# Ask the guy who is pretty good at SF Story Identification **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [September 7, 2008, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417 "2008-09-07T00:08:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 52
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2022, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1021 "2022-06-16T16:11:40Z")
C-Chute by Asimov [C-Chute - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-Chute) might be what being thought of. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2022, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1022 "2022-06-16T17:41:21Z")
Thanks, @Bonum_Legatum. I hadn’t thought of posting here. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2022, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1023 "2022-06-16T18:10:59Z")
Heinlein’s Destination Moon includes an astronaut on an EVA using an oxygen tank for thrust. It’s probably not the only example, but it’s the first one that comes to mind. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2022, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1024 "2022-06-16T18:21:59Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Heinlein’s Destination Moon includes an astronaut on an EVA using an oxygen tank for thrust. The movie adaptation was disappointingly low-budget. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/x-yGSIYkeOs/hqdefault.jpg "Motorised chair by fire extinguisher") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-yGSIYkeOs) ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2022, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1025 "2022-06-16T19:58:15Z")
That I know! I just saw the 1950 movie on TCM, and posted about it over at the [Stumbling Upon Old Movies](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stumbling-upon-old-movies/966232/39) thread, which is where I first asked this question. The dramatic device seemed familiar, and I’m more familiar with Asimov’s work than RAH’s. I haven’t read the original Heinlein story, but I should have been clear that I was asking about his _other_ works, since I assumed it was in that one. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2022, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1026 "2022-06-21T20:39:50Z")
Today Andy L (my husband IRL) and I were in a Zoom SF book club meeting where people talk about the books they’ve been reading lately. One guy said he was trying to identify a Larry Niven book. “It’s about these people who land their spaceship on a planet–” “Destiny’s Road.” He was right. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2022, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1027 "2022-06-22T02:27:36Z")
Well, I hear he is pretty good at SF Story Identification… ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2022, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1028 "2022-06-22T02:32:40Z")
I’m just lucky to be married to someonw who finds that skill appealing 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2022, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1029 "2022-06-22T07:15:54Z")
A man’s cat finds some alien goo that gives it super powers, but the cat still thinks he’s just a normal cat except the owners are now TERRIFIED by their cat that can now rip doors off cabinets with a single swipe to get food or hunt down mice with laser vision. The story ends hopefully, the cat develops some intelligence and decides his previous life was good enough and to resume that, the best use of his new abilities is to simply sleep at the top of the nearest tallest tree. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2022, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1030 "2022-06-25T20:23:08Z")
That sounds amusing - doesn’t ring a bell for me, but I do know that there’s a series of anthologies called “Cat Fantastic” Here’s a link to the table of contents of the first one [Publication: Catfantastic: Nine Lives and Fifteen Tales](http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?186533) ---
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2022, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1031 "2022-09-01T22:02:43Z")
Ok so here goes. It’s a novel from the early 2000s and everybody gets (I don’t recall how) a message basically saying that if you want to go to space, or board the starship or whatever, be within so many yards of a (or any, I don’t recall) body of water at such and such date and time. And those who follow the instructions end up onboard an uninhabited alien ship with a very sophisticated AI and a responsive, malleable interior. On one hand the ship becomes populated with well motivated and well meaning people, while at the same time a number of local levels of government have taken advantage of the situation to get rid of their population’s criminals. For whatever reason I have always believed that it was an early Alistair Reynolds novel but when I check any list of his works I find no evidence of it. I also seem to recall it having a title like _Pavilion_ or something like that. But you should probably ignore everything in this last paragraph. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2022, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1032 "2022-09-01T22:33:43Z")
Short story: a ginormous alien ship hundreds of miles high lands (docks?) on Earth, crushing a couple of states in the process. In an effort to destroy the ship heavily stealthed crawlers slowly climb up the legs of the ship like fleas, carrying nukes. _ **Maybe** _ one of Harlan Ellison’s or Philip K. Dick’s? ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2022, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1033 "2022-09-01T22:49:59Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > Short story: a ginormous alien ship hundreds of miles high lands (docks?) on Earth, crushing a couple of states in the process. In an effort to destroy the ship heavily stealthed crawlers slowly climb up the legs of the ship like fleas, carrying nukes. _ **Maybe** _ one of Harlan Ellison’s or Philip K. Dick’s? That rings a bell, but nothing’s coming right to mind. I’ll think about it. > [@velomont](#): > > For whatever reason I have always believed that it was an early Alistair Reynolds novel but when I check any list of his works I find no evidence of it. I also seem to recall it having a title like _Pavilion_ or something like that. But you should probably ignore everything in this last paragraph. Already forgotten (seriously – thinking about it) ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2022, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1034 "2022-09-02T00:27:44Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > Short story: a ginormous alien ship hundreds of miles high lands (docks?) on Earth, crushing a couple of states in the process. In an effort to destroy the ship heavily stealthed crawlers slowly climb up the legs of the ship like fleas, carrying nukes. _ **Maybe** _ one of Harlan Ellison’s or Philip K. Dick’s? I’ve read that story, but don’t recall author/title. However, I’m fairly sure it was neither of those authors. The style was wrong. A bit more on the story. The ship lands with four landing legs, the base of each is in a different state, and not adjacent states. So this is a huge ship. It’s been sending out drones to scavange resources from the entire world, apparently to repair itself. Humans are trying to destroy it. They tunnel as close to one of the legs as they can without being detected and then send out one crawler manned by a single person. It climbs up the leg and plants a bomb. I don’t recall it being a nuke, but could be. ---
**Author:** ![NoCoolUserName](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5fc32e/32.png) [@NoCoolUserName](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoCoolUserName)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2022, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1035 "2022-09-08T17:28:13Z")
I tried this once before but didn’t get the answer. And my memory of the story is fading. 🙂 The setting is far in the future, I think there are magicians, but that might be conflating The Dying Earth which this story is not. My specific memory is that the group of adventurers includes a dwarf who is the Engineer…he gets old machines to work, figures out the door mechanisms and similar. I believe the climax has a bunch of robot soldiers pouring out of a cave because the dwarf got them working, but that’s probably a product of my imagination and some memory of a John Carter plot. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2022, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1036 "2022-11-15T22:39:54Z")
Here’s one I was thinking of today - a story I think was from Asimov’s magazine with relatively weak fantasy/SF content (as I recall). What I mostly remember is that the main character was looking for evidence of psychic or other “weird” phenomena, and freely interpreted everything he saw as evidence - as in, he was wandering around the countryside in a van, and spotted on the map a town called “Snow” - but was unable to find it on the map again - and while he was stopped looking, he talked to a gruff man who said his wife had “run off with a glacier.” (Spooky!). Of course, he had been glanced at the map upside down - the town was “Mons” - and the man’s wife had run off with a glass-fitter (“a glazier”). ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2022, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1037 "2022-11-15T23:00:12Z")
That almost sounds like something Asimov would write for a Black Widowers or a Union Club story in Ellery Queen magazine. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2022, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1038 "2022-11-16T00:00:06Z")
You know it does sound like that. I’ll check. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2022, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1039 "2022-11-16T00:05:37Z")
I think I’ve read all of the Black Widowers stories, and that wasn’t among them. I don’t know that I’ve read all of the Union Club, though. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2022, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417/1040 "2022-11-16T00:58:26Z")
I thought I’ve read all of them and that I would remember them, but maybe not. I also have half an inkling that it could be Gene Wolfe so I have another line of investigation to pursue [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417.md?page=51) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-is-pretty-good-at-sf-story-identification/462417.md?page=53)