I’m writing this on April 29. It’s the birthday of Jack Williamson (1908-2006). Williamson was one of the first sceince fiction writers I read in middle school when I was transitioning from the kid’s section in the library to the adult section. I found a copy of The Best of Jack Williamson at the flea market in Wichita Falls for a quarter. The cover had been ripped off.

I didn’t realize at the time that it was a stolen book. Bookstores stripped the covers off books when they took them off they sent the covers back to the publisher for credit and supposedly pulped the books. As far as I know, this is still the practice. Some unscrupulous boosellers would then sell the stripped copies, which the publishers consider to be theft.

But I digress. I was blown away by Williamson”s work. He had been writing for over fifty years when I found that book. He continued to write for another quarter century or so. I tried to keep up with everything he wrote, but grad school slowed me down. I’ve not read everything, but I’m slowly workiing on it.

Williamson started out writing for the pulps, and his early stuff was pretty pulpy at times. He eventually got a doctorate in English. Naturally, his writiing changed over time. I like all of his work, but I think I prefer his earlier, pulpier stories.

I wasn’t able to make it to the Williamson Lectureship this year. It’s too far away, and I don’t have control of my schedule. I cna’t arrange things so that I don’t have to work on that weekend. Maybe next year.

If things slow down a bit later this year, I want to reread the humanoid stories, starting with “With Folded Hands” and moving on to the two novels.

What stories by Williamson are your favorites?