This is Klon Calling

Sheldon, Walter J., 1917-1996Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 10K 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.This is Klon Calling by Walter J. SheldonAuthor: Sheldon, Walter J., 1917-1996,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: May 24, 2009

Editor's review

This is a short story by Walter J. Sheldon published in a science fiction magazine, a typical specimen of mid-twentieth-century American science fiction: briskly set up and fast paced, a small science-fiction piece with an element of suspense built around the telephone and identity. It is short enough to finish on a commute or a lunch break, yet leaves a twist or a point for reflection worth mulling over. Sheldon does not aim for an elaborate world; he takes an everyday object as his entry point and links technological speculation to the human situation, and this small-scale approach is precisely the appeal of Golden Age short science fiction. As a public-domain ebook it preserves the language of the original magazine publication and has sample value for those studying the formulas of early science-fiction magazines; for general readers it is light genre reading and an entry point into the American short science-fiction tradition. Note that it bears the marks of its period, and some of its premises may seem less novel by today's standards; precisely for that reason it is best understood within the history of the genre.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy short science fiction and want a story they can finish in spare moments
Enthusiasts of mid-twentieth-century American science-fiction magazine writing
Literature students who need a short sample for studying the development of the genre
English learners looking for light original reading practice

Not a good fit for

Hard science-fiction readers who expect long world-building and complex premises
Readers sensitive to old-fashioned language and dated premises
Readers seeking deep characterisation and literary prose

Reading tips

Read it straight through first without stopping to look up words, preserving the suspense, then go back over the details.
Afterwards, consider the function of the telephone in the story and how the author uses it to drive the plot.
Read it alongside other Golden Age short stories and observe the recurring twist formulas.
If using it for English study, choose the dialogue passages for close reading and note the colloquial expressions.

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

What kind of science fiction is this?

It is a short genre story of the kind published in mid-twentieth-century American science-fiction magazines: brief, tightly focused, with an element of suspense and a twist, closer to popular genre reading than to hard science fiction.

How difficult is the English?

The original is in English with the flavour of mid-century magazine fiction. The sentences are not complex, and it suits readers with some English who want to try an original short story. Skip unfamiliar words at first and follow the overall plot.

Why does the title include "Klon"?

"Klon" is a key name in the story, directly tied to the suspense of the phone call. Its precise meaning involves the story's core, so read the original first to avoid spoiling the surprise.

Comments

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About the author

Sheldon, Walter J., 1917-1996 Author

Walter J. Sheldon (1917–1996) was an American author of science fiction and popular fiction, though public information about him is limited. Seven of his works are included in this collection: I, the Unspeakable, Houlihan's Equation, Two Plus Two Makes Crazy, This is Klon Calling, Jimsy and the Monsters, Brink of Madness, and Your Time is Up. These titles often carry a sense of suspense, the grotesque, and psychological tension, suggesting that he excelled at building mystery through absurd premises and abrupt plot turns, usually driving conflict forward within short-form stories. On this Chinese book site his works are grouped under inspirational growth, a category that reflects a mixed positioning between popular reading and genre fiction rather than strict science-fiction orthodoxy. Because biographical material is scarce, readers can currently know this author only through his themes and title styles; a fuller picture of his writing awaits more sources.