The Aliens by Murray Leinster (book review).
Murray Leinster’s book, ‘The Aliens,’ is actually a five-story anthology of material previously seen in print in American SF magazines. I read Leinster (1896-1975) when young, so it was nice to see some material I hadn’t seen, and here are the best 4 out of 5, which is good going for any anthology.
The opening story, ‘The Aliens’ (1959), is a first encounter between humans and the Plumies. They were known about but not actually seen. The spaceship Niccola has a xenophobic captain, mostly in case there are hostilities. When another spaceship is spotted near them, he suspects danger and orders missiles fired, not nuclear because the other ship is too close. However, the Plumies return them, resulting in a collision of the two spacecraft. One of the Plumies in a spacesuit comes aboard to parley. The Niccola’s engines are spent, and their own spacecraft’s unique motors won’t start unless it’s freed from the human spacecraft. Between all of this is navigator Baird, who successfully interprets the Plumie body language. Leinster packs into 33 pages and even has a touch of romance as a side plot. It’s a compelling read as he builds up the setup.
The second story, ‘Fugitive From Space’ (1954), is literally as described in the title but far better. Lights in the sky and an explosion, and Burt’s car collides with something. He wakens blindfolded, not realising that an alien has been reading his memories. The alien is trying to disguise himself and not draw attention to himself lest his pursuers come after him. Not so easy, as even as a facsimile, everything is brown. In the end, Burt and his girlfriend, Norma, are used by the alien to get him to perfect his disguise, knowing that he carries a small nuclear weapon and is prepared to use it. Leinster plays the story very straight; it could still work as a film today with its ingenuity.
The third story, ‘Anthropological Note’ (1957), is pure gold, and the reason anthologies need to be looked at to find something as good as this. Forget the setting is Venus; the story could apply to any habitable alien planet. Anthropologist Miss Cummings, with her team in orbit recording her information, is investigating the Krug, where the species are clearly divided by their sexes. The womenfolk live together in a village commune, and the males are kicked out when they reach adulthood to live in the wild. While she is there, a rather nasty character called Roy Hale is a couple hundred miles away torturing and killing male Krugs to learn the source of crythli pearls and pearl shells, which are expensive on Earth. Hale was also once the husband of Miss Cummings’ sister in an abusive relationship, so she has additional reasons not to like him. The Krug women are also increasingly getting disturbed by Miss Cummings, as she has never had children, and are planning to kill her unless she weds…their way. Of course, her crew are preparing to come and get her before that happens. You might think you can see the ending, but there’s a superb twist at the end. Leinster obviously did some research on anthropology for this story, applying its techniques for getting close to an alien culture that doesn’t have a word for ‘why’ and separate languages for females and males, with everything getting an individual name. This story alone is worth seeking out and, despite its age, is still topical today on so many fronts.
The last story, ‘Thing From The Sky’, takes place in the Seco Valley. It’s fairly near Death Valley, only much drier and hotter. Scientist Steve Hansum and prospector Brady and his dog Gyp find themselves pursuing an alien after discovering its downed spacecraft. There are too many spoilers from there, but I have a suspicion that Leinster had been to the valley because you experienced what they did. I do think people forget that some of the best science fiction comes from putting something unusual in a normal situation.
You can always tell when I’m enthusiastic about a book; the review becomes longer. The fact that an SF book can reach out over the generations and still be a good read is a testament to good writing. If you’re hungry for some decent SF right now, this is a good book to seek out.
GF Willmetts
September 2025
(pub: Berkley Medallion, 1960. 144 page paperback. Price: varies. ISBN: F1139).
