Red Schuhart is a stalker, one of those strange misfits who are compelled by some unknown force to venture illegally into the Zone and, in spite of the extreme danger, collect the mysterious artefacts that the alien visitors left scattered around. His life is dominated by the Zone and the thriving black market in the alien products. Even the nature of his daughter has been determined by the Zone. And it is for her that Red makes his last, tragic foray into the hazardous and hostile depths.

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Commentary (novels not included). Pages: 24. Chapters: Noon Universe novels, Roadside Picnic, Prisoners of Power, Hard to Be a God, Disquiet, Space Apprentice, Monday Begins on Saturday, Noon: 22nd Century, Space Mowgli, The Ugly Swans, The Final Circle of Paradise, Far Rainbow, Beetle in the Anthill, The Second Invasion from Mars, The Time Wanderers, The Kid from Hell, The Doomed City, Escape Attempt, Definitely Maybe, Dead Mountaineer's Hotel, Tale of the Troika, The Land of Crimson Clouds, Search for Designation or Twenty Seventh Theorem of Ethics, The Way to Amalthea, Devil amongst people, Stalker. Excerpt: Roadside Picnic (Russian:, Piknik na obochine, IPA: ) is a short science fiction novel written by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky between January 18 and November 3 of 1971. As of 1998, 38 editions of the novel were published in 20 countries. The novel was first translated to English by Antonina W. Bouis. The preface to the first American edition of the novel (MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc, New York, 1977) was written by Theodore Sturgeon. The film Stalker directed by Andrei Tarkovsky is loosely based on the novel, with a screenplay written by the Strugatskys. The story was written by Strugatsky brothers in 1971 (the first outlines written January 18-27, 1971 in Leningrad, with the final version completed between October 28 and November 3, 1971 in Komarovo.) In 1977, the novel was first published in the United States in English. Roadside Picnic was refused publication in the Soviet Union for eight years due to government censorship and numerous delays. The heavily censored different versions published between 1980 and 2000 have little in common with the original version written by the authors. Soviet censors rewrote major plot points, changed names of characters and dialog to better reflect the...

A collection of essays and a book review relating to Roadside Picnic, the Soviet science fiction novel by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. Topics include: *Close reading of the novel to unlock its mysteries. *Translation triumphs and errors. *A British novel that had a profound influence on Roadside Picnic. *The critical reception of Roadside Picnic in the West. *The original plan for Roadside Picnic and the terrible compromise that came.

If you come back with swag – it’s a Miracle If you come back alive – it’s a Success If the patrol bullets miss you – it’s Luck And as for everything else – that’s Fate Zones are areas where the laws of nature have gone insane and life has either perished or become twisted beyond recognition. They were to be cut off from the world, lost and forgotten behind walls and fences. Criminals called stalkers explore the Zones in search of artefacts; small fragments of alien culture and technology that defy our understanding of reality. Jacob Moncke was there on Day One. Thirteen years later events conspire to draw him back as he becomes tangled in a web of conspiracy and murder. The Hollow Pilgrim follows in the footsteps of Roadside Picnic, the legendary scifi-classic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. With approval and a license from Boris Strugatsky (1933–2012), it brings the setting of Roadside Picnic to the modern era, while staying true to the original work in themes and atmosphere. “Ville Vuorela tells a gripping noir tale in the broken world of the Strugatskys’ Roadside Picnic, where no one is what they seem and happy endings are hard to come by. I really enjoyed it!” – Hannu Rajaniemi