Paul reviewed The Space Merchants by Frederik Pohl (SFBC 50th Anniversary Edition, #2)
Review of 'The Space Merchants' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Cynical, satirical and utterly, brilliantly bonkers
audio cd
Published May 5, 2014 by Macmillan Audio.
The Space Merchants
4 stars
(4 reviews)
The Space Merchants is a 1952 science fiction novel by American writers Frederik Pohl and Cyril M. Kornbluth. Originally published in Galaxy Science Fiction magazine as a serial entitled Gravy Planet, the novel was first published as a single volume in 1953, and has sold heavily since. It deals satirically with a hyper-developed consumerism, seen through the eyes of an advertising executive. In 1984, Pohl published a sequel, The Merchants' War. In 2012, it was included in the Library of America omnibus American Science Fiction: Four Classic Novels 1953–1956. Pohl revised the original novel in 2011 with added material and more contemporary references.
It was rated the 24th "all-time best novel" in a 1975 Locus poll, jointly with The Martian Chronicles and The War of the Worlds. The novel was also included in David Pringle's list of 100 best science fiction novels.
