This is the House

By Henry Kuttner

A house, it has been said, is a machine for living. The house they bought from its previous occupant had, very definitely, been made just that. But—not for human living!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Alien Ebooks
• Release date: Feb 28, 2023
• ISBN: 9781667602622

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Table of Contents

COPYRIGHT NOTE

INTRODUCTION

THIS IS THE HOUSE

COPYRIGHT NOTE

This classic work has been reformatted for optimal reading

in ebook format on multiple devices. Punctuation and

spelling has been modernized where necessary.

Copyright © 2023 by Alien Ebooks.

All rights reserved.

Originally published in Astounding,

February 1946, under the pseudonym

Lawrence O’Donnell.

INTRODUCTION

Eileen Hammond

Henry Kuttner wore many different hats as a writer. Science fiction writer? Check. Mystery writer? Check. Adventure writer? Check. War story writer? Check. He even worked as a literary agent (where he discovered another major talent—Leigh Brackett.)

The facts are these: Kuttner was born in Los Angeles, California in 1915. He worked part time for his uncle, Laurence D’Orsay, at a Los Angeles-based literary agency. All the time he wanted to be a writer, and it wasn’t long before he sold his first story: The Graveyard Rats, which appeared in Weird Tales in 1936.

Kuttner was part of the Lovecraft Circle, a group of writers and fans who corresponded with H.P. Lovecraft, and it was through this group that he met his future wife, fellow author C.L. Moore. They often collaborated throughout the 1940s and 1950s, publishing work under pseudonyms such as Lewis Padgett and Lawrence O’Donnell. Other pseudonyms included Edward J. Bellin, Paul Edmonds, Noel Gardner, Will Garth, James Hall, Keith Hammond, Hudson Hastings, Peter Horn, Kelvin Kent, Robert O. Kenyon, C. H. Liddell, Hugh Maepenn, Scott Morgan, Woodrow Wilson Smith, and Charles Stoddard.

He was known for his imaginative and humorous style, his exploration of psychological and sociological themes, and his influence on later writers such as Ray Bradbury and Roger Zelazny. Some of his most famous stories include Mimsy Were the Borogoves, The Twonky, The Proud Robot, Clash by Night, and The Dark World. He also wrote novels such as Fury (1947), The Time Axis (1948) and Mutant (1953).

Kuttner died of a heart attack in Los Angeles in 1958 at the age of 42. It was a tragic loss for the field.

THIS IS THE HOUSE

Henry Kuttner

Melton walked somberly into the living room and headed for the front windows, where he remained, brooding over some dark thought and twisting his hands idly behind him. His wife, Michaela, lifted her head and watched him, while the whirring of the sewing machine faded into