Noon: 22nd Century is a 1961

1961 in literature

The year 1961 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*First English production of Bertolt Brecht's The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui*Michael Halliday publishes his seminal paper on the systemic functional grammar model....

 science fiction

Science fiction

Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 book by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky

Arkady and Boris Strugatsky

The brothers Arkady and Boris Strugatsky are Soviet Jewish-Russian science fiction authors who collaborated on their fiction.-Life and work:...

, expanded in 1962 and further in 1967, translated into English in 1978. It is sometimes considered an episodic novel, collection of linked short stories or a fix-up

Fix-up

A fix-up is a novel created from short stories that may or may not have been initially related or previously published. The stories may be edited for consistency, and sometimes new connecting material—such as a frame story—is written for the new novel. The term was coined by the science fiction...

 as some parts had been published previously as independent short stories. It relates several stories of the XXII century, while providing the background "feel" for the style of life which gave birth to the Noon Universe

Noon Universe

The Noon Universe is a fictional future setting for a number of hard science fiction novels written by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. The universe is named after Noon: 22nd Century, the chronologically first novel from the series...

.

The title was chosen by the authors as a polemic of the postapocalyptic Daybreak: 2250 AD by Andre Norton

Andre Norton

Andre Alice Norton, née Alice Mary Norton was an American science fiction and fantasy author under the noms de plume Andre Norton, Andrew North and Allen Weston...

.

Plot Summary

The book is a collection of short stories describing various aspects of human

Humans (Noon Universe)

Humans of the Noon Universe created by Boris and Arkady Strugatsky are mostly identical to homo sapiens. Humans inhabit numerous planets, but their original homeworld is probably Earth, others being populated by humans, presumably, as a result of Wanderers' manipulations.-Human Planets:The...

 life on Earth

Earth (Noon Universe)

In the Noon Universe created by Boris and Arkady Strugatsky Earth is one of the planets populated by humans as well as their assumed origin. It is identical to the modern Earth except for the fact that it is set in the 22nd century...

 in the 22nd century

22nd century

The 22nd century is a century of the Christian Era or Common Era in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. It is the upcoming century, beginning on January 1, 2101 and ending on December 31, 2200.-Events:...

. The plots of the stories are not closely connected, but they feature a shared set of characters. The most commonly recurring characters are Evgeny Slavin and Sergei Kondratev, who, as a result of a lengthy journey through interstellar space at near the speed of light, are thrown over a century into the future and must re-integrate into the society of their great-grandchildren.

The book includes the following stories:

1. Night on Mars - Two doctors walk on foot on Mars
   Mars
   Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
   
    after their vehicle was lost in quicksand. They must avoid an encounter with a local wild beast, while hurrying to assist in the delivery of Evgeny Slavin, the first human born on Mars. (This apparently takes place in the late 20th century.)
2. Almost the Same - Sergei Kondratev as a young man in flight school.
3. Old-timer - The photon engine-driven spaceship
   Starship
   A starship or interstellar spacecraft is a theoretical spacecraft designed for traveling between the stars, as opposed to a vehicle designed for orbital spaceflight or interplanetary travel....
   
    "Taimyr" mysteriously returns to Earth after having disappeared a century earlier. Kondratev and Slavin are the only survivors.
4. The Conspirators - Schoolchildren Pol Gnedykh, Aleksandr "Lin" Kostylin, Mikhail Sidorov, and Gennady Komov
   Gennady Komov
   Gennady Komov is a fictional character in Boris and Arkady Strugatsky's series of science fiction novels set in the Noon Universe.-Biography:...
   
    plan and dream about their futures.
5. Chronicle - A scientific report giving an analysis of the disappearance and reappearance of the Taimyr.
6. Two from the Taimyr - Kondratev and Slavin recuperate from their wounds after the crash of the Taimyr, and begin to investigate the Earth of the future to which they have returned.
7. The Moving Roads - Kondratev explores Earth on a global system of moving roadways.
8. Cornucopia - Slavin attempts to adjust to the domestic technology
   Domestic technology
   Domestic technology is the incorporation of applied science into the home. There are many aspects of domestic technology. On one level, there are home appliances, home automation and other devices commonly used in the home, such as clothes dryers and washing machines. These things are itemized...
   
    of the future.
9. Homecoming - Kondratev encounters Leonid Gorbovsky
   Leonid Gorbovsky
   Leonid Gorbovsky is a fictional character in Boris and Arkady Strugatsky's series of science fiction novels set in the Noon Universe.-Biography:...
   
