The Playful LEM : A Short Story Sampler

Stanislaw Lem

ISBN 10: 160329757X / ISBN 13: 9781603297578

Published by Modern Language Association Of America Jul 2026, 2026

About this Item

Neuware - Classic speculative fiction with a comedic approachConjuring worlds in which robots are kings and Earthlings exist on the fringes of the universe, Stanislaw Lem's anachronistic fairy tales and science fiction parables envision knights who fight for the favor of a mechanical princess, a computer that can create anything (so long as it begins with the letter n), and a human astronaut who goes undercover on a planet ruled by robots. In celebrated translations by Michael Kandel and with a new introduction by Bozena Shallcross, the stories in this volume highlight age-old human weaknesses vanity, jealousy, cowardice, and cruelty while tickling the reader with layered humor ranging from satire to wordplay to slapstick.Lem's oblique approach to indicting aggression and totalitarianism helped him avoid censorship while living under a restrictive government during the Cold War. Originally published in Polish in the 1950s and '60s, the stories collected here both evoke the concerns of the era and foresee today's technological capabilities as well as society's response.

Seller Inventory # 9781603297578

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Playful LEM : A Short Story Sampler
• Publisher: Modern Language Association Of America Jul 2026
• Publication Date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 160329757X
• ISBN 13: 9781603297578
• Binding: Taschenbuch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 229W x 155H x 15D millimeters 229 millimeters width by 155 millimeters height by 15 millimeters depth
• Weight: 313 grams

About this title

Synopsis

Classic speculative fiction with a comedic approach

Conjuring worlds in which robots are kings and Earthlings exist on the fringes of the universe, Stanisław Lem’s anachronistic fairy tales and science fiction parables envision knights who fight for the favor of a mechanical princess, a computer that can create anything (so long as it begins with the letter n), and a human astronaut who goes undercover on a planet ruled by robots. In celebrated translations by Michael Kandel and with a new introduction by Bożena Shallcross, the stories in this volume highlight age-old human weaknesses―vanity, jealousy, cowardice, and cruelty―while tickling the reader with layered humor ranging from satire to wordplay to slapstick.

Lem’s oblique approach to indicting aggression and totalitarianism helped him avoid censorship while living under a restrictive government during the Cold War. Originally published in Polish in the 1950s and ’60s, the stories collected here both evoke the concerns of the era and foresee today’s technological capabilities as well as society’s response.

About the Author

Stanisław Lem wrote science fiction in Poland during the Cold War and became one of the most successful authors in the history of his country, in terms of sales, translations, and films based on his work. Remarkably, his stories and essays written in the 1960s, especially The Cyberiad and Summa Technologiae, predicted the rise of virtual reality and artificial intelligence in society.