Earthmen & Strangers

by Robert Silverberg (Editor)

Stranger Station 1956 novelette by Damon KnightDear Devil 1950 novelette by Eric Frank RussellBlind Lightning 1956 story by Harlan EllisonLower Than Angels 1956 novelette by Algis BudrysOut of the Sun 1958 story by Arthur C. ClarkeThe Gentle Vultures 1957 story by Isaac AsimovAlaree 1958 story by Robert SilverbergThe Best Policy 1957 story by Randall Garrett, aka David GordonLife Cycle 1957 novelette by Poul AndersonIntroduction by Robert Silverberg

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Anthologies, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Speculative Fiction

191 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1966

About the author

There are many authors in the database with this name.

Robert Silverberg is a highly celebrated American science fiction author and editor known for his prolific output and literary range. Over a career spanning decades, he has won multiple Hugo and Nebula Awards and was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2004. Inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 1999, Silverberg is recognized for both his immense productivity and his contributions to the genre's evolution.
Born in Brooklyn, he began writing in his teens and won his first Hugo Award in 1956 as the best new writer. Throughout the 1950s, he produced vast amounts of fiction, often under pseudonyms, and was known for writing up to a million words a year. When the market declined, he diversified into other genres, including historical nonfiction and erotica.
Silverberg’s return to science fiction in the 1960s marked a shift toward deeper psychological and literary themes, contributing significantly to the New Wave movement. Acclaimed works from this period include Downward to the Earth, Dying Inside, Nightwings, and The World Inside. In the 1980s, he launched the Majipoor series with Lord Valentine’s Castle, creating one of the most imaginative planetary settings in science fiction.
Though he announced his retirement from writing in the mid-1970s, Silverberg returned with renewed vigor and continued to publish acclaimed fiction into the 1990s. He received further recognition with the Nebula-winning Sailing to Byzantium and the Hugo-winning Gilgamesh in the Outback.
Silverberg has also played a significant role as an editor and anthologist, shaping science fiction literature through both his own work and his influence on others. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, author Karen Haber.

Reviews

[Oleksandr Zholud · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a solid early collection of SF stories (mostly written in the 1950s), which discuss different variations of the first contact. I read and discussed it at ORBIT – Otherworldly Reads, Bold Ideas, and Tales. SF & F Short Stories and Novelettes group in December 2025. Below are short reviews of all pieces.

Introduction (Earthmen and Strangers) [Silverberg's Essays: Others' Work](1966) essay by Robert Silverberg a nice intro about the role of strangers in our lives and how strangers, imagined by SF relate to real life. 4*
Dear Devil (1950) novelette by Eric Frank Russell a Martian exploration mission lands on post-apoc Earth. They are unable to find anything of value and leave, but leave their poet behind. The poet finds a kid, befriends him and adapts him to his tentaclous form. Slowly they start to rebuild the civilization. a good quote: The difficult can be done at once; the impossible takes a little longer 5*
The Best Policy (1957) short story by Randall Garrett a human from a colony planet, who is kidnapped by aliens. They teach him their language and start to interrogate him. Because of a misunderstanding, they think that the colony planet is Earth and this allows the captive to make formally true statements that are interpreted as humans are extremely powerful. The aliens check only truthfulness and therefore are duped. A nice, humorous piece. 3.25*
Alaree (1958) short story by Robert Silverberg the intro to the sory spoils it a little. A ship on its way back to Earth breaks up and to repair it, the crew land it on an unknown planet. There are sentient locals and with the help of a converter helmet, one of them chats with humans. However, he constantly errs in addressing himself we, us. They taught him correct pronouns but this leads to a strange outcome. 4*
Life Cycle (1957) novelette by Poul Anderson the second Earth's expedition to Marcury is about to die of hunger. Locals, who live in the twilight zone of the planet (the intro notes that now the views of how Marcury rotates are changed), don't let them access their food or leave, "because their gods said so". The Earthmen are also banned from visiting local temples to directly talk to the gods. However, human ingenuity wins the day. 3*
The Gentle Vultures (1957) short story by Isaac Asimov a Cold War-influenced piece. Aliens wait behind the Moon when the nuclear holocaust starts, to save the remains of mankind. Hurrians, who look like a small monkey, are cooperative vegetarians; they are the only sapient primates who haven't had a nuclear conflict. Now they travel across the galaxy, saving larger primates after their nuclear wars. On Earth, there is a conundrum: the nuclear exchange had to start 15 years ago, but it still hasn't. Hurrians think about whether to 'help' in starting the war. They kidnap a human to discuss with him. 3.5*
Stranger Station (1956) novelette by Damon Knight Paul Wesson is a man, who won the chance to work at the Stranger Station. This is a special station, where one human cohabitates for a time with an alien (plus there is an AI or "alpha network", an extremely expensive computer servant/controller). As the story progresses, we find out why there is such a strange setting. 4*
Lower Than Angels (1956) novelette by Algis Budrys an Earthman is sent to primitive (?) humanoid inhabitants of a newly discovered planet. He is a representative of the Corporation. When he joined the crew, he saw them as daring explorers, but now he sees that they are rotten to the core, they weren't pioneers—they were looters, squabbling among themselves for the biggest share. On the planet, locals see him as a god, but he tries to dissuade them; otherwise, the corp will use them as conquistadors used indians, who believed in their divinity. 3.5*
Blind Lightning (1956) short story by Harlan Ellison like in the previous story, a local inhabitant and a human explorer. The local, Lad-nar, is a large predator with telepathic abilities. He has to hide in his cave during the season of storms not to be hit by lightning. His human victim tries to establish contact and succeeds in a way. 3*
Out of the Sun (1958) short story by Arthur C. Clarke a short piece about astronomers on Mercury watching a protuberance from the Sun and supposedly a living being inside it. 3*

