Rating: 
Summary: Still my favorite Simak.
Review: I wanted to write that it was my *first* Simak novel, but on reflection I do not think that is true. I believe that _Project Pope_ was my first. However, this has been unarguably my favorite over the years, and that is saying a lot from one of my favorite authors.
Simak writes gentle and philosophical books, which are perhaps a little bit dated by today's lights. If someone today were writing about an intergalactic union, they'd probably delve into the politics more deeply and bring complex shadings to bear on the characters and explain much more about how things got to be the way that they are in the book.
Simak does none of that-- I find it a virtue of his that while he acknowledges that shadings exist (particularly when it comes to evil, which he portrays as misguided bumbling) he at the same time asserts that the simplest thing in the world is good. The themes of simplicity, harmony, and goodness run strongly through all of his work.
Enoch Wallace, the keeper of the Way Station, is a plain man. The politics of his situation are largely beyond him. He tries to grasp all the intricacies of alien culture, but is stopped by the gaps in his own learning. He wonders at all the strangeness in the world and makes basic mistakes. Like most Simak characters, he is a marvel of basic humanity, a tribute to the strength of the everyman. His simplicity in the end allows him to do what nobody else is capable of achieving.
This was one of the books which showed me that science fiction can be more than the genre stereotypes. I can still remember the vivid mental images I had when I first read his descriptions of the alien gadgets and worlds. I am delighted to report that on re-reading it holds up very well indeed.
Rating:
Summary: Still my favorite Simak.
Review: I wanted to write that it was my *first* Simak novel, but on reflection I don't think that's true. I believe that _Project Pope_ was my first, but this has been over the years unarguably my favorite, and that from one of my favorite Science Fiction writers.Simak's books are gentle and philosophical, and perhaps a little bit dated by today's lights. If someone today were writing about an intergalactic union, they'd probably delve into the politics more deeply and bring complex shadings to bear on the characters and explain much more about how things got to be the way that they are in the book. Simak does none of that-- I find it a virtue of his that while he acknowledges that shadings exist (particularly when it comes to evil, which he usually portrays as misguided bumbling) he at the same time asserts that there is good in the world and that the good can be found. Enoch Wallace, the keeper of the Way Station, is a simple man. The politics of his situation are largely beyond him and though he tries to grasp all the intricacies of alien culture, he does not and is stopped by the gaps in his own learning. He acts and wonders at all the strangeness in the world and makes mistakes too. Like most of Simak's characters, he's a marvel of basic humanity, a tribute to the strength of the everyman. This was one of the books that first got me reading science fiction. I can still remember my vivid imaginings when I read his descriptions of the alien gadgets and worlds. And I'm delighted to report that on re-reading it holds up very well indeed.
Rating:
Summary: Simak at his best
Review: In the early 1960s, a government intelligence agent finds that a veteran of the Civil War is still alive, but doesn't look a day over 30. The man lives in a house that nobody else can get into, and in the family cemetery behind the house, alongside the tombstones of his mother and father, is a third tombstone with an inscription written in a language nobody can identify. If all that isn't enough to get you interested, maybe there's something wrong with you! What follows is a story that is undoubtedly one of Simak's best, bringing together a wealth of scientific ideas, an imaginative plot, and the descriptive power and deep, introspective characterizations for which Simak is well-known. The result is a story that is captivating, philosophical, and, in the end, spiritual.
Rating: 
Summary: A home at the end of the galaxy
Review: It's 1964, and Civil War veteran Enoch Wallace is a youthful 124 years old. His presence in the scarcely populated backwoods of Wisconsin perplexes his neighbors if they think about it much, but Wallace's Dorian Gray syndrome has become a fixture of their limited social landscape.
Instead of hiding a painting in the attic or making a pact with the devil, however, Wallace had been chosen, a century earlier, as the keeper of an intergalactic way station. His nineteenth-century home is now an impenetrable rest stop for extraterrestrial travelers of an untold number of alien species; inside, time's arrow slows to a halt. Although Earth is optimally located for this pit-stop, its human inhabitants are not ready--psychologically or sociologically--for membership in the Galactic confederation. And so the station, and Wallace's role in it, are kept secret--until a CIA agent turns up and starts nosing around.
