Gold in the Sky

Nourse, Alan Edward, 1928-1992Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 215K words
Chapters: 22

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. Gold in the Sky by Alan Edward Nourse. Author: Nourse, Alan Edward, 1928-1992. Language: English. Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature. Release Date: Dec 17, 2007

Editor's review

Gold in the Sky is an English-language science fiction work by Alan Edward Nourse, part of the Project Gutenberg free eBook collection. Nourse himself had a medical background, and his science fiction often brings a cool scrutiny to the relationship between technology and human nature, a trait also reflected in this book. The work is short, belonging to the short-form narrative common in early science fiction, and serves as a sample for understanding mid-twentieth-century American science fiction writing style. Reading it offers a sense of how science fiction writers of that era imagined space, resources, and the human condition, as well as the plain charm of early genre literature in characterization and plot development. As an English-language public-domain original, its language difficulty is roughly suitable for readers with intermediate English reading ability, who can read it through with a dictionary or e-reading tools. As a free eBook resource, it is better treated as a supplement and extension of science fiction reading rather than a first choice for beginners.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy early American science fiction short stories and want to broaden their reading
People with intermediate or above English reading ability who want to try English-language science fiction originals
Literature enthusiasts studying mid-twentieth-century science fiction writing style
Students who want to use free public-domain books for light reading practice

Not a good fit for

Readers hoping for long space epics or complex world-building
Readers with weak English foundations who cannot yet read original novels smoothly
Veteran genre readers seeking contemporary science fiction pacing and narrative techniques

Reading tips

Read through once without worrying about full comprehension to grasp the story's direction, then go back to look up unfamiliar words and background.
While reading, pay attention to how the author handles the relationship between technology and people, and take brief reading notes.
Read alongside other American science fiction short stories from the same period to compare similarities and differences in themes and styles.
Use the dictionary and annotation features of e-readers to lower the barrier to reading English originals.

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 suitable for science fiction beginners?

Not very suitable as a first science fiction read. It is an early American science fiction short story with a narrative style quite different from contemporary works, and the English original also has some language barrier. It is better suited as supplementary reading for readers who have already read some science fiction and want to understand early genre literature.

What English level is needed to read the original?

Roughly intermediate English reading ability is enough, being able to understand common narrative sentence patterns and general description. For technical terms and period background vocabulary, a dictionary or reader dictionary function can help. If you rarely read English novels, it is advisable to start with shorter, simpler texts.

What are the features of the Project Gutenberg version?

Project Gutenberg provides free eBooks, and this book is one of its public-domain resources, usually released in formats such as plain text, making it easy to read on computers, phones, and e-readers. The version itself contains no modern introduction or annotations, so readers need to supplement background knowledge on their own.

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About the author

Nourse, Alan Edward, 1928-1992 Author

Alan Edward Nourse (1928-1992) is a science fiction author with 24 works held in this collection, though public information about him is limited and biographical details remain to be filled in. Judging from the available titles, he wrote both novels and short stories, often centering on space exploration, medical ethics, and the risks of technology: titles such as Star Surgeon and Brightside Crossing suggest an interest in the intersection of interstellar travel and surgery, while An Ounce of Cure, Consignment, and Marley's Chain reveal a cool scrutiny of technological consequences. He was skilled at carrying speculation through tight plotting, placing ordinary people in extreme situations and using professional detail to heighten realism. Some short pieces, such as Meeting of the Board, adopt a satirical tone, showing that his style was not monolithic. His work had some influence among mid-twentieth-century English-language science fiction readers, but details of awards and sales cannot be verified and are therefore not speculated upon.