Cordwainer Smith

Paul Myron Anthony Linebarger

The Instrumentality of Mankind

Welcome to the strangest, most distinctive future ever imagined by a science fiction writer. An interstellar empire ruled by the mysterious Lords of the Instrumentality, whose access to the drug stroon from the planet Norstrilia confers on them virtual immortality. A world in which wealthy and leisured humanity is served by the underpeople, genetically engineered animals turned into the semblance of people. A world in which the great ships which sail between the stars are eventually supplanted by the mysterious, instantaneous technique of planoforming. A world of wonder and myth, and extraordinary imagination.

The Rediscovery of Man

Norstrilia

Rod McBan 151st farms 'stroon', the immortality drug, and is the last scion of one of the oldest and most honourable families on Norstrilia, only source of stroon. But he's also a telepathic cripple and faces the ever-present risk of being culled under the government's draconian population laws. To protect himself, he uses his not-strictly-legal computer to play the market and amass an unimaginable fortune. But after he survives an assassination attempt, McBan discovers that having enough money to literally buy the Earth is no good if you're too dead to spend it . . .

Fourteen classic Smith stories, set in his star-spanning future universe of scanners, planoforming ships and the Underpeople. Here is the account of the strange origin of the Vomact family and its role in founding the Instrumentality, of how one man's love broke the secret of Space-Three, of what happens to people too long between the stars - even of a shape-changing Martian with a passion for gadgets - in a collection that presents some of the strongest work of an unforgettable writer.

Alpha Ralpha Boulevard

Craving a pure hit of classic science fiction from the genre's golden age? Cordwainer Smith's story "The Game of Rat and Dragon" should definitely do the trick. Set in the distant future, the humans in this tale find their ability to travel through space imperiled by a strange psychic energy known as 'Dragons.' With the help of unexpected companions, an intrepid crew of warriors set out to rid the galaxy of this evil.

The Game of Rat and Dragon

"Think Blue, Count Two" is an absorbing science-fiction by Cordwainer Smith, set in his Instrumentality of Mankind. The story revolves around a psychological trip-wire installed to stop an attack on a sleeper ship. In the works of Cordwainer Smith, the Instrumentality of Mankind refers to Smith's personal future history and universe and the central government of humanity within that fictional universe.

Think Blue, Count Two

The discovery of stroon, a drug that confers near immortality on humans, has made Old North Australia rich. So rich that when Rod McBan has to flee the planet because someone wants him dead, he buys the Earth. His picaresque adventures on Old Earth offer an exuberant, eccentric and wildly imaginative vision of the universe - a vision like no other.

The Ballad of Lost C'mell

The Best of Cordwainer Smith

This remarkable science-fiction explores the story of Sto Odin, a Lord of the Instrumentality, and his two robots, who are imprinted with the minds of dead men. The story follows their travel in search of Gebiet, an underground city without the dull, enforced happiness of the surface world.

Under Old Earth

Under Old Earth, and Other Explorations

Space Lords; Science Fiction

You Will Never be the Same

On the Storm Planet' is a science fiction novel by Cordwainer Smith. It is his second story featuring Casher O'Neill, who the Administrator of the planet Henriada has ordered to kill a girl. O'Neill is sent from Henriada to his homeworld of Mizzer and gets badly sunburned, although his mental capabilities recover more or less unimpaired. A must-read for sci-fi lovers.

On the Storm Planet

Cordwainer Smith had a vision of the future that created a legen in his lifetime--the universe of the Instrumentality of Man, of Norstrilia, of the Underpeople and their heroine C'Mell, of the Scanners - a vision shot through with the truth of poetry and prophecy. This classic collection includes such famous stories as "The Lady Who Sailed The Soul," "The Game of Rat and Dragon," "Alpha Ralpha Boulevard," and "Scanners Live in Vain" - landmarks of imaginative writing. "No, No, Not Rogov!" (1959) - Stalin puts scientist Rogov, his wife and two others in a hidden village. Rogov develops a device that can pick up thoughts from anywhere in the world. After Stalin dies the project continues. Rogov decides it's time to see if he can receive. That involve sticking a needle into his brain. "The Game Of Rat And Dragon" (1955) - Something is living underneath space. The only way to fight them is by using Partners. They are cats who place small bombs on the aliens ships. The aliens are known as Dragons. People on Earth refer to the human fighters as Rats. "Alpha Ralpha Boulevard" (1961 novelette) - Humanity has been regimented for thousands of years. Now things are changing. Paul and Virginia now speak French and have some harrowing experiences while heading for the Boulevard. The story also debuts C'Mell the cat girl who will show up in future stories. "Mark Elf" (1957) - In April 1945 a girl is placed in a rocket by her father in order to escape the Nazis and the Red Army. She lands back on Earth sixteen thousand years later and meets a war machine from the Sixth Reich in the distant past.

You Will Never Be the Same

On the Sand Planet' is an incredible science fiction that revolves around Casher O'Neill. He returns to his home world of Mizzer, committed to freeing it from dictatorship, but that mission fades before a far more complex problem. The problem was to find meaning in life when he had achieved everything he set out to do, and solving this problem might take him to distant places, such as the Ninth Nile or even the Thirteenth Nile.

On the Sand Planet

"On the Gem Planet " is a gripping science fiction story featuring Casher O'Neill, a traveller among the planets, hungry for justice. On his quest for justice against the dictator now running his world, the first stop in the search for money and weapons is on the gem planet.

On the Gem Planet

"Mother Hitton's Littul Kittons" is a classic science fiction short story. It details how the people of Cordwainer Smith's fictional planet Norstrilia maintain their monopoly on the invaluable immortality drug stroon. This fascinating story is somewhat based on Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves.

Cordwainer Smith

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