[Roger Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an anthology of science fiction stories originally published in the 1950s and the book itself was published in 1966. I apparently read it for the first time not too long after that publication date of 1966. Now I have just reread it for the first time since then while helping to prepare it for addition to the Bookshare.org collection. I am surprised at two things. One is how well I remember it after all this time. There were some stories that I have thought of many times when reading more recent science fiction even though I did not remember where I read them. I have just been reminded that they came from this book. The other surprise is the naivete of the stories that were being written back in the 1950s. When I first read them I did not have the impression that they were naive. In fact, I had the impression that they were cutting edge and very well written. There has been a lot of science fiction written since that time, though, and written by some very sophisticated and capable writers. I suppose I got used to the better science fiction and had to go back to the old stuff to be reminded of what it was really like. I am not saying it was bad though. I very much enjoyed rereading this book and it makes me want to delve into some other old science fiction. Nevertheless, science fiction has done some growing up.
The theme of this anthology is encounters by humans with extraterrestrial beings. That is a common theme to the point of ubiquitousness from the beginning of the genre and continues today. The quaintness comes in by how similar to humans these extraterrestrials are for the most part. That is part of what I mean by saying that the stories tend to be naive. On the other hand, two of the stories do a better job of conveying extreme difference than contemporary science fiction. Those two are "Stranger Station" and "out of the Sun.
All in all this was a very good read.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good. But then, I do like classic shorts and 'aliens.' And look at that line-up of authors!!

#Dear Devil - I've seen it elsewhere but it's worth skimming again. Poignant, and worth the novelette awkward length
#Alaree - interesting concept, but execution included a certain element of racism and some hand-wavium
#Life Cycle - for some reason I didn't care for this as much, maybe because the concept was too simple for all the mysterious hokey drama?
#The Gentle Vultures - complex question and richly developed alien thought for such a concise story
#Stranger Station - three intelligences, none of whom understand anything significant of the other (until the end); intense
#Lower than Angels - despite appearances, I reject that this is racist and instead read it more deeply
#Blind Lightning - very tightly written, brilliant, but I don't care for the theme I think... I'll think more on this one, though
#Out of the Sun - pure concept (no characters); like a sketch for one of Clarke's 'signature' (iconic/ typical) novels

A lot of atypical 'Earthmen' and aliens who are both 1. truly alien and 2. beings with whom we can feel empathy make this a special collection. If you can't find it, maybe you can find some of the stories in other anthologies or collections; try isfdb.org.

