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Lem dead at 84

Between yesterday and today, at least eight major news sources have reported on the death of Polish science-fiction writer Stanislaw Lem. Lem, best known for the novels His Master’s Voice and Solaris, which was turned into a film in 1972 by Andrei Tarkovsky and again in 2002 by Steven Soderbergh, died yesterday of heart failure at the age of 84. Often considered a sci-fi writer for those who don’t like sci-fi, Lem showed a public disdain for many of the genre’s exemplars, which led to his honourary membership to the Science Fiction Writers of America being revoked in 1976. And although, according to Ben Sisario’s obituary for Lem in The New York Times, “his books have been translated into at least 35 languages and have sold 27 million copies,” many of his fans, among them bloggers at Bookninja.com and The Literary Saloon, say that his books are woefully undertranslated.

Related links:
Click here for Lem’s obituary in The Guardian
Click here for Lem’s obituary in The New York Times
Click here for a Lem-related posting on The Literary Saloon
Click here to access Lem’s official website