The Forgotten Planet
Fix-up novel of giant insects on a seeded planet.
Murray Leinster's 1954 novel *The Forgotten Planet* was issued by Gnome Press in a print run of 5,000 copies. It is a fix-up assembled from three earlier short stories: "The Mad Planet" and "The Red Dust," which first appeared in *Argosy* in 1920 and 1921, and "Nightmare Planet," published in the December 1952 issue of *Science Fiction Plus*.
The story is set on a world that humans had deliberately seeded with life—first microbes, then plants and insects. A third expedition, meant to introduce animals, never took place (a retcon introduced in "Nightmare Planet"). Over thousands of years, the insects and plants grew to enormous sizes. The plot follows the struggle for survival of the descendants of a crashed spaceship as they contend with wolf-sized ants, chicken-sized flies, and giant flying wasps.
Critical reception was mixed. Groff Conklin of *Galaxy Science Fiction* called it "Leinster at his exciting, skilled best," adding that "there is almost nothing in the story that is not first-rate." The same magazine's Floyd C. Gale described it as "quite a reading experience," and P. Schuyler Miller reported that "the old master is at his best in this one." However, Anthony Boucher found it to be "an interminable sequence of wars against giant insects, which seems pretty outmoded today."
Quick Facts
- Author
- Murray Leinster
- Cover Artist
- Ed Emshwiller
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Genre
- Science fiction
- Publisher
- Gnome Press
- Release Date
- 1954
- Media Type
- Print (hardback)
- Pages
- 177
- Oclc
- 1813386
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The novel's plot involves a planet that had been seeded for life by humans, first with microbes and later with plants and insects. A third expedition, intended to complete the seeding with animals, never occurred—a retcon introduced in 'Nightmare Planet.' Over millennia, the insects and plants grew to gigantic sizes. The action describes the fight for survival by descendants of a crashed spaceship as they battle wolf-sized ants, chicken-sized flies, and gigantic flying wasps.
Reader's Guide
The Forgotten Planet represents a mid-20th-century science fiction fix-up, combining earlier magazine stories into a cohesive novel. Its reception was mixed: Groff Conklin of Galaxy Science Fiction praised it as 'Leinster at his exciting, skilled best,' while Floyd C. Gale called it 'quite a reading experience.' P. Schuyler Miller similarly reported 'the old master is at his best in this one.' However, Anthony Boucher found it 'an interminable sequence of wars against giant insects, which seems pretty outmoded today.' The novel's significance lies in its demonstration of the fix-up technique and its place in Leinster's body of work, though its critical legacy is divided between those who admired its adventure and those who found it dated.
Did You Know?
- The novel is a fix-up from three short stories: 'The Mad Planet,' 'The Red Dust,' and 'Nightmare Planet.'
- 'The Mad Planet' and 'The Red Dust' originally appeared in Argosy in 1920 and 1921.
- The edition of 5,000 copies was released by Gnome Press in 1954.
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