Author of 60s/70s sci-fi novel called Sphere, about a clear personal transport device made from Martian technology
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Found it in a used book store, don't have it anymore. I'm almost certain the title is Sphere, but it was written about 20-25 years before Crichton's book of the same name. I'm trying to find out the author. Cover illustration showed a guy dressed like a bell-bottomed hippie hovering over a landscape inside a glass tube. The tube was the sphere in the title, a personal travel device that could protect the person inside (by making them invisible, I think). It was made from Martian technology that had been shared with the protagonist telepathically when he lived on Mars (he is human). Now that he was back on Earth, the government wants the technology - but it was entrusted to him and he cannot reveal it. So most of the book has him running from the authorities who want to extract it from him somehow. He meets a woman who helps him escape, and there is a lot of political discussion as well as details on Martian society, empathy, and how they bonded with him. I think it ends with them making it to safety. I think it was a fairly short novel. Every online search I've done only turns up Crichton's book or the movie, can't seem to find this one. I'd like to read it again.
story-identification technology mars politics government
asked Aug 11 at 13:22
geox
1358
add a comment |Â
up vote
18
down vote
favorite
Found it in a used book store, don't have it anymore. I'm almost certain the title is Sphere, but it was written about 20-25 years before Crichton's book of the same name. I'm trying to find out the author. Cover illustration showed a guy dressed like a bell-bottomed hippie hovering over a landscape inside a glass tube. The tube was the sphere in the title, a personal travel device that could protect the person inside (by making them invisible, I think). It was made from Martian technology that had been shared with the protagonist telepathically when he lived on Mars (he is human). Now that he was back on Earth, the government wants the technology - but it was entrusted to him and he cannot reveal it. So most of the book has him running from the authorities who want to extract it from him somehow. He meets a woman who helps him escape, and there is a lot of political discussion as well as details on Martian society, empathy, and how they bonded with him. I think it ends with them making it to safety. I think it was a fairly short novel. Every online search I've done only turns up Crichton's book or the movie, can't seem to find this one. I'd like to read it again.
story-identification technology mars politics government
asked Aug 11 at 13:22
geox
1358
1
isfdb.org/cgi-bin/se.cgi?arg=sphere&type=Fiction+Titles - Doesn't appear to be anything obvious here
– Valorum
Aug 11 at 13:24
add a comment |Â
up vote
18
down vote
favorite
up vote
18
down vote
favorite
Found it in a used book store, don't have it anymore. I'm almost certain the title is Sphere, but it was written about 20-25 years before Crichton's book of the same name. I'm trying to find out the author. Cover illustration showed a guy dressed like a bell-bottomed hippie hovering over a landscape inside a glass tube. The tube was the sphere in the title, a personal travel device that could protect the person inside (by making them invisible, I think). It was made from Martian technology that had been shared with the protagonist telepathically when he lived on Mars (he is human). Now that he was back on Earth, the government wants the technology - but it was entrusted to him and he cannot reveal it. So most of the book has him running from the authorities who want to extract it from him somehow. He meets a woman who helps him escape, and there is a lot of political discussion as well as details on Martian society, empathy, and how they bonded with him. I think it ends with them making it to safety. I think it was a fairly short novel. Every online search I've done only turns up Crichton's book or the movie, can't seem to find this one. I'd like to read it again.
story-identification technology mars politics government
asked Aug 11 at 13:22
geox
1358
Found it in a used book store, don't have it anymore. I'm almost certain the title is Sphere, but it was written about 20-25 years before Crichton's book of the same name. I'm trying to find out the author. Cover illustration showed a guy dressed like a bell-bottomed hippie hovering over a landscape inside a glass tube. The tube was the sphere in the title, a personal travel device that could protect the person inside (by making them invisible, I think). It was made from Martian technology that had been shared with the protagonist telepathically when he lived on Mars (he is human). Now that he was back on Earth, the government wants the technology - but it was entrusted to him and he cannot reveal it. So most of the book has him running from the authorities who want to extract it from him somehow. He meets a woman who helps him escape, and there is a lot of political discussion as well as details on Martian society, empathy, and how they bonded with him. I think it ends with them making it to safety. I think it was a fairly short novel. Every online search I've done only turns up Crichton's book or the movie, can't seem to find this one. I'd like to read it again.
