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Title: The Simple Way

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Title: The Simple Way Title Record # 96033
Author: Clifford D. Simak
Date: 1951-01-00
Type: SHORTFICTION
Length: novelette
Series: City
Language: English
Note: Although this was first published as "The Trouble with Ants", this story is more commonly known and more often reprinted as "The Simple Way".
User Rating: 8.00 (1 vote) Your vote: Not cast VOTE
Current Tags: science fiction (1), dogs (1), ants (1), robots (1), suspended animation (1), parallel universe (1) Add Tags

Other Titles

Variant Titles Translations
Year Title
1951 The Simple Way [as by Clifford Simak]
1951 The Trouble with Ants
1951 Trouble with Ants
Year Language Title
1952Translated by Jean Rosenthal
French Un moyen bien simple
1957Translated by José Valdivieso.
Spanish El modo más simple
1959Translated by an uncredited hand of last story of "City".
German Die bösen Ameisen
1960Translated by 林克己 (Katsumi Hayashi)
Japanese
簡単な方法?Kantan na Hōhō
[as by ]
1961 Portuguese A maneira mais simples
1964Translated by Tony Westermayr
German Als es noch Menschen gab (VIII)
1965Translated by G. J. Borghart
Dutch De eenvoudige weg [as by Clifford Simak]
1967Translated by Eurico da Fonseca.
Portuguese A maneira mais simples
1967Translated by Mirjana Rajković
Serbian
Jednostavan način?Jednostavan nachin
[as by Kliford Simak]
1974Translated by Лев Жданов (Lev Zhdanov)
Russian [as by
Клиффорд Саймак?Klifford Saymak
Clifford Simak
]
1974Translated by Gunnar Gällmo
Swedish Det enkla sättet
1984Translated by Walter Ernsting
German Das Problem mit den Ameisen
2010Translated by Tony Westermayr
German Die Lösung
2013Translated by Pierre-Paul Durastanti
French Un moyen bien simple

Publications

Not displaying translations • Display all variants and translationsDo not display variants or translations

