I bought this book back in 1977, having already read it previously. But somehow I came to remember it later as a dud, so I haven’t reread it for decades. Coming back to it eventually, I find it’s not really a dud, it’s quite readable and amiable, but it seems an oddly aimless story; the kind of story you might tell when you’ve been drinking multiple doses of strong liquor distilled by a Neanderthal, in company with a ghost and a friendly sabre-toothed tiger. In those circumstances, it would surely seem like a great story that needs to be told.

Maybe Simak wrote it all down and sent it for publication before he sobered up.

The typical Simak hero is lonely, alienated, more or less outcast from humanity. The hero of this story, Peter Maxwell, falls into this category in some ways, but only through temporary circumstance. For most of his life, he seems to have been friendly, sociable, and very much accepted by his fellows; and he still has friends, even in his temporary difficulties. This is a relatively mellow Simak story.

It reminds me of Zelazny’s [b:Doorways in the Sand|61998|Doorways in the Sand|Roger Zelazny|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327915592l/61998._SY75_.jpg|759315]: both books are pleasantly zany and involve a university, and aliens in quest of a mysterious artifact. I think Zelazny’s book is better, but I wonder whether it might have been partly inspired by Simak’s (published 8 years earlier). ( )

Some days, I need silly and yesterday, The Goblin Reservation fit the bill perfectly.

Familiar with Simak through the beautifully pastoral [b:Way Station|190999|Way Station|Clifford D. Simak|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1326490682l/190999._SY75_.jpg|348798], when I saw this for a mere dollar, I snapped it up. A madcap adventure set in a vibrant university setting, it echoed the feel of [b:Doorways in the Sand|61998|Doorways in the Sand|Roger Zelazny|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327915592l/61998._SY75_.jpg|759315]. While it is set on a future Earth with alien races, aircars, moving sidewalks, and the like, it is also an Earth that is home to small populations of The Fae.

Peter Maxwell, a professor in the College of Supernatural Phenomena, has just returned from an interplanetary journey where he was unexpectedly diverted to a mysterious planet. Charged with brokering their knowledge banks, he returns to the Earth checkpoint only to discover he had already returned and died in an unfortunate accident. When he finally reaches his apartment, he discovers his belongings destroyed and his apartment rented by an unknown attractive woman and her pet sabertooth tiger. They head to the local watering hole for a drink and meet up with Maxwell's friends, Alley Oop (only slightly dated by his inclusion) and Ghost. It gets progressively odder from there as Bill attempts to discover why he was doubled, to find a job and to convince the University that they should buy the alien knowledge. Oh, and help out his friend Goblin O'Toole with his troll problem and some excess October ale. However, the campus is in an uproar over the upcoming time-traveling visit by William Shakespeare, so Maxwell has a challenge trying to get official attention.

Nominated for a Hugo in 1969, it is a quick, fun read that remains close to timeless. Highly recommended for fans of Pratchett, or fans of Zelazny's [b:Doorways in the Sand|61998|Doorways in the Sand|Roger Zelazny|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327915592l/61998._SY75_.jpg|759315]. I will be re-reading this one. ( )

F/SF

Professor Peter Maxwell of the College of Supernatural Phenomena has just retuned to the University in Wisconsin by means of matter transmission, but not from the planet he had planned to visit. He’d planned to visit a system to investigate rumors of a dragon, instead he found himself on what he described as a “roofed-in crystal planet.”

He’s shocked when the authorities inform him that he returned a month ago and died in an accident a week later. It’s even more upsetting when he returns to campus to discover that his home has been rented to someone with a pet saber tooth tiger that knock him over as soon as he unlocks his front door. The next day he discovers his job has been filled by someone else right after his funeral. What is he going to do?

This is a fast paced adventure with intrigue and puzzles aplenty. It’s also not terribly serious blend of science fiction and fantasy, complete with evil extraterrestrials, goblins, trolls, banshees, a Neanderthal that goes by the name of Alley Oop, and a time traveling William Shakespeare who did not write those plays ( )

3.5 stars. What a ridiculous book. Simak tried to do a bit too much, in my opinion, shoving in everything but the kitchen sink — time travel, fantasy creatures, ghosts, many bizarre aliens, Shakespeare, and grand philosophies about human nature. But that is obviously the charm for this light hearted mystery. It also means you shouldn’t put too much thought into the underlying logic of the universe (like how on earth is the school of Time broke?). I like his style compared to other pulp scifi authors. Sparse and direct, but evocative. Sometimes sounds a little like the narration of an episode of the Twilight Zone. ( )