story-identification technology mars politics government
story-identification technology mars politics government
asked Aug 11 at 13:22
geox
1358
asked Aug 11 at 13:22
geox
1358
edited Aug 12 at 1:06
asked Aug 11 at 13:22
geox
1358
asked Aug 11 at 13:22
geox
1358
asked Aug 11 at 13:22
geox
1358
1358
1
isfdb.org/cgi-bin/se.cgi?arg=sphere&type=Fiction+Titles - Doesn't appear to be anything obvious here
– Valorum
Aug 11 at 13:24
add a comment |Â
1
isfdb.org/cgi-bin/se.cgi?arg=sphere&type=Fiction+Titles - Doesn't appear to be anything obvious here
– Valorum
Aug 11 at 13:24
1
1
isfdb.org/cgi-bin/se.cgi?arg=sphere&type=Fiction+Titles - Doesn't appear to be anything obvious here
– Valorum
Aug 11 at 13:24
isfdb.org/cgi-bin/se.cgi?arg=sphere&type=Fiction+Titles - Doesn't appear to be anything obvious here
– Valorum
Aug 11 at 13:24
add a comment |Â
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
up vote
26
down vote
accepted
It's Shield, not Sphere. The author is Poul Anderson.
The cover image you describe brought it back immediately.
Just in case there is more than one book with a "Cover illustration [that] showed a guy dressed like a bell-bottomed hippie hovering over a landscape inside a glass tube":
Koskinen had returned to earth with a strange new "Shield" - a device
which enclosed the wearer in a force shield which absorbed all
energies below a certain level. Light could come through the Shield,
but no weapon known to man could penetrate it. Koskinen had developed
the Shield in collaboration with the Martians. From the moment of his
return to earth he was in deadly danger. His own country sent men to
kill him to prevent the Shield from falling into enemy hands Soon the
whole civilized world was searching for this one man - a man armed
with the greatest potential military weapon mankind had ever seen. The
only question was which power would possess the Shield as its very
own?
From goodreads
answered Aug 11 at 13:37
Organic Marble
21.7k478117
5
As a 2-part serial in Fantastic it's available at the Internet Archive: part one and part two.
– user14111
Aug 11 at 13:57
1
OMG, I never expected an answer so quickly! YES that is it, that is the cover - no wonder I couldn't find it when I looked for Sphere (and I kept wondering why it would be called Sphere when the thing was test-tube-shaped). And I had a feeling that it was a major well-known author, but could not recall who it was. I thank you.
– geox
Aug 11 at 14:04
You're quite welcome! And welcome to scifi stack exchange!
– Organic Marble
Aug 11 at 14:04
1
Love that cover illustration.
– StephenG
Aug 12 at 4:44
It's memorable, for sure.
– Organic Marble
Aug 12 at 12:19
add a comment |Â
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
26
down vote
accepted
It's Shield, not Sphere. The author is Poul Anderson.
The cover image you describe brought it back immediately.
Just in case there is more than one book with a "Cover illustration [that] showed a guy dressed like a bell-bottomed hippie hovering over a landscape inside a glass tube":
Koskinen had returned to earth with a strange new "Shield" - a device
which enclosed the wearer in a force shield which absorbed all
energies below a certain level. Light could come through the Shield,
but no weapon known to man could penetrate it. Koskinen had developed
the Shield in collaboration with the Martians. From the moment of his
return to earth he was in deadly danger. His own country sent men to
kill him to prevent the Shield from falling into enemy hands Soon the
whole civilized world was searching for this one man - a man armed
with the greatest potential military weapon mankind had ever seen. The
only question was which power would possess the Shield as its very
own?
