KNOW THY NEIGHBOR
Episode #453 · Written by Elisabeth R. Lewis · Narrated by Scott Miller
A strange noise, a dead cat, and an uneasy stare from a neighbor begin Ellen’s morning in The Tenderloin. By nightfall, she’ll wish she’d never opened her door—or trusted anyone on her floor.
Elisabeth R. Lewis weaves this story like a slow-burn fuse, turning the everyday into the eerie and the familiar into the alien. Know Thy Neighbor mixes urban realism with uncanny horror, giving us a heroine whose fears feel uncomfortably real until the unthinkable steps into view. Written during the golden age of short science fiction, it channels post-war anxiety, loneliness, and distrust into something that still resonates today: the fear that the threat isn’t from another planet—it’s living right next door.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elisabeth R. Lewis is a near-forgotten name from the golden age of magazine science fiction. Know Thy Neighbor appears to be the only story published under her byline, yet it leaves a lasting impression—a compact, unnerving tale that stands comfortably beside the era’s best speculative fiction. Little is known about Lewis herself, but her writing reveals a sharp sense of atmosphere and a talent for transforming ordinary settings into places of quiet dread. Her lone story remains a striking reminder that even a single appearance in the classic magazines could earn a writer a place in the long, strange history of vintage science fiction.
LISTEN TO THE STORY
Listen to Know Thy Neighbor by Elisabeth R. Lewis — a vintage science fiction tale of paranoia, fear, and the terrifying secrets hidden behind your neighbor’s door.
LOST VOICES OF VINTAGE SCI-FI
Not every science fiction writer built a long career in the field or became a widely recognized name. Some published only a handful of stories before disappearing from the magazines, leaving behind little biographical record and few surviving details. Others may be remembered for work in different genres, while their contribution to science fiction was brief.
Yet these writers helped shape the texture of the pulp era and beyond. Their stories experimented with bold ideas, filled the pages between the famous names, and added depth to the ever-expanding landscape of vintage science fiction.
The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast exists in part to rediscover these voices. The stories below were written by authors who published briefly, sparingly, or whose science fiction output was small - but whose work still deserves to be heard.
- The Ultimate Paradox by Thorp McClusky
- The Ultimate Wish by E. M. Hull
- Welcome to Paradise by Allyn Donnelson
- Day of Reckoning by Morton Klass
- Zeritskys Law by Ann Griffith
- Up For Renewal by Lucius Daniel
- Patch by William Shedenhelm
- Electronic Landslide by Clyde Hostetter
- They Reached for the Moon by William Oberfield
- Death Walks on Mars by Alan J. Ramm
- When the Moon Fell by Morrison Colladay
- Know They Neighbor by Elisabeth R. Lewis
- The Other One by A. H. Gibson
- No Evidence by Victoria Lincoln
- The Man Who Liked Lions by John Bernard Daley
- Willies Planet by Mike Ellis
- The Short Snorter by Charles Einstein
- Your Servant Sir by Sol Boren
- The Fugitives by Malcolm B. Morehart Jr
- Leave Earthmen or Die by John Massie Davis
- And All the Girls Were Nude by Richard Magruder
- Rabbits Have Long Ears by Lawrence F. Willard
- Dust Unto Dust by Lyman D. Hinckley
- Day of Wrath by Bjarne Kirchhoff
- You Are Forbidden by Jerry Shelton
ABOUT THE LOST SCI-FI PODCAST
The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast is the most listened-to vintage science fiction podcast in the world. Ranked the #1 Science Fiction Podcast in 34 countries and heard in more than 190 countries, the show has surpassed 3.7 million listens.
Each episode features carefully selected stories from the Golden Age of science fiction, professionally narrated. Timeless storytelling the way it was meant to be heard.
What listeners are saying:
★★★★★
“What are you waiting for? I found this podcast through my library’s app. But while my library app allows for 5 audio book check-outs a month, this podcast has no constraints. The audio is clear, the stories and well read, and the selection is varied enough that I have not heard most of these stories. I am only a recent lister, but I am already 30 episodes in.”
— M Coats
★★★★★
“Terrific Dose of Sci Fi. I have been reading this old pulp sci fi for decades. It is a refreshing treat to hear it read by such a skilled storyteller. The more I listen, the more it grows on me. Keep it up. Please.”
— CuriousJon
Vintage science fiction. Professionally narrated. Carefully curated.
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