Title Date Author/Editor Publisher/Pub. Series ISBN/Catalog ID Price Pages Format Type Cover Artist Verif
Fantastic Adventures, January 1951 1951-01-00 ed. Howard Browne Ziff-Davis Publishing Company  
$0.25?$: US dollar
132
pulp?Magazine using the common pulp size: 6.5" by 9.5". For ISFDB purposes this may also be used as a designation for the quality of the paper. There are some untrimmed pulps that are as large as 8" by 11.75
mag Robert Gibson Jones Checkmark
City 1952-05-00 Clifford D. Simak Gnome Press  
$2.75?$: US dollar
224
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
coll Frank Kelly Frease Checkmark
City 1954-00-00 Clifford D. Simak Weidenfeld & Nicolson  
9/6?Prior to decimilisation (1968-1971), UK books were priced in shillings, or shillings and pence, where 20 shillings equals one pound and 12 old pence equals one shilling. Shillings were indicated with a variety of suffixes, e.g. 3s, 3', 3", 3/ all mean 3 shillings. Any number after that is additional pence, usually 6 (half a shilling) but sometimes 3 or 9 (a quarter of a shilling or three-quarters of a shilling).
248
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
coll C. King  
City 1954-01-00 Clifford D. Simak Permabooks 264
$0.25?$: US dollar
192
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Richard Powers Checkmark
City 1958-03-00 Clifford D. Simak Ace Books D-283
$0.35?$: US dollar
255
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Ed Valigursky Checkmark
City 1961-11-00 Clifford D. Simak The Science Fiction Book Club (UK) 55   248
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
coll John Griffiths Checkmark
City 1965-00-00 Clifford Simak Four Square Books 1250
3/6?Prior to decimilisation (1968-1971), UK books were priced in shillings, or shillings and pence, where 20 shillings equals one pound and 12 old pence equals one shilling. Shillings were indicated with a variety of suffixes, e.g. 3s, 3', 3", 3/ all mean 3 shillings. Any number after that is additional pence, usually 6 (half a shilling) but sometimes 3 or 9 (a quarter of a shilling or three-quarters of a shilling).
189
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Checkmark
Fantastic, July 1966 1966-07-00 ed. Joseph Ross Ultimate Publishing Co., Inc.  
$0.50?$: US dollar
164
digest?Digest-size magazine, including both standard digest size, at about 7" by 4.5", and also large digest, such as recent issues of Asimov's, which are about 8.25" by 5.125".
mag Frank R. Paul Checkmark
City 1967-10-00 Clifford D. Simak Ace Books H-30
$0.60?$: US dollar
255
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Ed Valigursky Checkmark
City 1971-00-00 Clifford D. Simak Sphere (Sphere Science Fiction Classics #3) 78573
£0.30?£: UK pound
248
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Eddie Jones Checkmark
City 1971-06-00 Clifford D. Simak Ace Books 10621
$0.75?$: US dollar
255
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Ed Valigursky Checkmark
A Science Fiction Omnibus on Pollution 1971-07-00 ed. uncredited Sidgwick & Jackson 0-283-48479-9
£2.25?£: UK pound
222+
36+
255
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
anth Jackie Wright Checkmark
City 1973-04-00 Clifford D. Simak Ace Books 10622
$0.95?$: US dollar
252
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Davis Meltzer Checkmark
City 1975-00-00 Clifford D. Simak Ace Books 10623
$1.25?$: US dollar
252
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Davis Meltzer Checkmark
City 1976-09-00 Clifford D. Simak Ace Books 10624
$1.75?$: US dollar
252
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Michael Whelan Checkmark
City 1979-04-00 Clifford D. Simak Nelson Doubleday / SFBC 3372
$2.98?$: US dollar
211
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
coll Gary Viskupic Checkmark
City 1981-10-00 Clifford D. Simak Ace Books 0-441-10626-9
$2.75?$: US dollar
267
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Checkmark
The Last Man on Earth 1982-08-00 ed. Isaac Asimov, Martin Harry Greenberg, Charles G. Waugh Fawcett Crest / Ballantine 0-449-24531-4
C$3.50?C$: Canadian dollar
352
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
anth Wayne Barlowe Checkmark
The Last Man on Earth 1982-08-00 ed. Isaac Asimov, Martin Harry Greenberg, Charles G. Waugh Fawcett Crest / Ballantine 0-449-24531-4
$2.95?$: US dollar
352
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
anth Wayne Barlowe Checkmark
The Last Man on Earth 1983-03-00 ed. Isaac Asimov, Martin Harry Greenberg, Charles G. Waugh Fawcett Crest / Ballantine 0-449-24531-4
$2.95?$: US dollar
352
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
anth Wayne Barlowe Checkmark
City 1983-12-00 Clifford D. Simak Ace Books 0-441-10627-7
$2.75?$: US dollar
267
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll  
The Last Man on Earth 1985-08-00 ed. Isaac Asimov, Martin Harry Greenberg, Charles G. Waugh Fawcett Crest / Ballantine 0-449-20990-3
C$3.50?C$: Canadian dollar
352
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
anth Wayne Barlowe Checkmark
City 1988-08-00 Clifford D. Simak Methuen 0-413-14630-8
£3.50?£: UK pound
255
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Nick Rogers Checkmark
City 1991-03-00 Clifford D. Simak Mandarin 0-7493-0589-4
£3.99?£: UK pound
255
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll  
City 1992-01-00 Clifford D. Simak Collier / Macmillan (Collier Nucleus Fantasy & Science Fiction) 0-02-025391-5
$5.95?$: US dollar
267
pb?Paperback. Typically 7" by 4.25" (18 cm by 11 cm) or smaller, though trimming errors can cause them to sometimes be slightly (less than 1/4 extra inch) taller or wider/deeper.
coll Paul Lehr Checkmark
City 1992-09-00 Clifford D. Simak Macmillan / SFBC 01155
$6.98?$: US dollar
xi+
211
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
coll Michael Budden Checkmark
City 1995-00-00 Clifford D. Simak The Easton Press (The Masterpieces of Science Fiction)     xxii+
211
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
coll Checkmark
City 2003-09-00 Clifford D. Simak Science Fiction Book Club (SFBC 50th Anniversary Collection #5) 0-7394-3526-4 / 55568
$9.99?$: US dollar
xi+
191
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
coll Donato Giancola Checkmark
City 2004-09-00 Clifford D. Simak Old Earth Books 1-882968-28-X
$27.00?$: US dollar
x+
251
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
coll Douglas Klauba Checkmark
City 2007-05-00 Clifford D. Simak Old Earth Books 978-1-882968-28-2
$27.00?$: US dollar
x+
251
hc?Hardcover. Used for all hardbacks of any size.
coll Douglas Klauba  
City 2011-06-00 Clifford D. Simak Gollancz (Gollancz SF Masterworks (II)) 978-0-575-10523-2
£7.99?£: UK pound
viii+
242
tp?Trade paperback. Any softcover book which is at least 7.25" (or 19 cm) tall, or at least 4.5" (11.5 cm) wide/deep.
coll Dominic Harman Checkmark
Science Fiction Gems, Volume Three 2012-04-12 ed. uncredited Armchair Fiction (Armchair Science Fiction & Horror Gems #5) 978-1-61287-092-2
$12.95?$: US dollar
200
tp?Trade paperback. Any softcover book which is at least 7.25" (or 19 cm) tall, or at least 4.5" (11.5 cm) wide/deep.
anth Emsh  
City 2015-07-21 Clifford D. Simak Open Road Integrated Media 978-1-5040-1303-1
$14.99?$: US dollar
264
tp?Trade paperback. Any softcover book which is at least 7.25" (or 19 cm) tall, or at least 4.5" (11.5 cm) wide/deep.
coll  
City 2015-07-21 Clifford D. Simak Open Road Integrated Media 978-1-5040-1294-2
$7.99?$: US dollar
 
ebook?Used for all electronic formats, including but not limited to EPUB, eReader, HTML, iBook, Mobipocket, and PDF.
coll Jason Gabbert  
City 2016-03-03 Clifford D. Simak Gateway / Orion (Gollancz SF Masterworks (II)) 978-0-575-10524-9
£7.99?£: UK pound
 
ebook?Used for all electronic formats, including but not limited to EPUB, eReader, HTML, iBook, Mobipocket, and PDF.
coll Dominic Harman  
City date unknown Clifford D. Simak Gollancz (Gollancz SF Masterworks (II)) 978-0-575-10523-2
£7.99?£: UK pound
viii+
242
tp?Trade paperback. Any softcover book which is at least 7.25" (or 19 cm) tall, or at least 4.5" (11.5 cm) wide/deep.
coll Dominic Harman Checkmark
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