Technology Quarterly and Proceedings of the Society of Arts, Volume 20 Book

I’ve had a recent urge to read short stories, no doubt I am avoiding the massive, 1000 page Peter Hamilton Neutronium Alchemist monster sitting on top of the reading table. Grabbed this collection of older shorts off the shelf.
The Eve of Rumoko by Roger Zelazny: 3 stars. Reading this one week after the Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami is a little disconcerting. Toying with Mother Nature is not a good idea. The effects of the Rumoko project pale in comparison to what was wrought by the earthquake in Japan. What would you do if you could foresee the damage that would result? Would you take action? A timely story 30 years after it was written.
The Night of the Trolls by Keith Laumer: 4 stars. Rip Van Winkle and a dark Back to the Future/Timeline combination. There is a revelation in the middle of the story that is so incredibly poignant, if you don’t have an ache in your heart or catch in your throat, you are not a man.
Mercenary by Mack Reynolds: 2 stars. The story revolves around ritual, limited combat used to settle differences between companies, unions or governments. A decent story, not too long, about how an ambitious guy from the lower class survives and strives in a rigid world order to join the rich upper class.
Soldier, Ask Not by Gordon Dickson: 5 stars. Superb writing! I have most of his Dorsai novels but have not read them. I need to change that. This is a story of mercenary forces, similar to Mercenary above, where conflicts are resolved by forces brought in. But in this one you care for the combatants, although not in the beginning. First line of the story: “As I got off the spaceliner on St Marie…” Really, don’t we all wish we could do that?
Weyr Search by Anne McCaffrey: 1 star. See my review of Dragonflight, this is an excerpt from that novel. Not for me.
Code Three by Rick Raphael: 2 stars. Has a “Mad Men” flavor, not surprising since it was written in 1963. Two patrolmen and a female medic are patrolling the high speed highways crossing North America. Hey you can drive 400 miles an hour in this future, but the crashes are pretty spectacular and deadly. Cops may like this story.
The Highest Treason by Randall Gannett 5 Stars. Outstanding story about a future Earth that is socialist and politically correct, kind of a Progressive heaven if you will. A small problem is an invading race of alien humanoids who prefer to win and take everything and really don’t care about playing “fair”. Our protagonist struggles to find a way for the human race to survive. Interesting sacrifice he makes.
Hawk Among the Sparrows by Dean McLaughlin: 2 stars. What would happen if you could take a modern jet back to WWI. Kind of like that movie where the aircraft carrier goes back to just before Pearl Harbor. Just Ok.
The Suicide Express by Philip Jose Farmer: 1 star. Unfinished. Farmer is simply too weird to finish. This story is about people dying and being reborn multiple times on the “river”. One guy is chasing another through multiple deaths and awakenings in close proximity. A chase that simply has no interest.
How It was the Past Went Away by Robert Silverberg: 2 stars. Written in 1969, San Francisco is hit by a terror attack when someone contaminates the water supply with drugs that destroy your memories. Varying levels of memory loss occur. Some get memories back, some get no memories back. Really, everyone in San Francisco was (and is) on drugs – they normally can’t remember what they did – not much SciFi here.