The Truth and Other Stories
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- Author：Stanisław Lem
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Summary
Twelve stories by science fiction master Stanisław Lem， nine of them never before published in English， making this the first "new" book of fiction by Lem since the late 1980s。 The stories display the full range of Lem's intense curiosity about scientific ideas as well as his sardonic approach to human nature， presenting as multifarious a collection of mad scientists as any reader could wish for。 Many of these stories feature artificial intelligences or artificial life forms， long a Lem preoccupation; some feature quite insane theories of cosmology or evolution。 All are thought-provoking and scathingly funny。
Written from 1956 to 1996， the stories are arranged in chronological order。 In the title story， The Truth， a scientist in an insane asylum theorizes that the sun is alive; The Journal appears to be an account by an omnipotent being describing the creation of infinite universes—until at the end， in a classic Lem twist， it turns out to be no such thing; in An Enigma， beings debate whether offspring can be created without advanced degrees and design templates。 Other stories feature a computer than can predict the future by 137 seconds， matter-destroying spores， a hunt in which the prey is a robot， and an electronic brain eager to go on the lam。 These stories are peak Lem， exploring ideas and themes that resonate throughout his writing。
Written from 1956 to 1996， the stories are arranged in chronological order。 In the title story， The Truth， a scientist in an insane asylum theorizes that the sun is alive; The Journal appears to be an account by an omnipotent being describing the creation of infinite universes—until at the end， in a classic Lem twist， it turns out to be no such thing; in An Enigma， beings debate whether offspring can be created without advanced degrees and design templates。 Other stories feature a computer than can predict the future by 137 seconds， matter-destroying spores， a hunt in which the prey is a robot， and an electronic brain eager to go on the lam。 These stories are peak Lem， exploring ideas and themes that resonate throughout his writing。
Reviews
Sherron
，
This collection （or if you ask P。 K。 Dick， “anthology” might be a better term） is being released at the right time for me， as I’m trying to read more classic sf。 Of the twelve stories， only three have been previously released in English， so this volume is recommended for both long-time fans and for newbies alike。 It turns out， I haven’t read a whole lot of Stanislaw Lem。 According to Wikipedia， 2021 is the year of Stanislaw Lem in Poland， and I’m glad to do my part catching up on as many SL nove This collection （or if you ask P。 K。 Dick， “anthology” might be a better term） is being released at the right time for me， as I’m trying to read more classic sf。 Of the twelve stories， only three have been previously released in English， so this volume is recommended for both long-time fans and for newbies alike。 It turns out， I haven’t read a whole lot of Stanislaw Lem。 According to Wikipedia， 2021 is the year of Stanislaw Lem in Poland， and I’m glad to do my part catching up on as many SL novels I can find， albeit from the USA， and many thanks to NetGalley and MIT Press for access to this ARC in return for my opinion here。 This collection is organized chronologically by publication date， and these short stories show a wide variety of treatment—from horror to humor and always with a satisfying dollop of science—to a fairly unified set of themes around otherness， understanding others， artificial intelligence， and being， to mention a few。 I understand the Lem was quite the wordsmith playing with language， and after reading these and other stories， I feel it’s a shame that though he spoke English， he chose to never write in that language。 It’s a shame to not have first-hand access to his work and a bitter shame his relations with American sf writers were like chalk and cheese。 I don’t speak Polish， so much nuance is probably lost on me。 Of course， translation may affect an inflection here， a word-choice there， but overall I got the impression of strong， well-written， clear and direct prose。 The only inkling I had regarding translation was some British phraseology。 In “The Hunt” a figure runs through the woods away from the humans hunting him。 As he runs， he thinks about life， about thinking （and not）， about his overheated body， about escape—to the moon where humans can’t follow his metal footsteps， and all the while he suffers exhaustion， fear， and worst of all， the gullibility of unearned trust。 And another story about perspective is “Rats in a Labyrinth。” Are we the makers of the maze … or are we the rats？ “Invasion from Alderbaran” was very funny。 Two aliens on a reconnaissance trip to a takeover a planet suffer defeat due to language differences and their making completely wrong inferences。 It’s a storyline and theme I’m learning was a favorite of Lem’s and one I’ve not seen pursued so thoroughly。 I read through all of these stories once without taking notes， and then before I knew it—the book was archived。 This is the sort of book that if you like it now， you will like to read it over again later。 I hope to read this book again in the future。 。。。more
Mary Ann
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A valuable addition for the english reader and fan of the great Stanislaw Lem。 the stories in may ways presage the future， or raise philisophical questions， so there is much to enjoy here。 Having said that， some of the stories are rather dense and hard to get through。
Catriona Lovett
，
Brilliant， Frightening， Strange， Sometimes FunnyStanislaw Lem， author of Solaris， The Investigation， and many other disturbing classics， has long been one of my favorite authors of science fiction， satire， and speculative fiction。 This is my first experience of reading his short stories。 Each gem in this collection is an unsettling， distinctive foray into the frontiers of imagination。 Despite the serious nature of some of his stories， there are others of a lighter nature。 It's said that he had a Brilliant， Frightening， Strange， Sometimes FunnyStanislaw Lem， author of Solaris， The Investigation， and many other disturbing classics， has long been one of my favorite authors of science fiction， satire， and speculative fiction。 This is my first experience of reading his short stories。 Each gem in this collection is an unsettling， distinctive foray into the frontiers of imagination。 Despite the serious nature of some of his stories， there are others of a lighter nature。 It's said that he had an active sense of humor and often inserted wordplay into his writing。 That has likely added to the difficulty of translating his works into English， humor is the kind of thing that often escapes interpretation。 Some of it came through clearly， but I'm pretty sure I didn't catch it all。 His writing style is by turns foreboding， compelling， and cerebral。 This last aspect made reading the title story， The Truth， difficult for me。 I like to believe I'm the biggest smarty-pants in the room， but sometimes lack of attention span gets in the way。 It seems like it should be fascinating， it's about all of life's big questions， but I got stuck on it。 It began to feel like endless contemplation of the collection of lint in life's bellybutton。 I've disappointed myself， but every story isn't for everyone。 I'll try it again another time。Stanislaw Lem is one of the most highly regarded names in science fiction around the world。 I'm very glad that translation of his works is still ongoing， and am grateful for the opportunity to read a free ARC， courtesy of the translator， Antonia Lloyd-Jones， The MIT Press， and NetGalley。 My highest recommendation comes freely and enthusiastically。 I also recommend that you skip the films and read the book， Solaris。 。。。more