From goodreads
answered Aug 11 at 13:37
Organic Marble
21.7k478117
5
As a 2-part serial in Fantastic it's available at the Internet Archive: part one and part two.
– user14111
Aug 11 at 13:57
1
OMG, I never expected an answer so quickly! YES that is it, that is the cover - no wonder I couldn't find it when I looked for Sphere (and I kept wondering why it would be called Sphere when the thing was test-tube-shaped). And I had a feeling that it was a major well-known author, but could not recall who it was. I thank you.
– geox
Aug 11 at 14:04
You're quite welcome! And welcome to scifi stack exchange!
– Organic Marble
Aug 11 at 14:04
1
Love that cover illustration.
– StephenG
Aug 12 at 4:44
It's memorable, for sure.
– Organic Marble
Aug 12 at 12:19
add a comment |Â
up vote
26
down vote
accepted
It's Shield, not Sphere. The author is Poul Anderson.
The cover image you describe brought it back immediately.
Just in case there is more than one book with a "Cover illustration [that] showed a guy dressed like a bell-bottomed hippie hovering over a landscape inside a glass tube":
Koskinen had returned to earth with a strange new "Shield" - a device
which enclosed the wearer in a force shield which absorbed all
energies below a certain level. Light could come through the Shield,
but no weapon known to man could penetrate it. Koskinen had developed
the Shield in collaboration with the Martians. From the moment of his
return to earth he was in deadly danger. His own country sent men to
kill him to prevent the Shield from falling into enemy hands Soon the
whole civilized world was searching for this one man - a man armed
with the greatest potential military weapon mankind had ever seen. The
only question was which power would possess the Shield as its very
own?
From goodreads
answered Aug 11 at 13:37
Organic Marble
21.7k478117
5
As a 2-part serial in Fantastic it's available at the Internet Archive: part one and part two.
– user14111
Aug 11 at 13:57
1
OMG, I never expected an answer so quickly! YES that is it, that is the cover - no wonder I couldn't find it when I looked for Sphere (and I kept wondering why it would be called Sphere when the thing was test-tube-shaped). And I had a feeling that it was a major well-known author, but could not recall who it was. I thank you.
– geox
Aug 11 at 14:04
You're quite welcome! And welcome to scifi stack exchange!
– Organic Marble
Aug 11 at 14:04
1
Love that cover illustration.
– StephenG
Aug 12 at 4:44
It's memorable, for sure.
– Organic Marble
Aug 12 at 12:19
add a comment |Â
up vote
26
down vote
accepted
up vote
26
down vote
accepted
It's Shield, not Sphere. The author is Poul Anderson.
The cover image you describe brought it back immediately.
Just in case there is more than one book with a "Cover illustration [that] showed a guy dressed like a bell-bottomed hippie hovering over a landscape inside a glass tube":
Koskinen had returned to earth with a strange new "Shield" - a device
which enclosed the wearer in a force shield which absorbed all
energies below a certain level. Light could come through the Shield,
but no weapon known to man could penetrate it. Koskinen had developed
the Shield in collaboration with the Martians. From the moment of his
return to earth he was in deadly danger. His own country sent men to
kill him to prevent the Shield from falling into enemy hands Soon the
whole civilized world was searching for this one man - a man armed
with the greatest potential military weapon mankind had ever seen. The
only question was which power would possess the Shield as its very
own?
From goodreads
answered Aug 11 at 13:37
Organic Marble
21.7k478117
It's Shield, not Sphere. The author is Poul Anderson.
The cover image you describe brought it back immediately.
