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The Store Of The Worlds (2000)

by Robert Sheckley(Favorite Author)

4.15 of 5 Votes: 5

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English

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review 1: While there are a few stand-out stories here ("Store of the Worlds", "Watchbirds", "Morning After" and "Shall We Have a Little Talk?") Sheckley's stories are best taken collectively as a study of the mid-twentieth century imagination and psychology. Taken together, they paint a technopessimistic view of the future, one in which humans readily give up moral, ethical and political duties in favor of ease and comfort. There are also many stories of first contact (mainly botched first contacts), that might speak to Cold War paranoia, or anxiety about the gradual diversification of American culture and increasing globalization as cultures find themselves in closer contact than ever before. There are stories warning about overpopulation, excessive urbanization and the dangers of... more artificial intelligence. Sheckley also examines hypothetical relationships between alien peoples, or people and robots, in order to ask questions about imperialism, equality, and the possibilities of technology. (Here we see seeds that have blossomed in films like "Her" or Bradbury's more dystopic stories like "The Veldt".) Sheckley's best stories are like dramatized thought experiments that ask us to question our technological advances in the light of older philosophical questions about the "good life". Well worth reading.
review 2: Store of the worlds is a collection of short sci-fi stories by Robert Shekley. Some of the first stories are entertaining and memorable, full of interesting plot twists. After reading a bunch, the stories starts feeling less original, and the twists a little predictable. To sum it up: I did not regret reading this book, I got enough entertainment out of it to justify the time investment, but I won't recommend it to anyone. less

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