The Space Merchants
by Frederik Pohl, Cyril M. Kornbluth · first published 1952
53% recommend42% neutral5% critical
Why HN recommends it
Satirical 1950s SF about an advertising executive in a consumerist, corporate-run future where Venus settlement is driven by marketing; praised as prescient about ad-saturated life and suited to fans of older SF.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
The Space Merchants is a 1952 science fiction novel by American writers Frederik Pohl and Cyril M. Kornbluth. Originally published in Galaxy Science Fiction magazine as a serial entitled Gravy Planet, the novel was first published as a single volume in 1953, and has sold heavily since. It deals satirically with a hyper-developed consumerism, seen through the eyes of an advertising executive. In 1984, Pohl published a sequel, The Merchants' War. In 2012, it was included in the Library of America omnibus American Science Fiction: Four Classic Novels 1953–1956. Pohl revised the original novel in
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Four Sci-Fi books that get projections right: * 'Paris in the Twentieth Century' by Jules Verne * 'Brave New World' by Aldous Huxley * '1984' by George Orwell * 'The Space Merchants' by Frederik Pohl and Cyril M. Kornbluth (1952) Verne predicts correctly many technologies and changes they cause in the society. Probably the most accurate future projection overall. The three other…
on “Dude, you broke the future” ↗Philip K. Dick (Ubik, Man in the high castle, Flow my tears the police man said) Frederik Pohl (Gateway, the Space Merchants) Ursula K. Le Guin (The Dispossessed, Left Hand of Darkness) Iain M. Banks (Culture novels) You will find many Sci-Fi treasures by just going through http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SF_Masterworks
on “What are your favourite sci-fi books?” ↗The Space Merchants, co-written by Frederik Pohl and Cyril Kornbluth. Mind you, I was barely a teenager at the time I read it. But: -It led me down the path to the realization that advertising in almost all of its current…
on “Ask HN: What's one book that changed your life?” ↗I would recommend "The Space Merchants" by Cyril Kornbluth and Frederik Pohl, and also the sequel, "The Merchants' War" by Frederik Pohl. They predate the cyberpunk era, but you'll find what you're looking for in them.
on “A ‘Grass-Roots’ Campaign to Take Down Amazon Is Funded By Its Biggest Rivals” ↗Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson is astounding, the benchmark. The Space Merchants (Kornbluth/Pohl) is an oddball novel about a hyper-consumerist future, where the settlement of Venus is driven by marketing. It's all about an advertising executive. Both highly recommended, for different…
on “Mars Problems vs. Venus Problems” ↗If you're in to old sf try to find 'The Space Merchants' by Pohl and Kornbluth.
on “An interview question you had better know how to answer” ↗Pohl was one of the pillars around which SF grew after 1950. The Space Merchants ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Space_Merchants ) is a remarkable cautionary tale, often mentioned. I also liked his Man Plus novel ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_Plus ), which pointed out the…
on “Frederik Pohl has died” ↗While I enjoyed the Heechee stories, my favorite of his is an oldie he wrote with Kornbluth, "The Space Merchants".
on “Frederik Pohl has died” ↗I recently read The Space Merchants for the first time. It's astonishingly prescient. Just replace New York with San Francisco, and "ad agencies" with "tech companies who derive their revenue from ads"... And the book is a surprisingly…
on “What is this colored fiber in my chicken?” ↗…the Deep - Vernor Vinge Chung Kuo, the Middle Kingdom - David Wingrove Ancillary Justice - Ann Leckie Neutron Star - Larry Niven Existence - David Brin The Dosadi Experiment - Frank Herbert The Space Merchants - Pohl and Kornbluth Sun of Suns - Karl Schroeder All the Traps of Earth - Clifford Simak Test of Fire - Ben Bova The Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson
on “Ask HN: What's your favorite sci-fi book?” ↗…of personality 2. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Using medication to stay happy, psychological manipulation and conditioning, class hierarchy based on intelligence (or perceived ability). 3. The Space Merchants by Frederik Pohl and Cyril M. Kornbluth. Huge international corporations de facto run the world. States are their front. Advertising is the best paid profession (FB, Google). Ads and products are very…
on “Google is giving some presidential candidate ads different treatment than others” ↗…https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Marching_Morons (Text here: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/51233/51233-h/51233-h.htm) Both involved Cyril Kornbluth, what a great talent, taken far too soon. Interestingly, Pohl wrote a sequel to The Space Merchants decades later, and I picked it up, fully expecting it to be terrible, and it was brilliant, and made me cry at the end. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Merchants%27_War_(Pohl_nov...
on “The internet is slipping out of our reach” ↗It's like reading again this classic sci-fi novel "The Space Merchants" by Frederik Pohl.
on “Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing is a dystopian nightmare” ↗Personal favorite: The Space Merchants, by Pohl & Kornbluth.
on “The Best Science Fiction Books (According to Reddit)” ↗The Space Merchants http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Space_Merchants
on “What are your favourite sci-fi books?” ↗