Bagus
，
The year 2021 is celebrated as the centenary of the birth of Stanisław Lem。 It’s declared as the Year of Stanisław Lem （Rok Lema） in Poland， following the resolution passed by the Sejm， the lower house of the parliament of Poland on November 27， 2020。 I think it’s a really nice decision for MIT Press to finally publish Lem’s stories coinciding with this moment。 Lem is known to English-speaking audiences mainly through Solaris， which was first published in 1961 and stirred sensation both in Polan The year 2021 is celebrated as the centenary of the birth of Stanisław Lem。 It’s declared as the Year of Stanisław Lem （Rok Lema） in Poland， following the resolution passed by the Sejm， the lower house of the parliament of Poland on November 27， 2020。 I think it’s a really nice decision for MIT Press to finally publish Lem’s stories coinciding with this moment。 Lem is known to English-speaking audiences mainly through Solaris， which was first published in 1961 and stirred sensation both in Poland and outside Poland with its unorthodox view of interaction with extraterrestrial beings。 Most science fiction from Lem’s era imagined aliens as intelligent creatures with features similar to human beings， something which could be said as too anthropocentric for lack of better terms。 Solaris explores how aliens might or might not look like human beings， how communication might or might not work， and established Lem as a forerunner in the philosophical rethinking of technology。The 12 stories included in this volume， 9 of which was previously inaccessible to the Anglophone world， also explore Lem’s thoughts in more recurring details。 Some stories are merely okay to me， but there are also wonderfully-thought stories that changed the way I see technologies around me or amazed me with how precise Lem’s predictions of the future， despite the fact that most of the stories included are written in the 1950s and 1960s when Lem was most productive。 The theme of the impossibility of communication with extraterrestrial beings in Solaris is also present in Rat in the Labyrinth （1956） and The Invasion （1959） in which the main characters tried to establish contact and communicate with the creatures which arrive on earth， something which is deemed impossible to understand by merely likening our modes of interactions with anthropomorphism。Lem seemed to be fond of artificial intelligence as well and how it could affect our way of life。 The Hammer （1959） pretty much summarizes how AI will behave and the logic behind it， something to be commended given the context it was written in 1959。 In Lymphater’s Formula （1961）， Lem discusses the evolutionary progress of humans， how human’s progress will eventually lead to a state of decay and ultimately to its own doom。 Progress here is being likened to catalysts in chemical reactions。 The use of catalysts indeed fastens the reaction， but the end of the chemical reaction itself will be something entirely different compared to the chemical substances that formed it。 Ultimately human’s progress might end with something entirely different from our current state of beings。 Lem’s stories are intriguing and philosophical。 While they don’t offer that much in terms of character developments or the usual conflicts in three-act structures， they bring many inquiries about technology that stay relevant up to date。 As our reality has moved primarily online， it might be the right moment to question if we indeed prefer an omnipotent and omniscient state of being as opposed to the limitation set by our real-life situation in which we live inside the prison of flesh。 Digital technology is pretty much present in our daily life， with close to an unlimited flow of information。 If we think about it again， there is probably much more information available online than what we could digest in our lifetime。 If you haven’t read any of Lem’s works， then I could guarantee that some of his stories will convince you to change the way you see technological inventions and how we should approach them。I’d also like to praise the translation of Mrs Antonia Lloyd-Jones which always sounds good。 Previously， I’ve read her translations of Olga Tokarczuk’s works and Profesorowa Szczupaczyńska crime fiction series which is written by Jacek Dehnel and Piotr Tarczynski under the pseudonym Maryla Szymiczkowa。 Seeing how precise Stanisław Lem’s words are in this volume， I’m convinced that Mrs Llyod-Jones would be able to handle any type of works。 Whether you are a fan of science fiction or interested in works by Polish authors， this volume will be enjoyable to read and provide more insights related to the philosophical points of view on technologies。 。。。more
Megan
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*I received an eARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review。*I picked this up because， though I knew he was a prolific classic sci-fi author， I had never before read from Stanisław Lem， and often I like to start with short story collections for new to me authors if available so I can dip my toes into their writing。 This collection contains 12 never before published in English hard science fiction stories that Lem wrote between 1956 and 1996。 As a whole， these were very much hard sci-fi an *I received an eARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review。*I picked this up because， though I knew he was a prolific classic sci-fi author， I had never before read from Stanisław Lem， and often I like to start with short story collections for new to me authors if available so I can dip my toes into their writing。 This collection contains 12 never before published in English hard science fiction stories that Lem wrote between 1956 and 1996。 As a whole， these were very much hard sci-fi and a lot of it was very dense， so there were several parts that required me to stop and reread。 Also， I appreciated the inclusion of dates for each story because there were a couple times that I had to stop to remind myself that these were written decades ago and therefore the science or ideas of the future might be dated。Like with most short story collections， there were some hits and some misses。 I really enjoyed Darkness and Mildew and The Journal and on the whole enjoyed my time reading the collection but don't think many of the stories will stick with me。 That being said， I think it was a great place to start with reading Lem's work and look forward to coming back to this collection after reading more of his work。 。。。more
