The Wall Around the World
Theodore R. Cogswell
160 pages
published in 1962

This is a collection from a simpler time, when science fiction was still ruled by the idea driven short story. Which is the science fiction I grew up with, even if I only started reading science fiction long after this was no longer true. Reading a collection like this feels like coming home.

Theodore Cogswell was not a very prolific writer; he has written less then forty short stories in total and one Star Trek novel. He started writing in 1952 with what may be his best story, The Specter General; his last story was published in 1996, nine years after his death. He has written a handful of first rank stories: the aforementioned The Specter General, The Wall Around the World, both in this collection and Consumer Report are probably the best known.

The stories in this collection are all O Henry type stories, with a less or more surprising twist in the end. A fair few of them are more science fantasy than science fiction, as they take fantasy stereotypes and give them a science fictional twist. This comes back in the double foreword, by nobody less then Anthony Boucher and Frederik Pohl, who both spent the greater part of their forewords defending the influx of fantasy in science fiction rather then talking about Cogswell himself. You get the impression some science fiction fans are less than happy reading fantasy; nothing has changed then.

• The Masters
  The Last Man on Earth meets the Alien Invaders who killed the rest of us off. Not to their benefit.
• The Specter General
  As the science fiction encyclopedia says, this could've been written by Keith Laumer. The 427th Light Maintenance Battalion of the Imperial Space Marines has been cut off from the rest of the empire for fivehundred years, but maintained their skills, unlike the rest of the Empire, which is falling apart.
• Wolfie
  Guy wants to bump off his nephew by way of magic; something goes wrong and he gets what he deserves, in an ironic way.
• Emergency Rations
  Too clever for their own good aliens get their comeuppance at the hand of ignorant earthlings. Actually quite a nasty tale if you think about it.
• The Burning
  That only a Mother... but not a very nice mother.
• Thimgs
  The moral of this story: don't try to make a bargain with Higher Powers. Features one of those magical shops.
• Test Area
  Too clever for their own good Martians by way of timetravel mess with Mankind's evolution --to their detriment. Written with a nice dry wit.
• Prisoner of Love
  A down on his luck Grey Magician from the Half World answers a Summoning meant for Baal and gets enslaved by a mortal woman --now his plucky girl friday has to get him out of this mess.
• Invasion Report
  A bunch of kids hijack the Last Starship on Earth, long after Science has proven that no alien life could exist and is in the right place to repel an alien invasion...
• The Wall Around the World
  Porgie was not a normal boy: instead of concentrating on his alchemy classes, he rather spend his time thinking of plans to fly over the Wall Around the World --by machine. If he his not careful,t he Dark Man will take him.

In all, these are all enjoyable stories you will have finished in less than an hour. Not a collection you need to have, but certainly something to keep an eye out for.

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Theodore Cogswell, The Wall around the World, science fiction, book review