Stanislaw Lem

First edition in English of the science fiction classic.

• Stanislaw Lem (Polish).
• Afterword by Darko Suvin (Croatian).
• Illustration by Jack Gaughan (American).
• Translated by Joanna Kilmartin and Steve Cox.
• New York: Walker and Company, [1970].
• [6], 216 pages. 
• First published in Polish in 1961.
• Original unclipped ($4.95) pictorial dust jacket printed in orange, tan, brown, and black, designed by Lena Fong Hor.
• Bound in original white paper boards, spine lettered in black, yellow topstain, and fore edge machine deckle.

The exploration of new worlds leads to the discovery of a malevolent intelligence who turns humankind's deepest fears and emotions against them. The result is a mystery thriller accompanied by a piercing critical analysis of human psychology. In his biographical afterword, Suvin credits Lem with raising science fiction in Europe "to the dignity of a major literary genre." Suvin also includes an annotated bibliography of Lem's other science fiction works; this is the first of Lem's works to appear in book form in English. A landmark in the recognition of modern European science fiction in the States.

"Man has gone out to explore other worlds and other civilizations without having explored his own labyrinth of dark passages and secret chambers, and without finding what lies behind doorways that he himself has sealed."