Vitória Fernandes
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Thanks to NetGalley and The MIT Press for the digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review。Like in most short stories collections， this book has some stories that are better than others。 In general it was a pretty consistent book， I didn't hate any of the stories。 This was the first time I read anything by Stanislaw Lem and I was glad to do so， I definitely want to read more of his work。 My favorites were The Hunt， Rat in Labyrinth， The Friend， Darkness and Mildew， Lymphater's Formu Thanks to NetGalley and The MIT Press for the digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review。Like in most short stories collections， this book has some stories that are better than others。 In general it was a pretty consistent book， I didn't hate any of the stories。 This was the first time I read anything by Stanislaw Lem and I was glad to do so， I definitely want to read more of his work。 My favorites were The Hunt， Rat in Labyrinth， The Friend， Darkness and Mildew， Lymphater's Formula， The Truth and One Hundred and Thirty Seven Seconds。If you are a fan of sci fi， check this out。 。。。more
Brian Clegg
，
To the SF enthusiast， Polish writer Stanislaw Lem is often regarded in a similar way a reader of mundane fiction might consider Joyce or Proust。 A writer that you may well never have read， but you know that they are amongst the greats because the literati tell you so。 I was pretty much in that category - I'd attempted to watch the 1972 Tarkovsky film of what's often regarded as Lem's masterpiece， Solaris， but I'd never ventured into what felt like writing that was bound to be obscure and impenet To the SF enthusiast， Polish writer Stanislaw Lem is often regarded in a similar way a reader of mundane fiction might consider Joyce or Proust。 A writer that you may well never have read， but you know that they are amongst the greats because the literati tell you so。 I was pretty much in that category - I'd attempted to watch the 1972 Tarkovsky film of what's often regarded as Lem's masterpiece， Solaris， but I'd never ventured into what felt like writing that was bound to be obscure and impenetrable。As a result， when I noticed that， to mark Lem's 100th anniversary， MIT Press had put out a collection of Lem short stories， I leapt at the chance to explore his writing in a relatively painless way。 The collection spans much of Lem's writing career， beginning with a piece from the late 50s and coming up to 1993。 Unfortunately， of the 12 stories in the book only two worked well as a piece of fiction， and one of those had problems with the science。The early stories suffered from something that Kim Stanley Robinson admits in the effusive introduction - Lem seemed not to have paid much attention to existing SF writing and reproduced many themes that by the 50s were fairly well trodden。 Unfortunately he didn't bring anything new， other than dragging out what probably only deserved to be a couple of thousand words to four or five times the length with interminable unnecessary text。 Sometimes this is in the form of dire dialogue such as 'Mind you， opinions are divided - some people think contact with another world would bring us benefits， and others think it would bring on the "war of the worlds。' Which side are you on？'Robinson tells us that part of Lem's appeal is his sense of humour， but it's hard to spot that in these stories。 Mind you， Robinson's example of a typical Lem quip is 'Measured by the yardstick of Dick's black pessimism， Schopenhauer's philosophy of life seems to be real joie de vivre，' so I suppose it's too much to expect a laugh out loud result。Broadly the stories seem to fit into three categories。 The earlier ones have a fairly straightforward plot， obscured by the shaggy dog story length of the lead ups to the conclusion。 A good example would be The Friend from 1959。 It's 50 pages long， most of which consists of a stranger describing his requirements for an electronic device in an intensely elliptical and frustrating fashion。 In the last handful of pages we get a rather Stephen Kingesque denouement， but the build-up is tedious in the extreme。We then get into what seems to be an obscurantist phase， where the language is not very helpful。 Here's the opening to the 1962 story The Journal: 'And so we are seized by a new desire for investigation， and we meet the preliminary condition: to limit ourselves， without which we can do nothing， for we are everything。 Here， plainly， everything and nothing mean one and the same thing， for only he who is everything can do nothing: in perfection， which is a persistent attribute of ours - unless we should wish， as in the present case， to suspend it - there is room for any kind of aspiration， because it is an end point。。。' and so it goes on。 I didn't get very far with this one。Finally， there are a couple of later pieces that return to some degree of readability。 For me， by far the most interesting stories are The Truth and One Hundred and Thirty-Seven Seconds。 The first of these features a really interesting concept， but is sadly rather distorted by the fact that Lem clearly has no idea what plasma （something central to the story） is like。 He seems to have thought that a plasma is basically a nuclear explosion waiting to happen， something uncontrollable， vastly energetic and potentially devastating。 It's probably a good thing he never owned a plasma TV or knew that there's plasma in a candle flame。 The second story is entertaining， though it's really fantasy rather than science fiction。Altogether， then， not a great experience。 If you are a Lem fan， I'm sure you will want to add this to your collection， as it contains nine previously untranslated stories - but I'm afraid it hasn't usefully demonstrated to me what all the fuss is about。 。。。more
Dan Trefethen
，
The Polish writer Stanislaw Lem was very influential in mid-20th century science fiction。 His novel “Solaris” was made into a successful movie， and is probably the epitome of the alien first contact story。His idea of a sentient but unknowable planet captured imaginations， and his ideas about non-human sentience carried throughout much of his work， including many of the twelve stories in this collection of newly-translated stories。 The range of his imagination is impressive when considering how h The Polish writer Stanislaw Lem was very influential in mid-20th century science fiction。 His novel “Solaris” was made into a successful movie， and is probably the epitome of the alien first contact story。His idea of a sentient but unknowable planet captured imaginations， and his ideas about non-human sentience carried throughout much of his work， including many of the twelve stories in this collection of newly-translated stories。 The range of his imagination is impressive when considering how he has thought of different kinds of alien-ness than any other writer， and writes engagingly about them。He also shows his prescience in his 1976 story “One Hundred and Thirty-Seven Seconds”， about a pre-Internet networked intelligence。These stories hold up incredibly well。 My criticism of his work relates to the length of the explanations and descriptions he provides， which go on way longer than necessary for readers to grasp the point。 However， this kind of geeky infodump was not unusual in science fiction of its day， when readers expected writers to “show their work”， the more involved the better。 。。。more
