Colony by Philip K. Dick (1953)

Mimics.

Well, folks, let's talk about my grand plan for 2023 - attempting to read a whopping 1000 short stories. Now, in hindsight, I might as well have declared my intention to conquer Mount Everest on roller skates. Unfortunately, my reading habits took another nosedive and let's just say that I fell a bit short of that unrealistic goal. But hold your applause because, drumroll, I did conquer about 130 short stories! Not too shabby, right?    

Now, for the 'Deal Me in Challenge' of 2024: If I somehow manage to squeeze in 20 short stories for the entire year, it will be a miracle. I hope you will join me on this rollercoaster of literary highs and lows, where my reading aspirations are like a cat on a unicycle – precarious and bound to elicit a few laughs. Stay tuned, dear readers! 📚😅

To ease back into reading again, I decided to start with Colony by Philip K. Dick. He has a pretty good track record when it comes to entertaining sci-fi short-stories, and this one certainly fits the bill. As an alien encounter plot, it's silly fun even though the ending is a little on the predictable side. I find some of Dick's earlier works, including this one, tend to be less cerebral and more pulpy entertainments--not that there is anything wrong with that! Sometimes I just want a story that's less 'Inception' and more popcorn and soda, please. His usual trademark style of blending philosophical depth, wild sci-fi concepts and a gripping plot will not be found here. Yet, he still manages to turn out a compelling enough story filled with mounting paranoia as a group of scientists on the newly discovered "Planet Blue" (creative, right?) find themselves at the mercy of a shape-shifting lifeform.

And Dungeons and Dragons enthusiasts, brace yourselves. You'll spot a familiar monster in this tale that'll make you wonder if Gary Gygax was secretly taking notes. Maybe Dick was the unsung bard of D&D lore all along?