Science Fiction: The Short Stuff discussion
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Who Goes There?
2025 Group Reads
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Who Goes There? by John W. Campbell Jr.
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I read this last year-it was a confusing read at times, but overall an okay read.
A 'template' for so many books and movies!
There are at least three versions of this story around. I am reading the original novella this time, the twelve-chapter version published in the August 1938 issue of Astounding Science Fiction, straight from the magazine. Oddly enough, the magazine calls the story a "novelette." It's not. At 21,822 words long, it's a novella. The definition by word count for the forms had not yet been set by the SFWA in 1938.
I liked my reading of this story more than I expected. All of my previous attempts were DNF, but this time I completed it. Here's my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Dan wrote: "I liked my reading of this story more than I expected. All of my previous attempts were DNF, but this time I completed it. Here's my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."Strangely, I was disappointed with the story this time around. I just finished an audiobook reading available for free on Youtube, and though the narration was fine I thought the storytelling and the writing were unimpressive, which is not how I felt when I read it last, eight years ago. Still, the story's influence is unquestionable and Campbell's reputation as an editor is impressive, so I am happy to have read it again.
I've read it last year and it was fine but not great, the idea is solid, but the execution is a bit wooden
I could not fit this image on to this month's group marquis. So I thought I would use it to lead off this month's discussion of John W. Campbell Jr.'s novella, Who Goes There?. It's actually the hardback dustcover from the 1948 collection. The story originally appeared in the magazine, Astounding Science-Fiction, the August 1938 issue, as written by Don A. Stuart, a Campbell pseudonym. The story follows a group of people trapped in a scientific outpost in Antarctica infested by shapeshifting monsters able to absorb and perfectly imitate any living being, including humans.