[яσвεят · Rating 2 out of 5]

در واقع یکسری داستان های علمی تخیلی کوتاهی هستند که آقای اسماعیلیان ترجمه و گردآوری کردند
ماهیت خیلی از داستان ها تکراری و کلیشه ای شده با تکنولوژی امروزه ما اما یکسری از اونها هنوزم جذابیت خودشون رو دارند
ولی من نمی‌دونم چه اصراریه بر ترجمه همه چیز
الان سالیان ساله همه جا همه ی افراد اسم رادیو FM رو شنیدند
حتی برای رشته مهندسی برق یا مخابرات و مشابه به اونها در دروس
fm همون frequency modulation هستش یعنی مدولاسیون فرکانس
حالا داخل کتاب چی ترجمه شده؟
سوار کردن اطلاعات پیام بر اساس سرعت طی کردن یک موج
:/
دو ساعت طول می‌کشه این رو بخونی خوب چرا آخه ؟

[Reet · Rating 3 out of 5]

4 stars, Dear Devil by Eric Frank Russell
It would be 5 stars, but for the ubiquitous habit of these men to use "girl" for woman, and men for (what should be) boy.
The poet of a crew of a Martian Starship begs permission to be left off at destroyed Earth, while the rest of the crew goes off to explore Venus.l. He helps to put together mankind's civilization again, sacrificing his life for them. Or did he?
" they got out the load-sled in the morning. Fander took the front seat and the control; Speedy squatted behind him with hands gripping his harness belt. With a shallow soar, they headed for the glade. Many small, white-tailed animals bolted down holes as they passed over.
'Good for dinner,' remarked speedy, touching him and speaking through the touch.
Fander felt sickened. Meat-eaters! It was not until a queer feeling of Shame and apology came back at him that he knew the other had felt his revulsion. He wished he'd been Swift to blanket that reaction before the boy could sense it, but he could not be blamed for the effect of so bald a statement taking him so completely unaware. However, it had produced another step forward in their Mutual relationship- Speedy desired his good opinion."

"...' my only desire is to help you.'
'Why?' Asked graypate, searching around for a percentage.
'we need intelligent friends.'
'why?'
'our numbers are small, our resources poor. In visiting this world and the Misty one we've come near to the limit of our ability. But with assistance we could go farther. I think that if we could help you a time might come when you could help us.' "
This is just a darling story.

3 stars, The Best Policy by Randall Garrett
The simplest, most truthful answer is best.
A clever story.

2 stars, Alaree, Robert Silverberg

3 stars, Life Cycle, Poul Anderson
The Native American spaceman says to the Catholic Creole spaceman:
"... juan, maybe we are nuts. Even if we get away with it, what can we hope to do? Suppose one of these twonks pulled a similar stunt in your church - wouldn't that just make you fighting mad?'
'yes, of course,' answered the other man. 'unless by such means the twonk proved to me that my faith was based on a fraud. Naturally, she would not be able to do so; but assuming for the sake of discussion that she did, My Philosophy would come crashing down about my ears. Then I should be quite ready to listen to her.' " 🤣
" kingsbury, the american, wondered if he had planted the seeds of another matriarchy. Underneath all the rejoicing, he felt a vague sense of guilt.

2 stars, The Gentle Vultures, Isaac Asimov
"the archadministrator went on. 'if a single nuclear bomb fell on the territory of either of the two sides, the victims would at once assume the other side had launched it. They would feel they could not wait for further attacks. Retaliation in full would follow within hours; the other side would retaliate in its turn. Within weeks it would be over.'
'but how do we make one of them drop that first bomb.'
'we don't, captain. That is the point. We drop the first bomb ourselves.' "

3 stars, Stranger Station, Damon Knight
" 'chapter 2,' said the voice promptly. 'first contact with a non solar intelligence was made by Commander Ralph C. Pigeon on July 1st, 1987, during an emergency landing on Titan. The following is an excerpt from his official report:
' "while searching for a possible cause for our mental disturbance, we discovered what appeared to be a gigantic construction of metal on the far side of the ridge. Our distress grew stronger with the approach to this construction, which was polyhedral and approximately five times the length of the Cologne.
' "some of those present expressed a wish to retire, but lieutenant Acuff and myself had a strong sense of being called or summoned in some indefinable way. Although our uneasiness was not lessened, we therefore agreed to go forward and keep radio contact with the rest of the party while they returned to the ship.
' "we gained access to the alien construction by way of a large, irregular opening... the internal temperature was -75°F; the atmosphere appeared to consist of methane and ammonia.. inside the second chamber, an alien creature was waiting for us. We felt the distress, which I have tried to describe, to a much greater degree than before, and also the sense of summoning or pleading.... we observed that the creature was exuding a thick yellowish fluid from certain joints or pores in its surface. Though disgusted, I managed to collect a sample of this exudate, and it was later forwarded for analysis..' "

