Walter M. Miller 1 hr read

Genetically engineered pets are so cute it's impossible not to love them, which is precisely why they're dangerous.

Walter M. Miller's 1952 novella follows a man whose job is managing the disposal of synthetic 'neutroids,' straining his marriage and his conscience in a future of manufactured, near-human creatures. Powerful, humane, morally serious SF from the author of 'A Canticle for Leibowitz.' Read it for a deeply affecting golden-age story about love, personhood, and where we draw the line.

In its time

Published in 1952, during the 1950s, post-war optimism meets cold war anxiety.

Reading it

1 hr read (a novelette, room for a turn or two).

Illustrated by

David Stone