   , and decides to take a job in oceanography.
10. Langour of the Spirit - Gnedykh and Kostylin reconnect after many years apart.
11. The Assaultmen - Gorbovsky tours the artificial satellites of Vladislava, and journeys to the surface with Sidorov and Ryu Waseda.
12. Deep Search - Kondratev and oceanographer Akiko Okada hunt giant squid on a deep sea expedition.
13. The Mystery of the Hind Leg - Slavin encounters the Collector of Dispersed Data project.
14. Candles Before the Control Board - Okada (now married to Kondratev) tries to visit her dying father, the subject of the Great Encoding
15. Natural Science in the Spirit World - Espers assist the Institute of Space Physics in an effort to explain the Taimyr disappearance and reappearance.
16. Pilgrims and Wayfarers - Gorbovsky discusses the "Voice of the Void" and other mysteries, and the philosophy of space exploration.
17. The Planet with all the Conveniences - Komov, Waseda, and others explore the planet Leonida and make brief contact with the Leoniders
    Leoniders
    Leoniders are a fictional alien race from the Noon Universe created by the Strugatsky brothers. Their homeworld is Leonida , a planet discovered in 2133 AD by Leonid Gorbovsky....
    
    .
18. Defeat - Sidorov tests prototype colonization devices in a remote area on Earth.
19. The Meeting - Gnedykh and Kostylin again meet after a long separation, and Gnedykh regrets his accidental killing of an alien creature who may have been sentient.
20. What You Will Be Like - Kondratev, Slavin, and Gorbovsky explore Tagora. Kondratev and Slavin discuss the progress and stagnation of humanity over their long lifespan, and Gorbovsky tells a fantastic story about his encounter with a visitor from the future.

Publication history

Noon: 22nd Century has been published several times, with different contents.

• It was first published in Russian in 1961 in the literary magazine Ural as "chapters from the novel Return, and contained only 10 of the 20 stories:
  1. Old-timer
  2. Chronicle
  3. Two from the Taimyr
  4. The Moving Roads
  5. Cornucopia
  6. Homecoming
  7. The Assaultmen
  8. The Meeting
  9. The Planet with all the Conveniences
  10. What You Will Be Like
• The next edition was published in Russian in 1962, and reprinted in 1963. This edition contained 16 of the 20 stories:
  1. Old-timer
  2. The Conspirators
  3. Chronicle
  4. Two from the Taimyr
  5. The Moving Roads
  6. Cornucopia
  7. Homecoming
  8. Langour of the Spirit
  9. The Assaultmen
  10. The Meeting
  11. Deep Search
  12. Candles Before the Control Board
  13. The Mystery of the Hind Leg
  14. Natural Science in the Spirit World
  15. The Planet with all the Conveniences
  16. What You Will Be Like
• The 1967 Russian edition was the first to include all 20 stories. All subsequent editions and translations followed the format of the 1967 edition.

English editions

1. Strugatsky, Arkady and Boris. Noon: 22nd Century (Best of Soviet Science Fiction) translated by Patrick L. McGuire. New York: Macmillan Pub Co, 1978, 319 pp. ISBN 0-02-615150-2. LCCN: 78017444.
2. Strugatsky, Arkady and Boris. Noon: 22nd Century translated by Patrick L. McGuire. New York: Collier, 1979, 319 pp. ISBN 0-02-025600-0.