As he does in his masterpiece, "City," Simak adopts a campfire storytelling style that is suited to the rural setting. Although there's still plenty of action (and violence, for that matter), his pastoral musings are a refreshing change from many of the rockets-and-robots stories of the period. Similarly, his sympathetic portrayal of Lucy Fisher, a neighbor girl who endures physical abuse from her father, is affecting and unexpected. (There's also a fascinating description of a virtual reality shooting gallery that is forty years ahead of its time.)
There are a few bizarrely off-key moments, though, such as when various earthlings encounter, with extraordinary equanimity, an alien being for the first time. And Simak does have a tendency to go a little overboard on his Cold War homilies (not to mention their grammatical gymnastics): "Somewhere, he thought, on the long backtrack of history, the human race has accepted an insanity for a principle and had persisted in it until today that insanity-turned-principle stood ready to wipe out, if not the race itself, at least all of those things, both material and immaterial, that had been fashioned as symbols of humanity through many hard-won centuries."
But "Way Station" compensates for these false notes and Sunday-school sermons with a riveting story, intriguing characters, and a somewhat sentimental ending that leaves nothing that might be mistaken for a loose end. At the close of this extraordinary adventure, Wallace realizes that the world as he knew it "would never be the same again" but that "he had work to do. Now he was ready for it."
Rating:
Summary: Overlooked classic
Review: Most people have never heard of Clifford Simak unless they're longtime SF fans and even those that have tend to gravitate more toward his other classic "City" but those who do, or even those who makes the mistake of ignoring him completely are making a grave error. This book is the equal of any SF classic based purely on the strength of its ideas and subtle conviction in those ideas. It doesn't have an ultracomplicated structure or a hip "postmodern" attitude but the attitude is does have is quiet and understated and undeniably brilliant. What's it all about? Basically Enoch Wallace has been living in his house for what seems like years and years and years but his neighbors are folk who don't question stuff like that. Turns out that Wallace is way older than anyone can think of and his house serves as one of the crossroads of the galaxy, with strange and fascinating aliens visiting him as they pass through, leaving him with a house cluttered with strange and wonderful treasures that he can hardly begin to contemplate . . . while at the same time wondering what all this means to Earth and its place in the galactic community. But forces are closing in on what he actually is while at the same time forces across the farflung galaxy are pushing forward events that even the aliens involved are hardly ready for. What makes this novel so good is not it's depiction of the bizarre array of philosophical and imaginative aliens, although that's part of it, Simak throws out alien races in a few sentences that other authors could spend entire novels trying to explain and describe. No, what makes it good is its unwavering faith in humanity, Wallace and the aliens might not have a high opinion of people at times but for all our dirty little mannerisms, in the end we've got just as much potential as everyone else. That, coupled with his pastoral views of the land around the house and the simple beauty of the untamed wilderness makes for a book mostly light on action but great in depth, Wallace is one of the rare totally three dimensional SF characters, content in his mission but still wondering what it all means even as everyday brings new wonders to light. I thought this book was going to be good but I was amazed at how excellent it was. One of the alltime classics.
Rating:
Summary: one of Simak's "best"
Review: Picking the "best" novel of most writers is a problematic
enterprise. In the case of Clifford Simak, it's more problematic
than usual. Simak wrote science fiction of a curious personal sort. His
books and stories are built on a "what if?" initial
speculative premise. The story then develops and evolves
through analysis and of the effects of that premise on a
few characters. Rarely does he drag in more science fictional
apparatus than necessary. Many books (e.g., _Way Station_) contain notable elements of the pastoral, with a feeling
for small town milieux that is at times reminiscent of some
of the work of Ray Bradbury. The initial premise of _Way Station_ is that a soldier
who comes home from the Civil War is recruited by aliens
to be the caretaker of an interstellar "way station" to
be located on Earth. The consequences of his acceptance
include a life that extends far beyond that of his friends
and contemporaries, and the isolation that arises from his solitude. The final turn of the screw arises from the
next step: What happens when his long time role on Earth
becomes known to others? The resulting confection sometimes seems far away from the
"mag wheels and laser beams" style of SF. Science fiction
of a different century, almost. I wouldn't want to read it
all the time, but it's pleasant, literate, well-observed,
with characters we care about and a sense of ease -- I
almost want to say "serenity," but that's not quite right. Preamble aside, if one isn't immune to Simak's appeal,
_Way Station_ is one of his more satisfying productions.