Just in case there is more than one book with a "Cover illustration [that] showed a guy dressed like a bell-bottomed hippie hovering over a landscape inside a glass tube":
Koskinen had returned to earth with a strange new "Shield" - a device
which enclosed the wearer in a force shield which absorbed all
energies below a certain level. Light could come through the Shield,
but no weapon known to man could penetrate it. Koskinen had developed
the Shield in collaboration with the Martians. From the moment of his
return to earth he was in deadly danger. His own country sent men to
kill him to prevent the Shield from falling into enemy hands Soon the
whole civilized world was searching for this one man - a man armed
with the greatest potential military weapon mankind had ever seen. The
only question was which power would possess the Shield as its very
own?
From goodreads
answered Aug 11 at 13:37
Organic Marble
21.7k478117
edited Aug 11 at 14:00
answered Aug 11 at 13:37
Organic Marble
21.7k478117
answered Aug 11 at 13:37
Organic Marble
21.7k478117
answered Aug 11 at 13:37
Organic Marble
21.7k478117
21.7k478117
5
As a 2-part serial in Fantastic it's available at the Internet Archive: part one and part two.
– user14111
Aug 11 at 13:57
1
OMG, I never expected an answer so quickly! YES that is it, that is the cover - no wonder I couldn't find it when I looked for Sphere (and I kept wondering why it would be called Sphere when the thing was test-tube-shaped). And I had a feeling that it was a major well-known author, but could not recall who it was. I thank you.
– geox
Aug 11 at 14:04
You're quite welcome! And welcome to scifi stack exchange!
– Organic Marble
Aug 11 at 14:04
1
Love that cover illustration.
– StephenG
Aug 12 at 4:44
It's memorable, for sure.
– Organic Marble
Aug 12 at 12:19
add a comment |Â
5
As a 2-part serial in Fantastic it's available at the Internet Archive: part one and part two.
– user14111
Aug 11 at 13:57
1
OMG, I never expected an answer so quickly! YES that is it, that is the cover - no wonder I couldn't find it when I looked for Sphere (and I kept wondering why it would be called Sphere when the thing was test-tube-shaped). And I had a feeling that it was a major well-known author, but could not recall who it was. I thank you.
– geox
Aug 11 at 14:04
You're quite welcome! And welcome to scifi stack exchange!
– Organic Marble
Aug 11 at 14:04
1
Love that cover illustration.
– StephenG
Aug 12 at 4:44
It's memorable, for sure.
– Organic Marble
Aug 12 at 12:19
5
5
As a 2-part serial in Fantastic it's available at the Internet Archive: part one and part two.
– user14111
Aug 11 at 13:57
As a 2-part serial in Fantastic it's available at the Internet Archive: part one and part two.
– user14111
Aug 11 at 13:57
1
1
OMG, I never expected an answer so quickly! YES that is it, that is the cover - no wonder I couldn't find it when I looked for Sphere (and I kept wondering why it would be called Sphere when the thing was test-tube-shaped). And I had a feeling that it was a major well-known author, but could not recall who it was. I thank you.
– geox
Aug 11 at 14:04
OMG, I never expected an answer so quickly! YES that is it, that is the cover - no wonder I couldn't find it when I looked for Sphere (and I kept wondering why it would be called Sphere when the thing was test-tube-shaped). And I had a feeling that it was a major well-known author, but could not recall who it was. I thank you.
– geox
Aug 11 at 14:04
You're quite welcome! And welcome to scifi stack exchange!
– Organic Marble
Aug 11 at 14:04
You're quite welcome! And welcome to scifi stack exchange!
– Organic Marble
Aug 11 at 14:04
1
1
Love that cover illustration.
– StephenG
Aug 12 at 4:44
Love that cover illustration.
– StephenG
Aug 12 at 4:44
It's memorable, for sure.
– Organic Marble
Aug 12 at 12:19
It's memorable, for sure.
– Organic Marble
Aug 12 at 12:19
add a comment |Â
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1
isfdb.org/cgi-bin/se.cgi?arg=sphere&type=Fiction+Titles - Doesn't appear to be anything obvious here
– Valorum
Aug 11 at 13:24