2 stars, Lower Than Angels, Algis Budrys
his boss had told him:
" 'you'll contact the natives and try to get them started on some kind of civilization. You'll explain what the Terran Union is and the advantages of trade. See how they'd respond toward developing a technology.' "
" 'no!' he exploded violently, and Iano recoiled a little, startled. 'No, I'm not a god. Not any kind. I'm a Man - A different kind of man, maybe, but just a man. The fact that I have a few machines doesn't prove anything. The fact that I know more about something than you do doesn't prove anything. I come from a country where the people can keep records, so nothing's lost when a man who has some wisdom dies. I've been taught out of those records, and I'm helped by machines built by other men who study other records. But you think my people are any better than yours? You think the men I have to work with are good or Brave or kind? No more than you. Less. We kill each other, we take away from other people what isn't ours, we lie - we tell untruths-for-unfair-Advantage - we leave bad where we found good - we're just men, we're not anything like gods, and we never will be!' "

2 stars, Blind Lightning, Harlan Ellison
A failed scientist signs on for a study-ship post:
"... he had actually welcomed the cramp and the squalor of shipboard. Studying and cataloging Under the Stars had enabled him to regain his self-respect and to keep a firm grip on his sanity.
Ben Kettredge had become an alien ecologist. And now, one year out from Capital City, his sanity was threatened again.
He wanted to scream desperately. His throat muscles Drew up and tightened, and his mouth, inside the flexible hood, opened until the corners stretched in pain.
The pictures had stopped. He had withdrawn in Terror from the shadowed mind-world and was back in a stone prison with a hungry aborigine for keeper."

3 stars, Out of the Sun, Arthur C. Clarke
" we may have been both the first and the last of all men to see so mighty a fall. Whatever they may be, in their unimaginable world within the sun, our past and there's may never cross again. It is hard to see how we can ever make contact with them, even if their intelligence matches ours.
And does it? It may be well for us if we never know the answer. Perhaps they have been living there inside the Sun since the universe was born and have climbed to peaks of wisdom that we shall never scale. The future maybe theirs, not ours; already they may be talking across the light years to their cousins in other stars."

[Michael Tildsley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another mixed bag of a short story collection, this one with a more famous than most editor. I've already said it a dozen times: some of the stories in these collections are decent, most are dated and bad, and the occasional few are very good and/or thought-provoking.

I think that's why I keep reading these sets. I want to find the gems and study the craft. What works and what does not.

Here are the few I think are worthy of a five star rating:

- "The Best Policy" by Randall Garrett :

A man is captured by an alien race and forced into a machine that can tell if he's lying. He must think quickly and assure this terrifying and hostile species of aliens that puny humans are to be feared and respected.

- "Lower than Angels" by Algis Budrys :

A man is the first human to encounter a specific alien race on an alien planet, and they immediately welcome him as a bumbling, comedic God figure. He does all he can to convince them otherwise, and then tragedy strikes.

[Craig Childs · Rating 4 out of 5]

This 1966 multi-author anthology featuring nine First Contact stories is a significant book in Robert Silverberg's oeuvre. It was successful for the publisher, receiving many reprints and at least twelve different editions through the end of the 1980's. It opened a new career to Silverberg as an editor/anthologist. He became one of the most influential and notable anthologists of the 1970's and has gone on to edit or co-edit 104 science fiction anthologies in his career.

Here are my individual story reviews:

"Dear Devil" (1950) by Eric Frank Russell -- Martian explorers land on Earth but are disappointed to realize humans have all but died out from an atomic war. Only one Martian, an artist with limited technical skills, chooses to stay. He rescues three human children and, over the course of a quarter century, helps them rebuild their society. I had never heard of this author before, but this story is quite entertaining and moving. I hope it wins the Retro Hugo Award-1950 next year.

"The Best Policy" (1957) by Randall Garrett -- Ed Magruder is interrogated by an imperialistic race of aliens. He cannot evade their sophisticated lie detectors, but perhaps he can take advantage of their different way of thinking. Can he mislead them about Earth's military capabilities without ever actually lying to them?

"Alaree" (1958) by Robert Silverberg -- Astronauts encounter an alien who is part of a group consciousness, but prolonged exposure to humans teaches it individualism, with tragic results.

"Life Cycle" (1957) by Poul Anderson -- A team of astronauts abandoned on the dark side of Mercury must unravel the unexpected reproductive cycles of the Mercurians in order to convince the females to give them food.

"The Gentle Vultures" (1957) by Isaac Asimov -- The Hurrians have set up a base on our moon, waiting for us to destroy ourselves with nuclear war, as most ape-evolved lifeforms usually do. However, the Cold War may be just the deterrent we need, if the Hurrians don't decide to nudge us along. Asimov really cannot write a bad story; this one is more philosophically nuanced than expected.

