"Uncommon Sense" (1945) by Hal Clement

This interesting tale of conflict and survival in a hostile and unknown land was first published in the September 1945 issue of Astounding Science Fiction, with the striking illustrations by Williams that we have reproduced here.

Its author Hal Clement [1] was a trained astrophysicist who brought an emphasis on the "science" part of science-fiction that was particularly effective, interesting and convincing in this quite perfect little story that has so well passed the test of time.

(6,900 words)

He was serving as a pilot in the US Air Force at the time of publication of this story, and had flown dozens of combat missions during the war in Europe. He later retired with the rank of Colonel.

An e-book is available for downloading below.

Uncommon Sense (e-book)