mono
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Truth Truth 。。。more
Wayne
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I enjoyed this book， as an introduction to Stanislaw Lem。 All the stories were good， but my favorite two were Lymphater's Formula and The Truth。 These are hard science fiction stories， so you do need to pay attention， but they are very enjoyable。 After reading， picked up Solaris to read， to start on some of his novels。 Can't wait。 #TheTruthandOtherStories #NetGalley I enjoyed this book， as an introduction to Stanislaw Lem。 All the stories were good， but my favorite two were Lymphater's Formula and The Truth。 These are hard science fiction stories， so you do need to pay attention， but they are very enjoyable。 After reading， picked up Solaris to read， to start on some of his novels。 Can't wait。 #TheTruthandOtherStories #NetGalley 。。。more
Graham Stull
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I just read the title short story with tremendous thanks due to a Polish friend of mine， who recommended it to me。Humbly and with embarassment for my anglocentricity， I am forced to admit I would otherwise never have read Lem， nor was I even truly aware of his existence as a writer - despite his having written the book behind the classic sci fi film Solaris。Yet The Truth， in its execution and in the concepts it evokes， is as deserving of a place among the great works of 20th Century sci-fi as an I just read the title short story with tremendous thanks due to a Polish friend of mine， who recommended it to me。Humbly and with embarassment for my anglocentricity， I am forced to admit I would otherwise never have read Lem， nor was I even truly aware of his existence as a writer - despite his having written the book behind the classic sci fi film Solaris。Yet The Truth， in its execution and in the concepts it evokes， is as deserving of a place among the great works of 20th Century sci-fi as anything written by Bradbury， Asimov or Clark。Nor does the genius of the story repose entirely on the ideas。 Lem uses the common narrative device of an unreliable narrator to bring the deeper philosophical question addressed into the story down to a personal level， creating a perfect mirror between the metaphysical and the psychosocial。Of course， in the end， it is the ideas that are the lasting mark of this story's greatness。 And here we come back to humility - in under ten thousand words， Lem manages to construct a plausible hypothesis that challenges our most basic assumptions about the universe and our place in it。This story deserves more than five stars。 It deserves all of them。 。。。more
Ola G
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10/10 starsMy full review can be found on my blog。Stanisław Lem is one of my absolutely favorite SF authors， as you probably already know from here and here。 His brain really seems to have been wired differently， perceiving correlations and consequences and possible outcomes that not many others – or none – had seen。 He’s also a very pessimistic writer， at least when it comes to humans and human cognitive and moral abilities – and reading Lem is a bit like gazing into a very unflattering mirror， 10/10 starsMy full review can be found on my blog。Stanisław Lem is one of my absolutely favorite SF authors， as you probably already know from here and here。 His brain really seems to have been wired differently， perceiving correlations and consequences and possible outcomes that not many others – or none – had seen。 He’s also a very pessimistic writer， at least when it comes to humans and human cognitive and moral abilities – and reading Lem is a bit like gazing into a very unflattering mirror， one from Andersen’s tale The Snow Queen。 In our times full of wilful denial and escapist pleasure， though， I contend that Lem’s passionate critique is something sorely needed。 This collection gathers stories from different periods of Lem’s life， from 1956 to 1996。 Many of them have never been translated to English before。 This anthology offers a great opportunity to acquaint oneself with the key themes and topics of Lem’s writing: artificial intelligence， first contact， human psychology and cognitive limitations， ethical problems inherent in human perception of the world。 Even though some of these stories are nearing their seventieth year， apart from the odd outdated technological detail they seem as bold and fresh as written today by the greatest in the field。 Lem was particularly preoccupied with the concept of Otherness – and this， maybe more than any other theme， makes his writing so enduring and important to his day。As usual， I’ll present a short review of each story and offer a quick summary and rating of the collection at the conclusion of my post。The Hunt 10/10This is a very Lem story; and one so deeply rooted in his personal experiences that without the context might seem too pessimistic。 Alas， for all its SF accoutrements it’s a WWII story about the meanings and definitions of “humanity。” The Hunt is one long exhalation， a violent gut punch， and its message is enhanced by a very visceral， visual and dynamic storytelling。 It reminds me of Tales of Pirx the Pilot， both in terms of themes and execution， and I find it hard to believe this story is almost 70 years old – it feels so fresh and rabid and desperate。 I knew what to expect， and yet I still hoped for a different ending。A very strong opening to the collection。Rat in the Labyrinth 7/10A preparatory sketch to Solaris; interesting but not surprising， with Lem exploring various concepts that will later find their way into the novel。 I appreciated the time loop twist， it was well done and lent the whole a suitably nightmarish feel， but the overarching metaphor was a bit too blunt。Invasion from Aldebaran 7/10Unfortunately， satire ages quickly; and here it wasn’t helped by the noticeably clunky translation。 I must say that in general the translation of the stories in this collection is really good， so hats off to Antonia Lloyd-Jones – but here， she simply didn’t manage to catch the subtexts and contexts， and somehow lost the delicious irony of the tale。 The premise and plot are funny， but their acerbic humor stems mainly from the utter believability of the situation – in fact， this story is a satire on Polish rural culture in the 50’s more than anything else。 It avoided censorship because it was clad in an iridescent SF cloak， but really， it’s a viciously accurate reportage from Polish boondocks。 It’s still spot on， actually。The Friend 10/10Wondrously creepy， twisty and dark， The Friend is one of the highlights of the collection。 