“A Matter of Matter” is another anthology collection. Since these stories were serialized in magazines of the time, some tend to be longer than others. The original pulp art on the cover grants some authenticity to these stories.

A Matter of Matter was a story of a man who saved his money for ten years to get a planet to own and have colonized. Unfortunately he got a lemon, with gravity working backwards. However the natives of the planet were not so affected, which was a bit of a plot hole. Still, the theme of doing what you need to do to get what you want, even if what you want ends up being bad, was interesting. Turns out the hero makes lemonade out of this lemon.

“The Planet Makers” was about a corporate sponsor to a planet Sleepy was wrokign on terraforming for future colonization. Despite some apparent sabotage of the equipment and materiel, Sleepy continues with his work, takes his time playing cards and sleeping until the time comes to do his work. One man, who protests a bit too much, wants Sleepy out of there. Interesting story of not taking your job seriously as long as you get the job done, despite the counter-influence of others.

The third story was a time travel yarn, The Obsolete Weapon. A soldier during an Italian occupation in the later days of World War II somehow falls through a portal at the Roman Coliseum and meets lions and gladiators versus his 19th century gun, which actually comes in handy to a race with no such weapons. Underlying criticism of military authority and despite the ages still is as ludicrous as ever is easily read between the lines.

Oh, the Conroy Diary was a comical tale of twists and turns. Over the top adventurer who has a secret that will clearly surprise you when revealed. One of those rare comic sci-fi tales.

Commonly, a short glossary is inserted at the end, along with a few pages of future tales to whet the appetite of those adventure readers enjoying all things Hubbard.

Bottom Line: Not a bad tale of mercenary adventures. Not the first book I’d pick up (prefer Fear and Ultimate Adventure and his Slaves of Sleep tales) but you may be pleasantly surprised.

Recommended.


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“A Matter of Matter” is another anthology collection. Since these stories were serialized in magazines of the time, some tend to be longer than others. The original pulp art on the cover grants some authenticity to these stories.

A Matter of Matter was a story of a man who saved his money for ten years to get a planet to own and have colonized. Unfortunately he got a lemon, with gravity working backwards. However the natives of the planet were not so affected, which was a bit of a plot hole. Still, the theme of doing what you need to do to get what you want, even if what you want ends up being bad, was interesting. Turns out the hero makes lemonade out of this lemon.

“The Planet Makers” was about a corporate sponsor to a planet Sleepy was wrokign on terraforming for future colonization. Despite some apparent sabotage of the equipment and materiel, Sleepy continues with his work, takes his time playing cards and sleeping until the time comes to do his work. One man, who protests a bit too much, wants Sleepy out of there. Interesting story of not taking your job seriously as long as you get the job done, despite the counter-influence of others.

The third story was a time travel yarn, The Obsolete Weapon. A soldier during an Italian occupation in the later days of World War II somehow falls through a portal at the Roman Coliseum and meets lions and gladiators versus his 19th century gun, which actually comes in handy to a race with no such weapons. Underlying criticism of military authority and despite the ages still is as ludicrous as ever is easily read between the lines.

Oh, the Conroy Diary was a comical tale of twists and turns. Over the top adventurer who has a secret that will clearly surprise you when revealed. One of those rare comic sci-fi tales.

Commonly, a short glossary is inserted at the end, along with a few pages of future tales to whet the appetite of those adventure readers enjoying all things Hubbard.

Bottom Line: Not a bad tale of mercenary adventures. Not the first book I’d pick up (prefer Fear and Ultimate Adventure and his Slaves of Sleep tales) but you may be pleasantly surprised.

Recommended.


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From 1949, "A matter of Matter" is a refreshing science fiction tale from master storyteller L. Ron Hubbard. Included in this volume are three additional golden age classics: "The Conroy Diary," "The Planet makers," and "The obsolete Weapon." Each story is highly enjoyable and well written. Such short short science fiction stories are a thing of the past, but never better handled than by the incomparable L. Ron Hubbard who gets more excitement into a few pages than most modern writers. The audio book is fantastic for those that enjoy listening to books while traveling. ( )

A Matter of Matter is a very funny parody of a funky real estate deal and the hopes of a new planet owner. Parallels to a real life scam and a surprise potential reward of a new discovery of value to Earth (which was of course unknown to the realtor) make this story very fun.

Great Audiobook and fun for commute with this variety of shorter stories. ( )