Alan Edward Nourse 1 hr 2 min read

The ship settles silently into the underbrush overlooking a river-bend, scorched leaves hissing, and the alien waits, mind open, listening for any flicker of fear or wonder from the dark hills.

Alan E. Nourse's 1955 story is a taut first-contact and psi-powers tale of a stealthy alien arrival. Sharp, atmospheric golden-age SF. Read it for a tense story where a mind-reading visitor lands secretly on Earth with a purpose, and the quiet menace of its patient, listening presence builds by degrees.

In its time

Published in 1955, during the 1950s, post-war optimism meets cold war anxiety.

Reading it

1 hr 2 min read (a novelette, room for a turn or two).