Never Noticed That
Dear Editor:
Just bought my latest copy of Astounding Stories, and what an edition! First, the cover (Wesso has all others beat by a mile). Then, the stories. Well, take "Manape the Mighty": it is one of the best Science Fiction stories I have ever read. "The Exile of Time" was great.
Have you ever noticed that almost every critic of Science Fiction is either a teacher or a female? Jim Nicholson and I certainly know that.—Billy Roche, Sec. Interplanetary Dept. of the B. S. B., 101 St. Elmo, San Francisco, Cal.
Sunflowers for All
Dear Editor:
Miracles do happen! I was never so thoroughly astounded in all my life as when I received the great June issue of "our" magazine with straight edges! Thank you and all concerned for publishing "our" magazine sans rough edges. The smooth edges ought to cut the reading time of Astounding Stories down to an hour and forty-five minutes as we always used to waste a lot of time fumbling about with the pages.
But if I was astounded at the long awaited straight edges, I was still more amazed at the great innovation of an illustration by Paul! Let's have more and more of his remarkable drawings. Astounding Stories is truly great now with its fine Editor, splendid Authors, excellent stories, worthy illustrations, essential "Readers' Corner," Paul (Ah!) and good binding! Yes! You heard right! I said good binding! Of course it makes amusing material to write about the binding and remark that it comes off after once handling it, or that the paper is soon worn to shreds, but such matters shouldn't be honestly believed. I have every issue of Astounding Stories (eighteen great numbers!) and each and every issue is as good as new. I have never had any trouble with the covers departing from the rest of the magazine or the pages becoming moldy.
Sewell Peaslee Wright's "The Man from 2071" is just perfect. I enjoy nothing more than one of his realistic stories of Commander John Hanson. We want more! Arthur J. Burks' novelette, "Manape the Mighty," was clever. I had a premonition that I wouldn't like this story, and in fact told a friend so. It just goes to prove that hunches can be wrong. Charles Willard Diffin should be proud of his "Holocaust." I'm sure that most Readers enjoyed it as much as I did. Of course, Starzl's "The Earthman's Burden" was a peach. His stories of other planets are always weird, bizarre, and yet they seem to ring true. That is the magic of R. F. Starzl! Paul illustrated it in his own unapproachable style. "The Exile of Time," as everyone agrees, is Cummings' best. I am waiting for its thrilling conclusion.
I am one who would like Astounding Stories to be a large size magazine, but it can easily be seen that everyone can't be pleased. If you'll just leave it the way it is—i. e., straight edges, illustrations by Paul, same authors and same excellent Editor—I'll be satisfied.—Forrest J. Ackerman, 530 Staples Ave., San Francisco, Cal.