I'm a Stranger Here Myself

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

3.4

Word count: 11K words
Chapters: 2

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.I'm a Stranger Here Myself by Mack ReynoldsAuthor: Reynolds, Mack, 1917-1983,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Oct 1, 2008

Editor's review

This is a novella or short story by American science fiction writer Mack Reynolds, in the vein of social science fiction he excelled at: using the mismatch between future social systems and everyday life as a point of entry for satire and speculation in a light tone. Reynolds often focused on economic systems, identity and group belonging; the title itself hints at the alienation of being "in a strange place," making it a good sample of the mid-twentieth-century American science fiction magazine tradition. The Gutenberg edition is a public-domain English e-text; it is short enough to finish in one sitting and discuss. As you read, note how the author uses the premise to drive the characters' dilemmas, and how the ending overturns the institutional imagination.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in mid-twentieth-century American science fiction short stories
Readers who enjoy social speculation and light satire rather than hard science fiction
Teachers and students who need short English-language science fiction for class discussion or reading practice
Readers who want to understand Reynolds's style and the magazine science fiction tradition

Not a good fit for

Science fiction readers who prefer hard-tech premises and grand space opera
Readers with limited English reading experience who need a Chinese translation for support
Readers expecting a long, complex world and character arcs

Reading tips

Read through once for the plot, then go back to the setup at the beginning to understand where the "stranger" feeling comes from.
As you read, note the author's assumptions about future institutions and consider how they map onto real economic life.
Read it alongside other social science fiction short stories from the magazine era and compare their satirical approaches.
After finishing, try summarizing the core premise and twist in two or three sentences to check whether you grasped the author's intent

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?

According to the Gutenberg entry, this is a work by Mack Reynolds closer to a novella or short story in length, suitable for reading in one or two sittings. Page counts vary with e-edition formatting; readers can use their reader's progress display to plan their time.

Do I need a background in science fiction?

No special background is needed. The work centers on social setup and characters' situations and does not rely on complex technological knowledge. Anyone interested in speculative narrative can get into it; readers familiar with the magazine science fiction tradition will more easily recognize its satirical manner.

Why is the title "I'm a Stranger Here Myself"?

The title points to the alienation between the protagonist and his environment, which may be geographical or may involve institutions and identity. The specific meaning is tied to the plot twist; as you read, simply notice how the surrounding society treats the character as an "outsider."

Can the Gutenberg edition be used freely?

Project Gutenberg provides public-domain e-texts that are generally free to read and distribute, but its license terms should still be observed and the relevant notices retained. For publication or course anthologies, check the usage notes for the specific edition.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

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.