A feeling of constant oppression， infiltration， and fear permeates this tale that starts like a noir detective story， turns into a morality tale， and switches gears again to become a tour the force in empathy and imagination， with a finishing touch of body horror。 Once again， this story seems as if it was written today， not in the 50’s。 Perfect。[。。。]The Truth 10/10Wonderfully imaginative， vividly descriptive – a fascinating account of unacceptable knowledge born from tragedy。 It’s also absolutely， unapologetically crazy， in that rabbit hole way that hooks you in and drags you ever deeper。 Mad scientists feature heavily in this collection; for a lot of reasons。 Censorship， be it political or academical， is usually born out of fear and personal/institutional interest， and Lem was well acquainted with political censorship in 1950s and ‘60s in Poland。 But he also points out to Kuhn’s concept of the structure of scientific revolutions， where new knowledge is usually rejected at first only to be accepted later on under the weight of new evidence and growing consensus。One Hundred and Thirty Seven Seconds 10/10All right， Lem did it again。Led me on a merry chase through physics， macro and quantum， the nature of time， the nature of consciousness， only to end with a gallows humor and a knowing wink to the audience。 A lovely story， much in the style of The Saragossa Manuscript or Decameron， or other oral tales fit to be told by the campfire， it showcases the strengths of both Lem’s writing skill and his amazing capacity for applying knowledge。 An Enigma 8/10A wonderfully ironic trifle， a perfect lightweight dessert at the end of a very filling eleven-course meal。 It shows Lem’s other face， that of a wise jester， inviting us to laugh wholeheartedly with him at our own expense。 Reminiscent of Cyberiad， this tiny story makes a perfect conclusion to the collection， imploring us to keep an open mind and be curious， always。All in all， this was a real pleasure。 Not all stories are equally wonderful， as usual with anthologies， but there’s an unusually high percentage of great stories in this collection。 They are all thought-provoking， bold， unapologetic， and ruthless in their unrelenting seriousness with which Lem approached everything， and which KSR so aptly describes in his foreword。 A word about the foreword: I think that it should rather be read as an afterword – Robinson not only shares his appreciation for Lem’s work in general and the influence it had on his own writing， but also discusses some of the stories from this collection。I will be coming back to some of these stories。 Their superb quality， their clinical poetry of structure and image， is haunting。 While I obviously prefer the original Polish version of Lem’s works， I am surprised， really， to have enjoyed them so much in translation – which is a testament to both Lem’s enduring skill and breadth of vision， and to the faithful translation by Antonia Lloyd-Jones。Very highly recommended。I received a copy of this book from the publisher MIT Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 My thanks。 。。。more
Wendy
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The majority of the stories in this book are fantastic。 I normally have a hard time reviewing books of short stories but not this time。 I read the whole thing in a day because I just could not stop。 While this is definitely "classic science fiction" there are some very modern themes。 AI， aliens， all the good stuff！ Mr。 Lem's imagination was ahead of his time。 I recommend The Truth and Other Stories to all science fiction readers。 There's something for everyone！ The majority of the stories in this book are fantastic。 I normally have a hard time reviewing books of short stories but not this time。 I read the whole thing in a day because I just could not stop。 While this is definitely "classic science fiction" there are some very modern themes。 AI， aliens， all the good stuff！ Mr。 Lem's imagination was ahead of his time。 I recommend The Truth and Other Stories to all science fiction readers。 There's something for everyone！ 。。。more
Diane Hernandez
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Containing twelve hard science fiction stories， The Truth and Other Stories is like peering into the future through the lens of the past。 Most of the stories were written in the late 1950s to mid-1960s with one from 1976 and another from 1993。 Many are amazingly prescient with their guesses of what will exist in the future （with many already extant today）。Nine of these stories are newly translated from the original Polish of Stanislaw Lem， the author of Solaris。 The translations are done well。Al Containing twelve hard science fiction stories， The Truth and Other Stories is like peering into the future through the lens of the past。 Most of the stories were written in the late 1950s to mid-1960s with one from 1976 and another from 1993。 Many are amazingly prescient with their guesses of what will exist in the future （with many already extant today）。Nine of these stories are newly translated from the original Polish of Stanislaw Lem， the author of Solaris。 The translations are done well。All of the tales focus on humans meeting other sentient beings for the first time。 Despite the unifying theme， the stories vary tremendously。 My personal favorites are The Friend and One Hundred and Thirty-Seven Seconds， which both contain unusual adversaries。 I also enjoyed the humor within Invasion from Aldebaran。If you want to turn back the clock several decades to a simpler time， The Truth and Other Stories is an excellent way to do it。 It contains many thought-provoking tales。 4 stars！Thanks to MIT Press and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more
M。 A。 Blanchard
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Stanisław Lem is one of the great philosophers in the worlds of classic science fiction， and this new collection is a truly intriguing glimpse into the mental worlds of a rather unique thinker。 His worldview--that of an irreverent iconoclast， a wildly creative nonconformist， and a fantastically satirical humorist--is handily showcased by the twelve stories included here。 As in much of Lem's work， themes of artificial and alien intelligence have a strong presence in many of these stories。 The emo Stanisław Lem is one of the great philosophers in the worlds of classic science fiction， and this new collection is a truly intriguing glimpse into the mental worlds of a rather unique thinker。 His worldview--that of an irreverent iconoclast， a wildly creative nonconformist， and a fantastically satirical humorist--is handily showcased by the twelve stories included here。 As in much of Lem's work， themes of artificial and alien intelligence have a strong presence in many of these stories。 The emotional tension and tragedy of stories such as "The Hunt" and "Rat in the Labyrinth" is underscored by their inhuman casualties， while the comedy of "Invasion from Aldebaran" is made acerbic by the fact that no one human in the story even really knows the truth of what did and did not happen。 The questions Lem asks about what it means to be human， alive， or aware remain timelessly relevant， and this running thread ties the collection together in a relatively cohesive way I might not have expected from a set of stories spanning nearly four decades of the author's life。 While I cannot read Polish and am therefore unable to comment on the accuracy of Antonia Lloyd-Jones's translation， the prose in this book has the feeling of a translation that largely stands aside and lets the author's voice shine through--an impressive feat， given the specificity of Lem's voice and his propensity for neologisms。 Overall， this is an excellent collection， and one I look forward to recommending to the existing Lem fans in my life as well as to anyone looking for interesting and intellectually provocative science fiction。 I received a free e-ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Alexander Peterhans
