# Help me identify a Science Fiction Short Story (Spoilers, of course) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 27, 2020, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458 "2020-06-27T22:59:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2020, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/1 "2020-06-27T22:59:18Z")
Read years ago, could even be a “short-short.” Basic plot was a human starship has visited its first extraterrestrial solar system. When they leave for home and activate their Faster Than Light drive they discover that somehow it totally destroys every planet in the solar system. Our intrepid heroes then realize that when they left Earth surely the same thing happened. Home ain’t gonna be there. Cue Twilight Zone music. Anybody remember this story’s title/author? Thanks. Sir Rhosis ---
**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 27, 2020, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/2 "2020-06-27T23:33:10Z")
That does sound familiar. Might it be in 100 Great Short Science Fiction Stories [Publication: 100 Great Science Fiction Short Short Stories](http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?43) ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/3 "2020-06-28T01:47:51Z")
Time Fuze by Randall Garrett. Out of copyright. You can read it on Project Gutenberg. [http://www.gutenberg.org/files/32347/32347-h/32347-h.htm](http://www.gutenberg.org/files/32347/32347-h/32347-h.htm) ---
**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 28, 2020, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/4 "2020-06-28T01:57:45Z")
Great work Peter! ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/5 "2020-06-28T02:07:36Z")
No probs. I remembered the final line from the story, and was able to Google for the title. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/6 "2020-06-28T11:28:58Z")
Thanks guys. Sir Rhosis ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2020, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/7 "2020-06-28T12:03:36Z")
Though I must say whoever composed the blurb for the story did Garrett no favors. Gave it away. SR ---
**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 29, 2020, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/8 "2020-06-29T16:51:55Z")
Meant to add the list of places “Time Fuze” has been collected [Title: Time Fuze](http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?44122) ---
**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 29, 2020, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/9 "2020-06-29T19:16:19Z")
And [this](http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?35374) is where I’ve read it before. ---
**Author:** ![Eclipse\_Chaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Eclipse\_Chaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eclipse_Chaser)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2020, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/10 "2020-07-07T15:35:00Z")
That’s a great, haunting story. I’ve been thinking it would make a great movie with that twist at the end. ---
**Author:** ![its\_the\_daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bb73d2/32.png) [@its\_the\_daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/its_the_daddy)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2020, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/11 "2020-08-23T12:37:28Z")
Sorry: it’s a full length story. Late 1960’s Closing scene: father and son on the west coast of Ireland, looking out to sea. Final words: “It’s all right, son, it’s just America burning…” Don’t know why it came back to me just now. ---
**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:** [August 23, 2020, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/12 "2020-08-23T12:38:50Z")
Sounds like “The Sheep Look Up” by John Brunner Yep. Here’s the quote > **[The sheep look forward: Counterfactuals, dystopias, and ecological science...](https://online.ucpress.edu/elementa/article/doi/10.1525/elementa.303/112845/The-sheep-look-forward-Counterfactuals-dystopias)** > > John Brunner’s 1972 novel, The Sheep Look Up, is the story of the year leading up to a global ecological and political catastrophe. Set primarily in the United States in an unspecified near future, The Sheep Look Up tells the story of “death by a... “Opening the door to the visiting doctor, all set to apologize for the flour on her hands – she had been baking – Mrs. Byrne sniffed. Smoke! And if she could smell it with her heavy head cold, it must be a tremendous fire! “We ought to call the brigade!” she exclaimed. “Is it a hayrick?” “The brigade would have a long way to go,” the doctor told her curtly. “It’s from America. The wind’s blowing that way.”” ---
**Author:** ![its\_the\_daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bb73d2/32.png) [@its\_the\_daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/its_the_daddy)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2020, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/13 "2020-08-23T15:27:26Z")
Thanks Andy. That’s it, though nothing like I remembered. It’s not the last words of the book: there’s a fragment of Milton after it, including the title of the book. And SHE’s in Canada, not Ireland. But never mind: memory’s a strange thing. I hadn’t thought of this excerpt for over forty years; I posted the query about 3 hours ago and went to do some physical work. 2 hours later it came to me: title and author. And you dredged it up almost instantly. You’re part of an amazing resource, and body of knowledge. Thanks again. ---
**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:** [August 23, 2020, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/14 "2020-08-23T18:21:40Z")
Glad to help out. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2020, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-a-science-fiction-short-story-spoilers-of-course/913458/15 "2020-08-24T21:08:37Z")
> [@Eclipse\_Chaser](#): > > That’s a great, haunting story. I’ve been thinking it would make a great movie with that twist at the end. Great story. But I had this nightmare vision for what happens next. They set the ship on automatic and just let it hit every solar system until it runs out of fuel. Like a galactic chain reaction. They could see it in Andromeda.