Today is Christmas Eve, and it’s also the birthday of Fritz Leiber, Jr. (1910-1992).

When I saw it was his birthday, my first thought was, “Didn’t I just do a birthday post on him?”

No, I didn’t. It was a Black Friday post I was thinking about.

So here’s a birthday tribute.

Fritz Leiber wrote science fiction, fantasy, and horror.  These days he’s mostly remembered for his sword and sorcery duo, Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser. A few years ago, Centipede Press published a volume of his work in their Masters of Sceince Fiction series and a two volume set in their Masters of the Weird Tale series. Copies are pretty much unobtainable now. They don’t show up on the secondary market very often. The last time I saw one, the science fiction volume, the asking price was a thousan dollars.

Leiber’s science fiction is pretty much forgotten today. I would wager most younger fans aren’t aware that he also wrote science fiction. If they know his name at all, it is probably from Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser.

And I would like to focus a little on his sciencde fiction.

Except that would be awkward.

I don’t recall the last time I read one of Leiber’s science fiction stories. The time span would be measured in years. Double digit years. And most of his science fiction that I’ve read has been short stories. I’ve not read Gather, Darkness, The Wanderer, or The Silver Eggheads. I’m sure I have copies of them around here somewhere (in a box).

The one science fiction story of his that I semi-clearly recall is “A Pail of Air”. It’s a story where a family is living on a world where the atmosphere has frozen. Their doors is a layer of blanket (not buying it; would never keep the air in), and the boy who is the narrator has to go outside on a regular basis and bring in a pail of air so the family can keep breathing.

Leiber also wrote a series of stories about a time war, known as The Change War. It consisted of the novel The Big Time as well as a collection of short stories.

I’m going to try to work some of Lieber’s science fiction in over the next week or so. I’m not sure who successful I’ll be. I’ve got some writing assignments that are due by the end of the month, one sooner.

But if you get a chance, give Leiber’s science fiction a try. If you have, what stories or books would you suggest?