Science fiction | Lecturia

Philip K. Dick: Foster, You’re Dead

“Foster, You’re Dead” is a science fiction short story by Philip K. Dick, published in Star Science Fiction Stories No. 3 in 1955. In a society obsessed with preparing for nuclear war, Mike Foster faces the stigma of being the son of an ‘anti-P’, someone who refuses to buy bomb shelters or contribute to the community defence system. While his peers make booby traps and knives at school, he lives with the constant humiliation and fear of not having a shelter to protect him. Social pressure and fear drive him to crave security in a world where paranoia has become a lucrative business.

Arthur C. Clarke: The Star

“The Star” is a powerful science fiction short story written by Arthur C. Clarke, published in November 1955 in Infinity Science Fiction. The story follows a Jesuit priest and astrophysicist who, on a space mission, discovers the remains of a civilization wiped out by a cosmic catastrophe. This discovery profoundly challenges his faith, leading him to question the beliefs he had always taken for granted. Through this narrative, Clarke explores the tension between science and religion, raising questions about the role of God in the cosmos and human existence. A short but deeply thoughtful story.

Isaac Asimov: A Statue For Father

“A Statue for Father” is a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov published in Satellite Science Fiction in February 1959. Through the voice of the son of a visionary scientist, it tells the fascinating story of an accidental discovery that revolutionized humanity. The father, a stubborn physicist passionate about time travel, works tirelessly on his research, facing ridicule and disinterest from the scientific community. Although the chronotunnels do not work as he had hoped, a stroke of luck brings about something extraordinary: a bridge between the past and the present. This finding, which initially seems like a modest step forward, changes history unexpectedly.

Ray Bradbury: The Gift

“The Gift” is a short story by Ray Bradbury, first published in Esquire in December 1952. A family sets out on its first space journey on Christmas Eve. The boy is thrilled by the adventure, but his parents worry about how to celebrate the holiday in the emptiness of space—especially after customs has confiscated the present they had prepared. Now the father must find a creative way to keep the magic of Christmas alive for his son, proving that the Christmas spirit can shine anywhere, even among the stars.

Isaac Asimov: Christmas on Ganymede

“Christmas on Ganymede” is a science fiction story by Isaac Asimov published in Startling Stories in January 1942. The story takes us to a mining base on Ganymede, one of Jupiter’s moons, where the humans face a peculiar labour crisis: the natives refuse to work unless they receive a visit from Santa Claus. It all begins when Olaf Johnson, in a naïve Christmas spirit, introduces the Earth tradition to the curious aliens. From there, Commander Pelham and his team are forced to comply with this demand, improvising a Father Christmas, a flying sleigh, and an alien ‘reindeer’ in a story full of satire and humor.

Ray Bradbury: The Exiles

In “The Exiles,” a short story by Ray Bradbury first published in 1950 in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and later included in the collection The Illustrated Man (1951), Mars has become a refuge for banned writers and literary characters. Exiled from an Earth where their works have been censored and destroyed, these beings survive on the Red Planet, conjuring spells and nightmares to protect themselves. When a rocket from Earth approaches carrying a scientific and skeptical crew, the clash between reason and the supernatural becomes inevitable. In an atmosphere thick with witchcraft and ghosts, the astronauts face hallucinations and terrors that test their sanity, while the exiles prepare for their final battle for survival.