Another Simak short collection, and a relatively modest one. Four stories only, but two are closer to being novelettes. I enjoyed them all on some level, even though the first story gets quite a low rating (for reasons detailed below).


The Birch Clump Cylinder - 2.9

An initially pleasant, simple story that asks a little too much of the reader, kicks its heels a touch, and then ends on a 6-page exposition dump. In his introduction, Lyall talks about how the story is a great example of economic writing, how not a line is wasted, and that it is a story for aspiring writers to learn from. I strongly disagree. Characters talk around subjects for longer than necessary, sometimes repeating statements or re-emphasising a point, and they speculate and chat over things that don't further the plot in any way. "The Birch Clump Cylinder" is a short story, but it is not a tight story. It is moderately paced and liberal with sentences, even if it is Simak at his more restrained (which I wouldn't necessarily claim). As an aside, the character of Leonard I found to be pretty poorly drawn and an embarrassing example of tell-over-show; we are told that Leonard is "nasty" and "twerpy", but nothing he does or says demonstrates this beyond the protagonist/narrator saying that he says things "nastily" or in a "twerpy way".


The Whistling Well - 4.25

"The land was ancient. It had stood and watched and waited as ages swept over it, like cloud shadows passing across the land. Since time immemorial, it had stood sentinel above the river and had noted all that had come to pass."

Classic pastoral Simak. Slow-paced but beautifully written. Loosely fantastic, this is relatively grounded but an otherworldly atmosphere is cleverly conveyed, despite the naturalistic setting. There are some faintly Lovecraftian vibes in the final third, before Simak swaps horror for sentiment. As usual, he is more explicit than he needs to be, but thankfully not enough to mar this otherwise exceptional story.


The Marathon Photograph - 4

"There was nothing much to see. It was rather horrible, of course, but the body, the man reduced by the absence of life, was so small and insignificant that it had little impact. Balanced against the brawling stream, the sweeping extent of birch and pine, the deep silence of the wilderness, the fact of human death cancelled out to very little."

Novelette. A quiet, pastoral sci-fi mystery with smatterings of Way Station. Nicely written, good atmosphere. Simak eventually gives a big exposition dump through dialogue once again, informing us of many things that feel somewhat tangential and perhaps best left a mystery. Nevertheless, the narrative does get back on track (bridged by a curiously cerebral scene, seemingly implying some kind of soul-rape), and things are left on a fairly dark and poignant note. A little messy overall perhaps, but I liked it. I have a feeling I would gain more of an appreciation for it on rereads.


Grotto of the Dancing Deer - 3.5

A solid story, but a bit tame coming off the back of the previous two, especially considering the consistency of tone and thematic. Not bad by any means, but I'm surprised that it's so well regarded (it won the Nebula, Hugo and Locus award for Best Short Story). The first half felt a lot stronger to me.

Overall a good and well-curated collection. The thematic feels consistent and appropriate. A similar feel runs throughout, one of time immemorial, mysteries of the past, geology and genealogy. As Lyall notes in his introduction, there is a certain depth and authenticity that comes across in these stories, due to a clear channelling of Simak's own experience, lineage and country. This isn't necessarily anything unusual for him, but I felt that there was something distinctly more "life-like"/three-dimensional about the second and third stories, in particular.

Overall rating: 3.75/5 ( )