The Success Machine

Slesar, Henry, 1927-2002Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.2

Word count: 24K words
Chapters: 3

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.The Success Machine by Henry SlesarAuthor: Slesar, Henry, 1927-2002,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Aug 1, 2008

Editor's review

This is a short work by Henry Slesar, released free by Project Gutenberg. Slesar is known for short science fiction and suspense, and for using clean, economical storytelling to spring a twist within a limited space. This piece offers that kind of reading experience: brief, with a premise and ending that carry the pleasure of genre fiction. It works as an introductory sample of mid-twentieth-century American genre short stories, and can be finished in one sitting on a commute or a lunch break. Because it is a public-domain ebook, the text is in the original English; readers can treat it as light entertainment or use it to observe how early science fiction short stories build suspense with minimal settings. Note that the available information gives no plot details, so readers should not expect a novel; it is better approached as a neat short piece.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Casual readers who want an English short story in spare moments
Readers interested in mid-twentieth-century American genre short fiction
Language learners who want to practice English with short texts
Science fiction fans who enjoy suspense and twist endings

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a full novel-length world and character arcs
Readers who need a Chinese translation or a bilingual edition
Readers who prefer serious literature and deep thematic exploration

Reading tips

Read it through in one go, then look back at the hints and foreshadowing planted at the start.
On a second reading, pay attention to dialogue and detail to see how the story controls the release of information.
Read other stories by the same author alongside it to observe common features of his twist technique.
If English is difficult, follow the main plot first rather than looking up every word.

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 a novel or a short story?

The available information indicates that it is a short story by Henry Slesar, released as an ebook by Project Gutenberg. It is better suited to one or a few short reading sessions than to the pacing of a novel.

What level of English is needed?

The text is in the original English and belongs to genre short fiction, usually with short sentences. Readers with a high-school to college level of English can finish it with a dictionary. If the plot matters most, read through first and deal with unfamiliar words afterward.

Why does the description only mention Project Gutenberg?

Because the available information comes mainly from Project Gutenberg's release data, which describes the project's background and the book's catalog information, without outlining the plot. Readers can treat the description as a note on the edition rather than a synopsis.

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About the author

Slesar, Henry, 1927-2002 Author

Henry Slesar (1927-2002) was an American writer best known for his short science fiction and suspense stories. Reliable public information about his life is limited, and readers in China know relatively little about him. Eight of his works are included in this collection: My Father, the Cat, Brainchild, The Delegate from Venus, The Stuff, The Success Machine, Reluctant Genius, Heart and Dream Town, most of them short or novella-length pieces. These stories often use science-fictional premises while blending suspense and satire; their plots move briskly and end with striking twists, and they use everyday situations to expose human weaknesses and the absurdities of a technological society. Their subjects range from family relationships and mistaken identity to alien visitors and machine intelligence, reflecting a sharp eye for the anxieties of modern life. Slesar's tightly structured, ingeniously conceived short stories have been enjoyed by genre readers and have had some influence on later science fiction and suspense writing.