Pogo Planet by Donald A. Wollheim Episode #198
Donald A. Wollheim | March 26, 2024-
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Pogo Planet by Donald A. Wollheim Episode #198
Donald A. Wollheim
POGO PLANET
Episode #198 · Written by Donald A. Wollheim · Narrated by Scott Miller
Ajax Calkins believes the age of discovery has passed him by, until he sets foot on a planet no one else could see. What he finds there is not an empty prize waiting to be claimed, but a world already shaped by its own rules, tools, and assumptions about movement and power.
The story moves fast, bouncing from confidence to chaos with the same energy as its most unusual machines. Each encounter strips away another layer of Ajax’s certainty, replacing grand declarations with the urgent need to react, adapt, and survive. Humor runs beneath the tension, but the danger never feels distant.
Pogo Planet thrives on contrast: human ambition against alien practicality, ego against physics, and plans against terrain that refuses to cooperate. The result is a story that stays light on its feet while constantly threatening to throw its hero in the wrong direction.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Donald A. Wollheim published science fiction and fantasy for decades, with work appearing in Astounding Science Fiction, Planet Stories, and Thrilling Wonder Stories. Beyond his fiction, he played a central role in shaping the genre as an editor and publisher, helping bring influential voices to print through Ace Books. Pogo Planet reflects Wollheim’s talent for blending inventive concepts with satirical edge, turning speculative ideas into sharp, fast-moving adventures.
LISTEN TO THE STORY
Listen to Pogo Planet by Donald A. Wollheim — a classic science fiction adventure filled with strange worlds, dangerous travel, and vintage sci-fi imagination.
DONALD A. WOLLHEIM SHORT STORIES
Not every early science fiction writer went on to reshape the entire field. Donald A. Wollheim did.
Before founding DAW Books and helping launch generations of authors, Wollheim was crafting vivid tales filled with alien worlds, dangerous ideas, and sharp reversals. His stories move with confidence, then quietly tighten around the choices his characters make.
The selections below highlight Wollheim the storyteller — bold settings, strange encounters, and outcomes that linger long after the final line.
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