Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

The Street That Wasn't There
The Street That Wasn't There
The Street That Wasn't There
Ebook28 pages26 minutes

The Street That Wasn't There

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

Read preview

About this ebook

SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH THE WORLD The pendulum clock struck slowly, its every other chime as usual setting up a sympathetic vibration in the pewter vase that stood upon the mantel. Mr. Chambers got to his feet, strode to the door, opened it and looked out. Moonlight tessellated the street in black and silver, etching the chimneys and trees against a silvered sky. But the house directly across the street was not the same. It was strangely lopsided, its dimensions out of proportion, like a house that suddenly had gone mad. He stared at it in amazement, trying to determine what was wrong with it. He recalled how it had always stood, foursquare, a solid piece of mid-Victorian architecture. Then, before his eyes, the house righted itself again. With a sigh of relief, Mr. Chambers turned back into the hall. But before he closed the door, he looked again. The house was lopsided -- worse than before.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateMar 20, 2013
ISBN9781625588333
The Street That Wasn't There
Author

Clifford D. Simak

During his fifty-five-year career, CLIFFORD D. SIMAK produced some of the most iconic science fiction stories ever written. Born in 1904 on a farm in southwestern Wisconsin, Simak got a job at a small-town newspaper in 1929 and eventually became news editor of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, writing fiction in his spare time. Simak was best known for the book City, a reaction to the horrors of World War II, and for his novel Way Station. In 1953 City was awarded the International Fantasy Award, and in following years, Simak won three Hugo Awards and a Nebula Award. In 1977 he became the third Grand Master of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and before his death in 1988, he was named one of three inaugural winners of the Horror Writers Association’s Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Read more from Clifford D. Simak

Related to The Street That Wasn't There

Related ebooks

Science Fiction For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for The Street That Wasn't There

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5

1 rating1 review

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Listened to the version on librivox.org, as narrated by Peter Yearsley, who has a slight British accent and did a marvelous job. 36 minutes.

    Note - the entries are mislabeled, at least for now. If you hit 'play' and start hearing Peter Rabbit, go back to the collection, and select Peter Rabbit, and you should get this story.

    Simak does better in novel form, imo, but even in his short stories he doesn't get so caught up in the gimmick of the story's concept that he forgets the humanity of his characters. The details of the scientist's life, and his reactions to the 'adventure,' are so carefully drawn that I almost wanted to spend a whole book with ex-professor Chambers. It's not just an ashtray, it's an elephant ashtray. Which, we learn at the apt moment, he never liked much anyway. Poignant and clever, both. Never mind the implausibility of the science - after all, what do we really know? We could be so wrong about basic physics, why not play with the ideas, if the result is a charmer like this one.

Book preview

The Street That Wasn't There - Clifford D. Simak

The Street That Wasn’t There

By Clifford D. Simak and Carl Jacobi

Start Publishing LLC

Copyright © 2012 by Start Publishing LLC

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

First Start Publishing eBook edition October 2012

Start Publishing is a registered trademark of Start Publishing LLC

Manufactured in the United States of America

10   9   8   7   6   5   4   3   2   1

ISBN 978-1-62558-833-3

Mr. Jonathon Chambers left his house on Maple Street at exactly seven o’clock in the evening and set out on the daily walk he had taken, at the same time, come rain or snow, for twenty solid years.

The walk never varied. He paced two blocks down Maple Street, stopped at the Red Star confectionery to buy a Rose Trofero perfecto, then walked to the end of the fourth block on Maple. There he turned right on Lexington, followed Lexington to Oak, down Oak and so by way of Lincoln back to Maple again and to his home.

He didn’t walk fast. He took his time. He always returned to his front door at exactly 7:45. No one ever stopped to talk with him. Even the man at the Red Star confectionery, where he bought his cigar, remained silent while the purchase was being made. Mr. Chambers merely tapped on the glass top of the counter with a coin, the man reached in and brought forth the box, and Mr. Chambers took his cigar. That was all.

For people long ago had gathered that Mr. Chambers desired to be left alone. The newer generation of townsfolk called it eccentricity. Certain

Enjoying the preview?
Page 1 of 1