"Stranger Station" (1956) by Damon Knight -- Every 20 years, one human and one alien meet on the outskirts of the solar system. Their physiologies are so different it causes mental distress and pain to be in such close proximity. This is an excellent sci-fi horror hybrid that excels at communicating the weird alienness of another species. It needs more exposition at the end, however. I am still not sure what the aliens are trying to accomplish by meeting with us.

"Lower Than Angels" (1956) by Algis Budrys -- Fred Imbry is supposed to convince a lesser developed species to open trade with the Corporation, but he cannot convince the natives he is a man rather than a god: "He wasn't supposed to be a stern god or an omnipotent god or a being above the flesh... He was simply supposed to be a god of this people--vain and happily boastful at times, a liar at times, a glutton at times, a drunkard at times, timid at times, adventurous at times, a hero at times, and heir to other sins of the flesh at other times, but always powerful, always above the people in wisdom of his own kind, always a god."

"Blind Lightning" (1956) by Harlan Ellison - An aging alien ecologist is threatened by an aggressive, telepathic ape-like life form on a jungle planet. What begins as a fight for survival becomes a chance instead to save a dying sentient race and achieve personal redemption. Entertaining pulp sci-fi.

"Out of the Sun" (1958) by Arthur C. Clarke -- A group of observers on Mercury watch an organism made of pure energy. It gets expelled from the surface of the sun in a solar flare, then crashes into the "freezing fire" of the planet and expires. This appears to be a rewrite of an earlier Clarke story, "Castaway". The alien is almost identical in both versions, although this story has a more powerful ending.

[SciFi Pinay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leave it to Silverberg to compile a great scifi short story collection, he could never go wrong IMO! While a first contact subgenre hearkens back to the more outdated and/or superficial hard SF era, Silverberg has been able to balance this out by handpicking those that stop short enough of those flaws to make way for profound philosophical concepts:

Dear Devil (Eric Frank Russell): a Martian unexpectedly shows what camaraderie and cooperation would achieve amid a dying Earth

The Best Policy (Randall Garrett): a human hilariously outwits threatening aliens even while being subjected under a lie detector test by 'playing with words'

Alaree (Robert Silverberg): pros and cons of leaving a collectivistic, gestalt (group/linked minds) society to assimilate into an individualistic one

Life Cycle (Poul Anderson): encounter with gender shifting Mercurians as an allegory for gender relations/tensions?

The Gentle Vultures (Isaac Asimov): aliens observing us during the Cold War are worried that we may spill over our war-minded violence throughout the galaxy, unless they intervene and help us annihilate ourselves first lol... oh wait... 🤣😬😮‍💨 ("It is for the good of the galaxy.")

Stranger Station (Damon Knight): "When two alien cultures meet, the stronger must transform the weaker with love or hate."

Lower Than Angels (Algis Budrys): interesting way to convince alien primitives that you're just a spacefaring human and not a god

Blind Lightning (Harlan Ellison): dying because of vs dying for the aliens -- the difference between dying with and without dignity

Out of the Sun (Arthur C. Clarke): what alien life in our sun may look like

[useFOSS · Rating 3 out of 5]

• Dear Devil (1950) by Eric Frank Russell 5/5
The rest good but not exceptional:
• The Best Policy (1957) by Randall Garrett
• Alaree (1958) by Robert Silverberg
• Life Cycle (1957) by Poul Anderson
• The Gentle Vultures (1957) by Isaac Asimov
• Stranger Station (1956) by Damon Knight
• Lower Than Angels (1956) by Algis Budrys
• Blind Lightning (1956) by Harlan Ellison
• Out of the Sun (1958) by Arthur C. Clarke

[Brendan Hough · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ear read 2023 (7hrs 50mins)
7.7/10 a collection of short stories about first contact with aliens. I found all of them interesting but the 3rd and 2nd last took a few repeats of some paragraphs to finally jam and gel with my noggin.

[Monica Willyard Moen · Rating 3 out of 5]

An unusual collection of short stories.

[Charl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice collection of "OMG ALIENS!" stories that aren't "Quick, kill it!" from one side or the other. Well worth reading.

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice collection of short stories, at least one here for everyone’s taste

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite is the chilling "Stranger Station" by Damon Knight.

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a better than average collection of science fiction stories by better than average science fiction writers.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to "The Best Policy".

[Genna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Superb science fiction. I loved every single story in this collection.