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In this biting satire, the Cold War may have ended, but the eastern and western governments never told their citizens. Instead they created an elaborate ruse, wherein each side comes up with increasingly outlandish doomsday weapons—weapons that don’t work. But when aliens invade, the top designers of both sides have to come together to make a real doomsday device—if they don’t kill each other first.
With its combination of romance, espionage, and alien invasion, The Zap Gun skewers the military-industrial complex in a way that’s as relevant today as it was at the height of the Cold War.
A brilliant novel of cold-war insanity.
Anonymous
Posted Tue Oct 03 00:00:00 EDT 2000
Or was it? This novel that Phil wrote (mainly to pay bills) was one of his 'pot boilers'. Along with 'The Penultimate Truth', it asks the question: What is reality and why don't the US and USSR just finally wipe each other out? Written in a very tongue-in-cheek style (very much like much of Robert Sheckley's works!) it is a fast paced, fun novel -- and answers the question: Exactly what will happen to the comic-book super hero: The Blue Cephloid Man -- in next week's action-packed adventure story?????
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Overview
In this biting satire, the Cold War may have ended, but the eastern and western governments never told their citizens. Instead they created an elaborate ruse, wherein each side comes up with increasingly outlandish doomsday weapons—weapons that don’t work. But when aliens invade, the top designers of both sides have to come together to make a real doomsday device—if they don’t kill each other first.
With its combination of romance, espionage, and alien invasion, The Zap Gun ...