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If I wasn't already aware how good a writer Stanislaw Lem was before， this truly excellent collection would've easily persuaded me。 Twelve stories， of which only three have been translated into English before， spanning a wide range of Lem's life （1956 to 1993）， offered chronologically。Only a couple of stories are merely okay， most are either excellent or truly excellent。 My favourite story is probably The Friend， where a man keeps borrowing electrical parts and equipment for。。 a friend。 What tru If I wasn't already aware how good a writer Stanislaw Lem was before， this truly excellent collection would've easily persuaded me。 Twelve stories， of which only three have been translated into English before， spanning a wide range of Lem's life （1956 to 1993）， offered chronologically。Only a couple of stories are merely okay， most are either excellent or truly excellent。 My favourite story is probably The Friend， where a man keeps borrowing electrical parts and equipment for。。 a friend。 What truly impressed me was how this story quite suddenly changes perspective， in an almost post-modern way。 To me it shows a storyteller in complete control。Another of my favourites， Darkness and Mildew， is about a hermit having a chance encounter with a self-replicating bit of matter。 The story includes a short prologue， basically explaining what the self-replicating thing is， and I do feel the story didn't really need it。 That said， the story is still quite claustrophobic and threatening， in the way nature can be threatening。Lem tries his hand at humour in some stories， and succeeds mostly， to my surprise （which is up to me - I think I cultivated an image of Lem in my mind as a surly East-European writer， based on nothing）。Whether you've read Lem before or not， this is an excellent place to start。 Highly recommended。Individual scores:The Hunt - 4 starsRat In The Labyrinth - 4 starsInvasion From Aldebaran - 3。5 starsThe Friend - 5 starsThe Invasion - 4 starsDarkness And Mildew - 5 starsThe Hammer - 4 starsLymphater’s Formula - 4 starsThe Journal - 3 starsThe Truth - 4 starsOne Hundred And Thirty-Seven Seconds - 5 starsAn Enigma - 4 stars（Thanks to MIT Press for providing me for an ARC through NetGalley） 。。。more
Shona
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Thank you to NetGalley and to MIT Press for this ARC。 A dense but fascinating read。 Properly classic science fiction， it leans towards hard sci-fi， with long passages explaining real and imagined concepts。 Some of the author's concepts are amazing though， something I don't often encounter in classic sci-fi （which has dated really quickly， I've found）。 I kept reading through the sometimes bewildering philosophical treatises because there were some prescient ideas （always the best part of sci-fi）; Thank you to NetGalley and to MIT Press for this ARC。 A dense but fascinating read。 Properly classic science fiction， it leans towards hard sci-fi， with long passages explaining real and imagined concepts。 Some of the author's concepts are amazing though， something I don't often encounter in classic sci-fi （which has dated really quickly， I've found）。 I kept reading through the sometimes bewildering philosophical treatises because there were some prescient ideas （always the best part of sci-fi）; and， also， a thread of humour runs through Lem's writing， which is really pleasant。Recommend reading over a much longer period of time than I gave myself （a few days！）， and only if you don't mind intellectual challenges （--if， for example， you read and enjoy Kim Stanley Robinson， who provides the Foreword for this）。 Also， this did not feel at all like a translation， so much credit to Antonia Lloyd-Jones。 。。。more
Debrafleming
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So many of these stories had elements that will stick with me。 The older stories are still relevant and the newer ones are still classics。 I found the first story， The Hunt， particularly thought-provoking。 Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for this advance copy to read and review。 All opinions are my own。
Paul
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As a widely popular sci-fi author， these stories are a safe bet。 I'm not sure these are his best work （and description does not claim this）， but it is a good set。 Some of the stories felt new somehow， even though they were written long ago。 Lem fans and sci-fi fans will likely enjoy this。I really appreciate the ARC for review！！ As a widely popular sci-fi author， these stories are a safe bet。 I'm not sure these are his best work （and description does not claim this）， but it is a good set。 Some of the stories felt new somehow， even though they were written long ago。 Lem fans and sci-fi fans will likely enjoy this。I really appreciate the ARC for review！！ 。。。more
Mike Dominic
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I have been reading science fiction since my age was in the single digits， and inexplicably， I had never （to the best of my recollection） read anything by Stanislaw Lem。 With "The Truth and Other Stories" I am glad to have finally remedied that oversight。Lem's work， I am pleased to find， contains a literary and intellectual maturity that is often lacking in his more pulp-oriented North American contemporaries。 He often deals with the same tropes （e。g。 AI， alien invasion， first contact） but does I have been reading science fiction since my age was in the single digits， and inexplicably， I had never （to the best of my recollection） read anything by Stanislaw Lem。 With "The Truth and Other Stories" I am glad to have finally remedied that oversight。Lem's work， I am pleased to find， contains a literary and intellectual maturity that is often lacking in his more pulp-oriented North American contemporaries。 He often deals with the same tropes （e。g。 AI， alien invasion， first contact） but does so with more insight， clarity and rigor than did many other writers at the time， or even since。 Lem is firmly rooted in what is known as "hard science fiction" in the sense that there seems to be a solid scientific basis to his work which he expresses in fascinating detail。 However， his work transcends any limitations of that genre with elements of humanism， humour and even， to my surprise and enjoyment， cosmic horror （see "The Friend" in this volume）。 Lem's work is rich， layered and as informative as it is entertaining。Having finished this volume （and followed it up with a watching of Solaris）， I am very much looking forward to enjoying more of Lem's work。 More， I will be using this as my springboard to explore other European writers whom I've overlooked， such as Olaf Stapledon， Yvgeny Zemyatin and the Strugatsky's。 Readers who seek a mature treatment of science fiction themes beyond the pulp formulas would be strongly encouraged to read this volume and do the same。 。。。more
