, like the Pacific Islanders of World War II.

The outcome of the story is different, as well. The earthlings bring a new perspective to the Peace Engineers. I won’t spoil the ending, but it all has something to do with Jorgasnovara’s remark that, “You [earthlings] have an imagination, and an inquisitiveness which we have seldom encountered elsewhere.”

Cool for us.

[Samantha L'Esperance · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mysterious 50s sci fi adventure that I enjoyed some of the time. For a short book it seemed to drag in places. Also, sexism abounds in single female character which irritated me throughout. Can see how the story inspired other sci-fi though - so thats cool.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I saw "This Island Earth" at the Roxy Theatre in downtown Tacoma in the summer of 1955, I had no idea that it was based on a book. Raymond F. Jones wrote mainly science-fiction fantasy stuff for pulp magazines but also a dozen novels, of which "This Island Earth" was by far the best known. Franklin Coen's screenplay starts out following the novel, scene by scene, but then veers wildly in new directions about two thirds of the way through. The book's less-than-exciting conclusion is almost unrelated to the movie's less-than-exciting conclusion. The premise is that there is an intergalactic war raging in the cosmos of which Earth is unaware. The principals on one side of that war come to Earth to seek the help of engineers and scientists. The film adds extensively to the story. The alien scientists have large sunburned foreheads. They are assisted by large bug-eyed formic creatures. Not many sci-fi movies were filmed in colour in the 1950s; vivid colour adds much to the Universal-International adaptation of the book. In order to fly in their space ships, humans must undergo a transformation which is very much like the Sixties children's educational toy "The Visible Man." One sees their skin, then their muscles, then their blood vessels and nerves, and finally their bones before they are ready. Jones has a lot of faith in scientists (as befits a sci-fi author of the 1950s) and no love for labour unions (which come off rather badly in the book). The larger and more interesting theme concerns what happens when a society allows machines, even very intelligent thinking machines, to make ethical decisions. The film does not resolve this issue at all; the novel resolves it but without much power. I was delighted to find this book in print; it is an indulgence in second childhood.

[Garry Whitmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mainly decided to read this book as I was very familiar with the 1950s movie adaption which is one of the classic sci-fi movies of the period. I was somewhat surprised that the movie stays pretty close to the book for the first 40% or so, after which they diverge although some aspects are retained in the film.

The book does a better job of explaining the title "This Island Earth" than the movie, as it compares how the aliens use Earth and its resources in a way similar to how both sides in the Pacific theatre of WW2 used the many islands and locals across the Pacific as a resource and source of labour. The book however is a child of late 1940s sci-fi, as its scale and concepts are clearly beyond what Hollywood could have achieved at the time of the movie. Hence the divergence we find.

In taking the book isolated from the film, it's typical of the sci-fi of the time. I found it an interesting read if not a compelling one. To be fair I might not have bothered with it if I wasn't a fan of the movie, but it does delve more into the relationship between advanced and lesser societies in an interesting and thought-provoking way.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Protagonist Cal is a radio engineer, baffled that instead of some components he ordered, a company sent him smaller, more efficient components that are impossibly advanced. Investigating leads him to the Peace Engineers, a secret organization of scientists dedicated to seeing inventions are used to benefit society rather than militarized. It's a mission Cal is into, but as his work for them continues, he starts to suspect something more is going on...
What's going on and how it's resolved reflect Jones' faith in outside-the-box thinking (it's important in several of his short stories). It's also more optimistic than the film, where the message is that Earth is better off as an ignored, isolated island in space than getting involved with spacemen.
Like most SF of the 1950s, the style and outlook is old enough this is a YMMV review.

[Trace · Rating 4 out of 5]

From a modern perspective, this is not the strongest of stories. I rate this not as a modern book, but as a book set squarely in its own time.

It is perhaps all too easy to see wherein the story breaks into three distinct parts, and perhaps all too easy to see just where the writing may be going and what the author may be trying to communicate.

Taken at face value as an example of Atom Age science fiction, it serves its purpose for entertainment so long as that is what you want going in. I flipped my brain off, and, just for a few hours of my life, I was a wide eyed boy with a pulp magazine in one hand, a hotdog in the other, and a pack of baseball cards with a stick of gum in it waiting to be opened with youthful abandon.

[Craig Comes · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 1952, filming Raymond F Jones' epic "This Island Earth," as published, would have been impossible. The finished movie would have run several hours and required SFX technologies decades ahead of what was then available. So the studio took the first half and distilled it down in a manner similar to James Michener's "Tales of the South Pacific."

That said, "This Island Earth" deserves much wider distribution. Jones has written a pulp classic that demands either a sequel or a 21st Century reboot. The movie only hints at the sense of wonder within its 220 pages.

[Arthur Pierce · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rather liked this book, after a fashion. I'm no scientist, and I found the scientific elements convincing (but not overwhelming), as was the general plotting. We eventually wind up in a fantastic place, but getting there is gradual enough that it doesn't strain the credibility. Characterization is limited, but I found the story to be consistently intriguing and unpredictable, and that was enough to sustain my interest throughout.

[Earl Orcutt · Rating 5 out of 5]

An old friend

I first encountered “This Island Earth” as a book report project in fourth grade. I had to keep referring to the book to spell the strange names and devices. It literally ignited my lifelong love of science fiction. It spawned a classic film in the late fifties, and remains a classic of mid twentieth century Sci-Fi. It is just as satisfying today as it was fifty years ago. Who knows? Flying saucers my still exist!

[Gregg Blankenship · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much more explanatory of the title.

The movie was great, but it relied on special effects. The book was almost totally different, but even better. You never knew the reason for the title "This Island Earth", but the book explains it! In the movie, the Earth was never in danger. But it sure was here. Cal and Ruth save the entire Earth!

[Reg Franklin · Rating 5 out of 5]

By far one of my favorite science fiction novels of all time. The ideas it posits regarding alien life are thought provoking, even if the ideas about humanity can be somewhat cynical. An improvement upon the film, an underrated classic, and one that should be studied in any university course curriculum.

[Muhammad Gibran Alfaro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Radically different compared with the movie

I still remember watching the movie adaptation. But this one is different... Really different compared with the movie. How different?

Like, instead of two races getting into war, this one has two ALLIANCES/FEDERATIONS getting into war. Also it predicted VR headsets IN 1952. And many more.

TL;DR Great read.

[Donald Franck · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Island Earth

Someone once said that no man is an island and that is true of Earth as well. I've never seen this storyline before but it forms the basis of a great movie classic. I'm glad I read this book and hope others find it of interest.