Adaptation

Reynolds, Mack, 1917-1983Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 140K words
Chapters: 14

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Adaptation by Mack ReynoldsAuthor: Reynolds, Mack, 1917-1983,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Mar 4, 2008

Editor's review

Adaptation is a science fiction work by Mack Reynolds, available in Project Gutenberg's free eBook library. Reynolds was active in the American pulp science fiction magazine era of the mid-twentieth century, and his works often explore the tension between social systems and technological progress in a brisk style. The book is short and serves as a good introduction to the style of late Golden Age science fiction short stories. The Project Gutenberg edition is the English original, of moderate difficulty, suitable for readers with some English reading ability. As you read, notice how the author works out social consequences from a single premise; this thought-experiment approach is a typical pleasure of science fiction from that era. As a free public-domain eBook, it is easy to finish on a commute or in fragments, and it works well as English extensive reading material or a starting point for a science fiction reading group.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy Golden Age-style short science fiction
Those who want to practice English extensive reading with free public-domain eBooks
Science fiction fans interested in the relationship between technology and social systems
Organizers of reading groups or classroom discussions who need short material

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting long, complex world-building and deep character development
Beginners whose English is not yet proficient and who need a Chinese translation

Reading tips

Read through once to grasp the plot, then go back to see how the author works out social consequences from the premise.
Guess the meaning of unfamiliar words from context first and look them up after finishing the chapter.
Read alongside other Golden Age science fiction short stories to compare how themes are handled.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book in Chinese or English?

Project Gutenberg holds the English original; the book contains no Chinese translation, so some English proficiency is needed to read it.

Is it long? Is it suitable for fragmented reading?

It is a short science fiction work, suitable for reading in installments on a commute and not too burdensome.

Do I need to know the author's background beforehand?

Not necessarily. You can understand the story by reading the text directly. If you want to go deeper, look up the background of the pulp science fiction magazines of the author's era.

Comments

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About the author

Reynolds, Mack, 1917-1983 Author

Mack Reynolds (1917–1983) was an American science fiction writer, born Dallas McCord Reynolds. Because public information is limited, no speculation is made here about his early life or education. The collection holds twenty-five of his works, including I’m a Stranger Here Myself, The Common Man, Happy Ending, Dogfight—1973, Black Man’s Burden, Off Course, Summit, and Ultima Thule. These titles suggest that he excelled at short stories and novellas, often addressing social issues, race relations, political conflict, and future warfare. His titles are frequently blunt and ironic, his narratives tight, and he makes effective use of suspense and reversal to discuss real-world problems within the framework of popular science fiction. His work appeared mainly in mid-twentieth-century science fiction magazines and has had some influence on later socially engaged science fiction.