Dave
，
Stanislaw Lem was one of the greats of classic science fiction。 This is a collection of twelve of his stories， most never before translated into English from the original Polish。 These are dense stories filled with scientific jargon and will take a while to read。 The best of the bunch are "The Friend" and "Darkness and Mildew。"1。 The Hunt （Late 1950s） is a story told from the point of view of something not human， something possibly mechanical in nature， who is being hunted for sport through fore Stanislaw Lem was one of the greats of classic science fiction。 This is a collection of twelve of his stories， most never before translated into English from the original Polish。 These are dense stories filled with scientific jargon and will take a while to read。 The best of the bunch are "The Friend" and "Darkness and Mildew。"1。 The Hunt （Late 1950s） is a story told from the point of view of something not human， something possibly mechanical in nature， who is being hunted for sport through forests and mountains。 It is a poetic story， which brings to life the environment he is running through。 2。 Rat in the Labyrinth （1956） is a first contact story and， as it so often goes， first contact with aliens is nothing like we ever imagined。 Here， it is an episode so odd and different than almost anyone expected。 This one starts out slowly， but you have to stick with it to get to the good stuff。 It may indeed feel more like an endless labyrinth than a flying saucer。 3。 Invasion from Aldebaran （1959） is another first contact story， but it flips the Rat in a Labyrinth story on its head by viewing the first contact from the point of view of the many-tentacled aliens。 The oddness with which they understand Earth is just how odd we would find an alien world out there。 4。 The Friend （1959） revisits the theme of First contact and， once again， it is nothing like you imagined。 Leg starts this terrifying take slowly with a stranger visiting a shortwave radio club。 But， see， the stranger has s secret friend who is quite out of this world。 5。 The Invasion （1959） is a hard science look at first contact。 It starts out just peaceful out in the field。 A tough， awkward read。 Interesting thing is how Lem anticipated three-d printing。 6。 Darkness and Mildew （1959） is for a change of pace not exactly a first contact story and it'd also my favorite so far。 Think Dr。 Frankenstein meets Dr。 Doolittle。 Think deeply before you watch another episode of "Hoarders。" Lem's quirky sense of humor is also at play here。 7。 The Hammer （1959） is a tough one to follow， but it's a real early look into the nature of artificial intelligence。 8。 Lymphater’s Formula （1961） starts out as a difficult read， but ultimately is a very satisfying tale。 If you thought Dr。 Frankenstein appeared in an earlier story， you ain't seen nothing yet。 Evolution slowly progresses。 9。 The Journal （1962） is a technically-rich story written in the form of an entry to a scientific journal。 Thus， the title。 12。 The Truth （1964） explores the idea of what is life and what is intelligent。 11。 One Hundred and Thirty-Seven Seconds （1976） - another dense hard sci-fi tale。 12。 An Enigma （1993） is about predictions and intelligent thought。 。。。more
Goran
，
It feels kind of crazy to read “new”， never-before-translated works by one of the greats like Lem。 I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect going in since this is mostly a collection of unconnected short stories， but what I got in the end is the typical thought-provoking， creative and a delight for any Lem fans。Some of these are quite heavy reads， and I had to re-read some parts multiple times。 Interestingly， as much as there is no main theme， you can expect many of the themes Lem always returned t It feels kind of crazy to read “new”， never-before-translated works by one of the greats like Lem。 I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect going in since this is mostly a collection of unconnected short stories， but what I got in the end is the typical thought-provoking， creative and a delight for any Lem fans。Some of these are quite heavy reads， and I had to re-read some parts multiple times。 Interestingly， as much as there is no main theme， you can expect many of the themes Lem always returned to in his career， perhaps most notably in this collection the exploration of what alien intelligence would look like。 Because these stories were all written independently over the span of multiple decades， you can see a clear evolution/change in his writing style and habits。 Feels like classic SF， and classic Lem！ I would like to thank NetGalley and MIT Press for this ARC。 。。。more
WorldconReader
，
I would like to thank the MIT Press for kindly providing an electronic review copy of this book。"The Truth and Other Stories" is a collection of English translations of 12 stories by the Polish SF author Stanislaw Lem with a foreword written by Kim Stanley Robinson。Robinson's foreword is a very useful introduction to Lem and his works。 Among other things， Robinson describes Lem's interaction with and influence on the field of American science fiction。 Most of the stories in this book were writte I would like to thank the MIT Press for kindly providing an electronic review copy of this book。"The Truth and Other Stories" is a collection of English translations of 12 stories by the Polish SF author Stanislaw Lem with a foreword written by Kim Stanley Robinson。Robinson's foreword is a very useful introduction to Lem and his works。 Among other things， Robinson describes Lem's interaction with and influence on the field of American science fiction。 Most of the stories in this book were written in the eight year period between 1956 and 1964。 （The outliers were written in 1976 and 1993。） Initially， these stories reminded me of several of the classic SF authors。 There are stories with the sense horror found in Edgar Allan Poe or Mary Shelley's Frankenstein。 Other stories have the philosophical inquiring feel of the tales of robots， artificial brains， scholars， monks， scientists， mad scientists， and renaissance men by Jules Verne and H。 G。 Wells。 （Yes， in this collection they are all men。） Nearly all of the stories take a thought provoking idea and develop a deep story around it。 Several of the stories tend to be verbose and tedious， but in most the concept and the story twist is genius。 These stories that are based around a profound concept reminded me strongly of Ted Chiang。 Though truthfully， since these stories were written first， I should say that Ted Chiang's best stories feel strongly influenced by the best Stanislaw Lem stories。I am very happy to have had the opportunity to read this book。 I feel like it has helped educate me on the history of science fiction。 I will keep an eye open for other stories by Stanislaw Lem。 。。。more
