The Seeds of Time

1956 sci-fi collection by John Wyndham

For the Dave Holland album, see Seeds of Time.

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The Seeds of Time

First edition

Author| John Wyndham
Cover artist| Richard Barton
Language| English
Genre| Science Fiction
Publisher|  Michael Joseph

Publication date

| 1956

The Seeds of Time is a collection of science fiction stories (five short stories and five novelettes) by British writer John Wyndham, published in 1956 by Michael Joseph.

## Contents

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* A foreword by John Wyndham
* "The Chronoclasm" (1953), novelette, variant of "Chronoclasm"
* "Pillar to Post" (1951), novelette
* "Dumb Martian" (1952), novelette
* "Compassion Circuit" (1954)
* "Survival" (1952), novelette
* "Pawley's Peepholes" (1951)
* "Opposite Number" (1954)
* "Wild Flower" (1955)
* "Time to Rest" (1949), as by John Beynon, Bert #1 series[1]
* "Meteor" (1941), novelette, as by John Beynon

## Summaries

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"Chronoclasm"
a time-travelling romantic comedy.
"Pillar to Post"
The central character is a paraplegic who was badly injured in a wartime attack. Frequently taking drugs to cope with the pain, he finds himself in a healthy body very far in the future. A complex plot of body-swapping and time travel ensues. It is considered by some people to be the best story in the collection.[2]
"Dumb Martian"[3]
a satire on racism, featuring an Earthman who buys a Martian wife.
"Compassion Circuit"

a horror story on the subject of robotics.
"Survival"
set on a spacecraft marooned in orbit around Mars.
"Pawley's Peepholes"
another time travel story, this time a comedy in which tourists projected from the future cause chaos in a present-day town.
"Opposite Number"
which plays with the concept of parallel universes.
"Wild Flower"

which explores the tension between nature and technology.
"Time to Rest"
depicting the life on Mars of a human survivor of the destruction of Earth. A sequel "No Place Like Earth"[1] appears in the collection No Place Like Earth (2003), which contains both.
"Meteor"
in which alien visitors to Earth find themselves on a very different scale to humans.

## Adaptations

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* "Dumb Martian" (1962), episode of the series Armchair Theatre and Out of This World, directed by Charles Jarrott, based on novelette "Dumb Martian"
* "No Place Like Earth" (1965), episode of the series Out of the Unknown, directed by Peter Potter, based on short story "Time to Rest" and novelette "No Place on Earth"[1]
* A BBC Radio 4 adaption of "Survival" was broadcast in 1989 with Stephen Garlick, Susan Sheridan, and Nicholas Courtney.[4] It was released as an Audiobook in 2007 with the 1981 version of The Chrysalids.[5]

## References

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1. ^ a b c Bould, Mark (18 January 2015). "Out of the Unknown: 'No Place Like Earth' (BBC2 4 October 1965)". Retrieved 14 January 2018.
2. ^ www.dooyoo.co.uk (3 July 2006). "The Seeds of Time - John Wyndham - Review - Chronological Seedlings". Dooyoo.co.uk. Archived from the original on 19 December 2007. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
3. ^ "Dumb Martian"
4. ^ "The Chrysalids & Survival, John Wyndham". Blackstone Audio/The Book Depository. 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2018., ISBN 978-1-48303-511-6
5. ^ "The Chrysalids & Survival: Classic Radio Sci-Fi (Dramatised)". BBC Audiobooks/Audible. 2007. Retrieved 14 January 2018.

## External links

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* The Seeds of Time 1956 publication contents at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
* John Wyndham at IMDb

* v
* t
* e

Works by John Wyndham

Novels|

* The Secret People
* Foul Play Suspected
* Stowaway to Mars
* The Day of the Triffids
* The Kraken Wakes
* The Chrysalids
* The Midwich Cuckoos
* The Outward Urge
* Trouble with Lichen
* Chocky
* Web
* Plan for Chaos

Short stories|

* "Consider Her Ways"
* "Random Quest"

Short story collections|

* Jizzle
* The Seeds of Time
* Tales of Gooseflesh and Laughter
* Consider Her Ways and Others
* The Infinite Moment
* Sleepers of Mars
* The Best of John Wyndham
* Wanderers of Time
* Exiles on Asperus
* No Place Like Earth

Film adaptations|

* The Day of the Triffids
* Village of the Damned (1960)
* Quest for Love
* Village of the Damned (1995)

TV adaptations|

* The Day of the Triffids (1981)
* Chocky
* The Day of the Triffids (2009)
* The Midwich Cuckoos (2022)

Other|

* Triffid
* The Chrysalids (radio drama)
* Children of the Damned
* Blackbirds at Bangpleng
* The Night of the Triffids

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