THE SHIPSHAPE MIRACLE

Episode #157 · Written by Clifford D. Simak · Narrated by Scott Miller

Cheviot Sherwood believes he understands his situation with brutal clarity. He is stranded, forgotten, and destined to die on an empty world — until a ship appears that does not behave like rescue at all. From its first calm words, it becomes clear this is not a machine responding to commands, but something watching, listening, and deciding.

As Sherwood leaves the planet behind, he begins to assess his unexpected benefactor the way he has always assessed every opportunity: for leverage. The ship asks questions that seem harmless at first, yet every answer shifts the balance further away from him. What feels like freedom slowly reveals itself as containment.

The Shipshape Miracle is a tightly controlled confrontation between human self-interest and an intelligence shaped by time, solitude, and purpose. Simak allows the tension to build through restraint, forcing the listener to sit inside Sherwood’s calculations as the margin for escape quietly disappears.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Clifford D. Simak published science fiction for more than fifty years, with a long association with Astounding Science Fiction where many of his most influential stories first appeared. He is the author of the fix-up novel City, winner of the International Fantasy Award, and short stories such as “Desertion” and “The Big Front Yard,” both frequently anthologized. Simak’s work is known for pairing speculative ideas with moral pressure points faced by ordinary people, and The Shipshape Miracle stands as a precise example of his ability to turn a single encounter into an irreversible turning point.

LISTEN TO THE STORY

Listen to The Shipshape Miracle by Clifford D. Simak — a vintage science fiction tale where rescue becomes a trap and survival demands an impossible choice.

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