Nothing but Gingerbread Left

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"Nothing but Gingerbread Left" is a science fiction short story by American writer Henry Kuttner. It was first published in the magazine Astounding Science Fiction in 1943. [1] The story describes a marching song, developed by linguists, that is so "catchy" that it preoccupies the mind of anyone who hears it to such a degree that they are unable to think about anything else: an "earworm". Written during World War II, it describes the song's effects on German morale, climaxing with Adolf Hitler failing to deliver an important speech about the Eastern Front because he cannot stop thinking about the song. [2]

The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction has noted it as an early example of memes in fiction. [3]

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The Best of Henry Kuttner is a collection of science fiction and fantasy short stories by American author Henry Kuttner. It was first published in hardback by Nelson Doubleday in February 1975 and in paperback by Ballantine Books in April of the same year as a volume in its Classic Library of Science Fiction. The book was reissued in trade paperback by Del Rey/Ballantine in March 2007 under the alternate title The Last Mimzy: Stories. and in ebook by Gateway/Orion in May 2014 and Diversion Books in August 2014. It was later gathered together with Fury and Mutant into the omnibus collection Fury / Mutant / The Best of Henry Kuttner, issued in trade paperback and ebook by Gollancz in December 2013. It has also been translated into Spanish.

References

  1. Clareson, Thomas D. (1976). Voices for the Future: Essays on Major Science Fiction Writers, Volume 1. Popular Press. p. 191. ISBN   9780879721206 . Retrieved 9 October 2017.
  2. Kuttner, Henry. "Nothing But Gingerbread Left". Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2017.Full text of story
  3. Meme, in the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction ; by David Langford; edited by John Clute; published 02/04/2015; retrieved August 7, 2018

Sources