Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

[james_davis_nicoll]

Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

Comments

[philrm.livejournal.com]

I have not gone back to reread this in a long time; as you say, it's probably best to consider it as a period piece. Nevertheless, I think I can say that when ~ 13 year-old me encountered this (in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, which I think was 1971) it was the first short story I read that broke my heart.

[laetitia-apis.livejournal.com]

I read the story when it appeared in the magazine, and my first impression was "Everybody in the whole world has got to read this."

I never had the nerve to read the expansion; there is no way the short story could be improved.

[philrm.livejournal.com]

I never read the novel either, for the same reason.

[tekalynn.livejournal.com]

No, there isn't. The novel is good enough, but isn't a patch on the original version.

[agharta75.livejournal.com]

About the only thing the novel has over the short story is that Charlie's intelligence increase takes longer and is a bit more believable. He doesn't have _time_ in the short story to have read all those books, even if he is a 200 IQ speed reader ...