Dr. Anthony Linebarger, writing under the nom de plume of Cordwainer Smith, first entranced me with these stories when I was a teenager and found a paperback copy of this book in a doctor's waiting room. His characters--the heroic scanner Martel, the enchanting cat-girl C'Mell, the tragic dog-girl D'Joan, poor doomed Commander Suzdal and more--still live and breathe in my mind and heart, four decades later.Smith's writing style is as unique and distinctive as the universe he created, and the sprawling history of his galaxy-spanning future civilization, the Instrumentality of Mankind, unfolds before you in this collection as no other work of his allows for. It's more than worth your time and the small cost of a Kindle copy to experience it for yourself.