Laura
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Having never read Stanisław Lem， but certainly having heard of his work， I was eager to pick up this collection when I saw it available （thank you MIT Press and NetGalley for providing an ARC）。 Inevitably I enjoyed some stories more than others but overall， the stories are thought-provoking and， in some instances， laugh aloud funny at times。 I’m happy to have finally gotten to read this classic author， and can see myself returning to this collection to read a few of the stories again。 I apprecia Having never read Stanisław Lem， but certainly having heard of his work， I was eager to pick up this collection when I saw it available （thank you MIT Press and NetGalley for providing an ARC）。 Inevitably I enjoyed some stories more than others but overall， the stories are thought-provoking and， in some instances， laugh aloud funny at times。 I’m happy to have finally gotten to read this classic author， and can see myself returning to this collection to read a few of the stories again。 I appreciate the inclusion of the dates for each story’s composition as this gives a sense of the trajectory and development of Lem’s work over the course of his writing career。 Overall， an interesting collection I’d happily recommend to fans of classic science fiction。 。。。more
Theediscerning
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A new collection of Stanislaw Lem short stories， brought to us in mostly brand new， debut translations from the original Polish， from a house who has a building list of his works。 You'd think to be on a winner there， surely？ Well， the first piece certainly carried a seed of doubt， with a quite pointless and laboured man-being-pursued-for-unknown-reasons story。 Oh， and he's not human， so even that description is a little off – but not as off as what we get here。 Next， a first encounter story whic A new collection of Stanislaw Lem short stories， brought to us in mostly brand new， debut translations from the original Polish， from a house who has a building list of his works。 You'd think to be on a winner there， surely？ Well， the first piece certainly carried a seed of doubt， with a quite pointless and laboured man-being-pursued-for-unknown-reasons story。 Oh， and he's not human， so even that description is a little off – but not as off as what we get here。 Next， a first encounter story which has some novelty in its mix， but also much that seems too guessable。 The first hit for me came next， although with its ridiculous amount of alien technobabble （either a sheer delight or utter nightmare for translators， surely） comes too the risk of this being off-putting。 It seemed to boil down to a typically Polish alien invasion story， with good comedic angles， unlike the ones in a longer piece on the same subject， that seems to portray Poland in a bad light with the woozy near-panic of a night-time evacuation of an extra-terrestrial landing site。 The poor ending here showed Lem not to be as perfect as made out by others。A standout for me had to be 'The Friend'， a novella whose lack of concision you can ignore as it shows a humble lackey at a shortwave radio club embroiled in someone else's task a 'friend' has set him。 For what kind of story it is， the very analogue kind of tech used should feel desperately dated， and yet perhaps its alienness to the modern age actually makes it work the better。 Elsewhere we get a new kind of weapon; robots thinking about human creation; spacecraft and their sole occupants conversing with each other – about daydreams and other matters; a man yacking for ages about psychic ants and the usurpation of humanity; another fine success， concerning an eerily knowledgeable newspaper computer; and the title story， which bears the testimony of a plasma scientist。One piece just passed me by， for I was reading it and understanding less and less with every passing word。 Lem is not a light， easy read （but did you really expect an airport book from a University press？！）。 Generally， however， he has a certain quality， that makes it worthwhile you persist， and not succumb to the urge to skim。 I would not point to any of these as utterly memorable， with perhaps two exceptions， but even those had sections I would prefer had received a red pen's treatment。 Still， the singular mindset of this creator is here on these pages， and whether you read the few classics or all the pulps from the past of sci-fi， this is worth considering。 My personal taste， however， saw too few instances of this breaching three stars。 。。。more
maddie。
，
Stanislaw Lem was one of the first authors I read when I first got into adult science fiction， and I think about Solaris， like， once every couple of hours。 So when I heard a new collection of his stories was being translated into English （many for the first time）， obviously I made a netgalley purely to get an ARC of it。（Insert obligatory netgalley disclaimer here， etc。 etc。）It's interesting for me to think of these stories in comparison to Solaris， with is， I think， a high water mark for thought Stanislaw Lem was one of the first authors I read when I first got into adult science fiction， and I think about Solaris， like， once every couple of hours。 So when I heard a new collection of his stories was being translated into English （many for the first time）， obviously I made a netgalley purely to get an ARC of it。（Insert obligatory netgalley disclaimer here， etc。 etc。）It's interesting for me to think of these stories in comparison to Solaris， with is， I think， a high water mark for thoughtful， philosophical scifi。 A lot that is repeated here—Lem returns， again and again， to the idea of alien intelligence: what it would look like， and whether we would recognize it， and what that means about us。 But there's a lot of humor here， too。 （"Invasion from Aldebaran"， in particular， made me do that weird snort-laugh people do when they read amusing things alone in their bedrooms during a worldwide plague。） Which， you know！ Was very refreshing given the general gloominess of life right now。 It reminded me of watching the Twilight Zone late at night as a kid， funny and kind of existentially horrifying in equal measure。I think this style of witty/horrifying/philosophical writing is having something of a comeback lately—I'm thinking， in particular， of Ted Chiang， who's probably the best writer of speculative short friction working right now。 Obviously， there's a big gulf there stylistically—each story in this collection comes with a little note about when it was written， but it would be clear even without them that these stories aren't exactly contemporary。 Nonetheless I think this collection is a compelling entry point to the Lem-iverse for those who are late to the party， as well as long-time fans who haven't bothered to learn how to read Polish in pursuit of new material。Also， you know， nice cover！ 。。。more
Reading_ Tamishly
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