Sheckley se ha destacado siempre, sobre la masa de los autores de ciencia-ficción por su brillante, y a veces incluso alocada, imaginación, por sus personajes y por su estilo literario, que realmente superior a la media. Y se necesita un valor como el que él tiene para proyectarse más allá de las lejanas y solitarias fronteras de lo conocido por el hombre. Por fortuna para nosotros, siempre regresa indemne de tales exploraciones, trayéndonos un rico cargamento de datos e informaciones para nuestro placer, asombro e ilustración.

Y, en caso de que alguna de las predicciones contenidas en esta antología de relatos le haga dudar e incluso echarse atrás ante lo inédito de la idea, piense en una cosa: el futuro no se le va a presentar de repente... llegará reptando, y estará alrededor de usted antes de que se haya dado cuenta.

⦁ ¿Podemos charlar un rato?

⦁ El arma definitiva

⦁ El movimiento se demuestra andando

⦁ Espectro V

⦁ Inmunidad diplomática

⦁ La llave laxiana

⦁ La trampa humana

⦁ Mundo-sueño

⦁ Temporada de pesca

⦁ Todo lo necesario

⦁ Zona reservada

Citizen in Space is a collection of science fiction short stories by Robert Sheckley. It was first published in 1955 by Ballantine Books (catalogue number 126). It includes the following stories (magazines in which the stories originally appeared given in parentheses):

1. "The Mountain Without a Name" (1955)

2. "The Accountant" (F&SF 1954/7)

3. "Hunting Problem" (Galaxy 1955/9)

4. "A Thief in Time" (Galaxy 1954/7)

5. "The Luckiest Man in the World" (Fantastic Universe 1955/2; also known as "Fortunate Person")

6. "Hands Off" (Galaxy 1954/4)

7. "Something for Nothing" (Galaxy 1954/6)

8. "A Ticket to Tranai" (Galaxy 1955/10)

9. "The Battle" (If 1954/9)

10. "Skulking Permit" (Galaxy 1954/12)

11. "Citizen in Space" (Playboy 1955/9; also known as "Spy Story")

12. "Ask a Foolish Question" (Science Fiction Stories No. 1, 1953)

Published in 1969/12

Included into science fiction short stories collection, published in December 1971 by Doubleday.

First published in , May 1958

Published in collection of science fiction short stories by Robert Sheckley in 1960 by Bantam Books.

First published in , April 1956.

Appeared in  collection of science fiction short stories by Robert Sheckley published in 1957 by Bantam Books.

First appeared in Magazine, 1957/7.

A part of collection of science fiction short stories by Robert Sheckley. It was first published in 1960 by Bantam Books.

Originally published in shorter form as in 1958. It was filmed in 1992 as , starring Emilio Estevez, Mick Jagger, Rene Russo, and Anthony Hopkins.

The story is ostensibly about a marooned space traveller's attempt to get a spare part for his starship, the . He has a robotic guard, programmed to guard him against all planetary dangers. But soon he discovers that the robot has not been programmed for the planet where they are, with comic results. However, the narrative later descends into a mass of diversions, non-sequiturs and meditations on the nature of authorship. Eventually the diversions take over the book to the extent that the author openly introduces an increasingly bizarre succession of deus ex machina in an attempt to get the novel back on track, but eventually admits defeat.

First published in  1956/9; also known as "Love, Incorporated".

Part of collection of science fiction short stories by Robert Sheckley published in 1957 by Bantam Books.

"Yes sir. Well, there are three men outside trying to kill me...."

"Quite right," Mr. Frendlyer said. "And today is Landing Day. You came off the ship that landed today, and have been classified a peon.... I'm happy to say that everything is in order. The Landing Day Hunt ends at sundown. You can leave here with the knowledge that everything is correct and that your rights have not been violated."

"Leave here? After sundown, you mean."

Mr. Frendlyer shook his head and smiled sadly. "I'm afraid not. According to the law you must leave here at once."

"But they'll kill me!"

"That's very true. Unfortunately it can't be helped. A victim by definition is one who is to be killed.... We protect rights, not victims."

OMEGA: PRISON PLANET

LIFE EXPECTANCY: THREE YEARS

MAXIMUM

MOST PEOPLE ARE

LUCKIER THAN THAT....

This time the humans are taking the offensive! Stan Myakovsky is a once-famous scientist fallen on hard times. Now he dodges spaceship repo men and dreams of the marketability of his cybernetic ant. Then a woman named Julie Lish walks into his life. She is beautiful, mysterious, and totally amoral. She is also skilled in the arts of thievery and Oriental self-defense. What's more, she has a plan so outrageous there might be one chance in a million to pull it off.

Together Stan and Julie become the most unlikely pair of pirates in the universe. With a hijacked spaceship and a crew of hardcase misfits, they’re searching for the ultimate pot of gold at the end of a bloody intergalactic rainbow: royal jelly from an alien hive. The only problem is that the fortune lies on the universe’s most godforsaken planet. And once they get their hands on it, they’ll have to fight their way past the aliens to get off the planet alive.