Picking several other books by him that seem of similar
quality is a pretty straightforward task, subject to the
whims of personal taste. Two off the top of my head are
_The Goblin Reservation_ and _The Werewolf Principle_.
There are others. A good book. I've lent it to readers otherwise unfamiliar
with SF, and most have liked it. Like most science fiction, it's marked by the period
when it was written. It seemed almost an
anachronism when it appeared, though, so that's not
a serious objection.
Rating:
Summary: one of Simak's "best"
Review: Picking the "best" novel of most writers is a problematic
enterprise. In the case of Clifford Simak, it's more problematic
than usual. Simak wrote science fiction of a curious personal sort. His
books and stories are built on a "what if?" initial
speculative premise. The story then develops and evolves
through analysis and of the effects of that premise on a
few characters. Rarely does he drag in more science fictional
apparatus than necessary. Many books (e.g., _Way Station_) contain notable elements of the pastoral, with a feeling
for small town milieux that is at times reminiscent of some
of the work of Ray Bradbury. The initial premise of _Way Station_ is that a soldier
who comes home from the Civil War is recruited by aliens
to be the caretaker of an interstellar "way station" to
be located on Earth. The consequences of his acceptance
include a life that extends far beyond that of his friends
and contemporaries, and the isolation that arises from his solitude. The final turn of the screw arises from the
next step: What happens when his long time role on Earth
becomes known to others? The resulting confection sometimes seems far away from the
"mag wheels and laser beams" style of SF. Science fiction
of a different century, almost. I wouldn't want to read it
all the time, but it's pleasant, literate, well-observed,
with characters we care about and a sense of ease -- I
almost want to say "serenity," but that's not quite right. Preamble aside, if one isn't immune to Simak's appeal,
_Way Station_ is one of his more satisfying productions.
Picking several other books by him that seem of similar
quality is a pretty straightforward task, subject to the
whims of personal taste. Two off the top of my head are
_The Goblin Reservation_ and _The Werewolf Principle_.
There are others. A good book. I've lent it to readers otherwise unfamiliar
with SF, and most have liked it. Like most science fiction, it's marked by the period
when it was written. It seemed almost an
anachronism when it appeared, though, so that's not
a serious objection.
Rating:
Summary: Read This Book!!! (if you can find a copy)
Review: Possibly the finest SF novel---ever! My brother and I have dicussed this book many times. This, with todays technology, would be great to see on the big screen. Not for it's special effects, they would be secondary, but for the story. It is such a shame this book is out of print because so many Sci-Fi fans are being deprived, unless they are lucky enough to have someone tell them about it, of a true masterpiece of science fiction. Simak peaks your interest from the very start, then puts you on an emotional roller coaster that really never ends. This book is clever, exciting, thought-provoking, and most of all, fun! I actually have a hardback(stays on the shelf) and two paperback copies. The first one is so worn, I retired it and the other one will soon gain the same status. What does this tell you? Find a copy (more than one if possible) and experience one of the greatest Sci-Fi books ever written.
Rating:
Summary: An excellant book that contains great otherworldliness
Review: Simak is in a field of his own in regards to other worlds and alternate universes, he has NO peer
Rating:
Summary: enchanting mixture of sf and fantasy
Review: Simak's booklet deals with visiting aliens, matter transporters, longevity, interstellar travel and dito politics. All sound and solid sf themes. What makes the book enchanting is the music to which these notes are set, the way the protagonist sees the world, the way the people in the direct environnement of the way station are being described. Here are also themes, better known in fantasy literature, like the magic in the "Talisman", the savior lost and found, the faul smelling thief, the alien friend. Simak's writing style that seems so clear, is very capable of luring the readers into his plot. Not 5 stars because things come together a bit to neatly at the end and to quickly. But I asure you that that will not spoil a pleasant evening with this book.
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