The Metal Men Are Coming

 

Menace of the Machine: The Rise of AI in Classic Sci-Fi

Edited by Mike Ashley

(British Library)

 

They’re coming for us, the mechanical men with murder in their metal hearts! As this hugely enjoyable anthology demonstrates, they’ve been on their way for over a century at least.

Drawing on the unparalleled collection held by the British Library Mike Ashley has put together a collection of astounding stories that make their readers think as well as providing entertainment.

The titans of the genre, Clarke, Aldiss, Asimov et al are, naturally, represented alongside lesser-known names. Stand out stories include ‘But Who Can Replace A Man?’ by Brian W Aldiss, ‘Two Handed Engine’ by CL Moore and Henry Kuttner, and ‘The Machine Stops’ by EM Forster.

The latter was, for this reader, the most pleasing of surprises. Who would have thought the author of Howard’s End and A Room With A View could have made such a good fist of writing a sci-fi novella. It’s a real shame he never repeated the experiment.

As should be the case with a science fiction anthology, most of the stories fizz with ideas. Some of which, such as the dangers of humanity becoming dependent on technology and the ability, in ‘A Logic Named Joe’ by Will F Jenkins, of a device resembling Alexa to provide us with too much information for our own good are highly pertinent.

One question that has been nagging this reviewer is that given CHATGPT is out there hoovering up data and there and these stories are all in the public domain. Is this the sort of book you want your smartphone or chatbot to read?

Good Reads, Wednesday 30^th August 2023