''Born of Man and Woman'' is the first collection of science fiction and
fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures.
The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...
stories by
Richard Matheson
Richard Burton Matheson (February 20, 1926 – June 23, 2013) was an American author and screenwriter, primarily in the fantasy, horror, and science fiction genres.
He is best known as the author of '' I Am Legend'', a 1954 science ficti ...
, published in hardcover by Chamberlain Press in 1954. It includes an introduction by
Robert Bloch
Robert Albert Bloch (; April 5, 1917September 23, 1994) was an American fiction writer, primarily of crime fiction, crime, psychological horror fiction, horror and Fantasy Fiction, fantasy, much of which has been dramatized for radio, cinema and ...
. A truncated edition, dropping four stories, was published by
Bantam Books
Bantam Books is an American publishing house owned entirely by parent company Random House, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House; it is an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group. It was formed in 1945 by Walter B. Pitkin Jr., Sidney B. K ...
in 1955 as ''Third from the Sun''.
Contents
* "
Born of Man and Woman" (''
F&SF'' 1950)
* "Third from the Sun" (
''Galaxy'' 1950) - this story was the basis of ''
The Twilight Zone
''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...
''
episode of the same name.
* "Through Channels" (''F&SF'' 1951)
* "Lover, When You’re Near Me" (''Galaxy'' 1952)
* "SRL Ad" (''F&SF'' 1952)
* "Mad House" (
''Fantastic'' 1953)
* "F---" (''
Thrilling Wonder Stories'' 1952)
* "Dear Diary" (original)
* "To Fit the Crime" (''Fantastic'' 1952)
* "Witch War" (''
Startling Stories'' 1951)
* "Return" (''Thrilling Wonder Stories'' 1951)
* "Dress of White Silk" (''F&SF'' 1951)
* "Full Circle" (''
Fantastic Universe
''Fantastic Universe'' was a U.S. science fiction magazine which began publishing in the 1950s. It ran for 69 issues, from June 1953 to March 1960, under two different publishers. It was part of the explosion of science fiction magazine publishi ...
'' 1953)
* "Disappearing Act" (''F&SF'' 1953)
* "The Wedding" (''
Beyond Fantasy Fiction'' 1953)
* "Shipshape Home" (''Galaxy'' 1952)
* "The Traveller" (original)
"F---" was originally published as "The Foodlegger".
Reception
''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' reviewer
J. Francis McComas characterized Matheson as "an established producer of the violently disturbing" and described the "scintillating" collection as "a stimulating look at a genuine artist at work."
P. Schuyler Miller, noting that all the stories had been relatively recently published, praised Matheson as "one of the best of the newer writers."
["The Reference Library", '']Astounding Science Fiction
''Analog Science Fiction and Fact'' is an American science fiction magazine published under various titles since 1930. Originally titled ''Astounding Stories of Super-Science'', the first issue was dated January 1930, published by William C ...
'', January 1955, p.153
References
1954 short story collections
American short story collections
Science fiction short story collections
Works by Richard Matheson
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