Showing results by narrator "Phil Chenevert" in All Categories

Retief, the somewhat reluctant diplomat, does not always follow what his superiors define as "proper procedure". His suave and sardonic approach to intergalactic maneuvering and his attempts to smooth over the bumblings of his other diplomats is documented in this funny story. Keith Laumer adds another delightful episode in Retief's career here.

These are three imaginative science fiction stories by an author I admire a lot, William Tenn. "Venus is a Man's World", ("Galaxy Science Fiction", July 1951), "Project Hush" ("Galaxy Science Fiction", 1954) and "Of All Possible Worlds" ("Galaxy", Sept 1956).

The war with the Yucks from Proxima Centauri was claimed to be a stalemate but they were really winning. The mine belts they laid seemed to propagate themselves and were slowly strangling Terran planets. How did they do that? What was their secret? The answer was baffling and the best human minds could only conclude that their ships and mines were somehow alive. So, the next desperate step was to ask "If they are using organic ships, why can't we do the same?"

Princess Ozma has ruled so wisely and happily in the wonderful Land of Oz for so long that most of us have forgotten the strange story of the Lost King of Oz—Ozma's father. As everyone in Oz knows, the King was transformed from his royal self by Mombi, the wicked old Gilliken witch, and lost his throne and his crown when he, himself, was lost. In this new Oz book the Royal Historian tells how Snip, the little buttonboy, and Pajuka, the great white goose.

Tanks and the future of war is what Murray Leinster speculates about in this story. Written in the 1920's he observed the terrible new inventions that were used in World War I to kill people, armored tanks and poisoned gas and then tells us how war will be fought in the future. In this case the war will occur in 1932 and be between the US and the 'Yellow enemy'. It was published in the very first issue of "Astounding Stories of Super Science", January 1930.

Conan the Barbarian is employed by one of the civilized countries to help in it's push to claim lands from the primitive Picts. The Picts are not excited about the idea, however. Old gods and mythical creatures are called up by the Pict witches to contest the invading army and Conan finds himself battling for his life amid the bloodthirsty hordes that include saber-toothed tigers, 40-foot-long venomous snakes and a demon from another dimension who is intent on crushing him.

In Larson's Luck, Gerald Vance takes us on a light hearted jaunt into hot shot space ship pilots, piracy and the good part of breaking the rules. Just how does Larson stay so lucky? Listen and you just may find out.

Tony and the Beetles takes place far in the future when Earth's enormous colonial empire is well established but the question is, how long can it last? Ten-year-old Tony grows up fast when history catches up with the human race. A sobering look at human history - and our probable future.

The quirky mind of famous science fiction writer Lester del Ray gives us three wonderful tales ranging from zombies ("Dead Ringer"), time travel - how do you convince your earlier self it is safe to get into the time machine, eh? ("And It Comes Out Here") and eternal life ("The Dwindling Years"). Listen and enjoy.

The planet where his new plantation was established was very strange, with a complete lack of sex; all of his workers and all the animals and plants had no sex at all; they were all "its". But like every farmer on every planet, Duncan had to hunt down anything that damaged his crops - and whatever animal ate his vua plants was going to die. Of course he had no idea what this one looked like or what it was like, but whatever it was, he would track it and his rifle would bring it down.

John Sark is the hero who was raised by animals (like Tarzan) in the temperate, twilight zone of Mercury, then captured and civilized. He's a mercenary on Mars now, dealing with humanoid Martians and their extremely nasty pre-humanoid race enemies. The fights are brutal and frantic yet detailed enough to bring you right into the midst of the action; the suspense is real and tingling. A wonderful listen.

Glinda the Good, the great sorceress of Oz takes the spotlight in this, the very last OZ book written by L. Frank Baum himself. Ozma hears of previously unknown parts of her kingdom having difficulties and at war with each other and knows it is her duty to go there and stop the hostilities. She and Dorothy find truly bad conditions in these areas of Flathead Mountain and the Skeezers Magic Island where the inhabitants are being mistreated. But through events that could only happen in Oz, they become trapped in a submerged island along with all the Skeezers.

Dorothy is swallowed by an earthquake! And that is just the start of Dorothy's adventures in this exciting and fun book. She and her kitten, Eureka are on their way home and stop to visit a relative in California. But the earthquake opens the ground under their feet and everyone, including the horse and buggy and her cousin Zeb fall deep, deep into the earth. Down there they find they can walk on air, but are attacked by the strange and dangerous vegetable creatures.

The Little Mermaid is a very well-known fairy tale by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen about a young mermaid willing to give up her life in the sea and her identity as a mermaid to gain a human soul and the love of a human prince. The tale was first published in 1837 and has been adapted to various media, including musical theatre and animated film. But this tale is not the Disney version, all cleaned up and made pretty. This is the way Andersen wrote it.

"The Road to Oz: In Which Is Related How Dorothy Gale of Kansas, The Shaggy Man, Button Bright, and Polychrome the Rainbow's Daughter Met on an Enchanted Road and Followed it All the Way to the Marvelous Land of Oz" is the fifth of L. Frank Baum's Land of Oz books. It was originally published on July 10, 1909 and documents Dorothy's fourth visit to Oz.

Another Oz book! Yes! Lots of unlikely characters and tons of fun. In this story, young King Randy of Regalia is visited by his old friend, Kabumpo, the Elegant Elephant of Pumperdink. Together, they set out to visit their friend Jinnicky the Red Jinn in the Land of Ev.. On the way, they meet Planetty, the silver Princess from Anuther Planet, and her fire-breathing colt, Thun. When they reach Jinnicky's palace, they find that Jinnicky has been deposed and enchanted by an untrustworthy slave.

Dorothy thinks she's lost forever when a tornado whirls her and her dog, Toto, into a magical world. To get home, she must find the wonderful wizard in the Emerald City of Oz. On the way she meets the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman and the Cowardly Lion. But the Wicked Witch of the West has her own plans for the new arrival... will Dorothy ever see Kansas again?

The main character in this story is C. Auguste Dupin, a sleuth who solves crimes by deduction. Two women have been brutally murdered and it appears that there was no way in or out of the room where the murders took place.

"Beyond the Door" is a story that asks and answers the question: What lives beyond the door? And is it dangerous? Philip Dick knows and writes wih his usual verve and pinache. The man really knows how to tell a story.

In "Crystal Crypt", taken from the 1954 Planet Stories, the war between Mars and Terra is about to erupt and Earth has only merchants and salesmen to fight; can they carry out their mission? Will Earth be defeated, or can these non-military people scrape together a defense in time? As usual, Philip Dick gives us a rousing, highly entertaining, and exciting story with a great ending.