I’ve been a fan of Ron Goulart’s humorous Science Fiction stories for decades. What’s Become of Screwloose? and Other Inquiries (1971) collects Goulart stories featuring robots and Artificial Intelligences that don’t quite work right. For example, in the first story in this book, “What’s Become of Screwloose?”, a private investigator is attacked by an electric dishwasher. In “Into the Shop,” a futuristic society has granted absolute power of law enforcement to machines. And, of course, things get out of hand.
I also enjoyed “The Yes-Men of Venus” which is a pastiche of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Mars novels. I enjoyed all the stories in What’s Become of Screwloose? and Other Inquiries. Ron Goulart’s sense of humor and ability to make his robots slightly human results in fun stories with a dire warning about the intelligent machines in our Future. GRADE: A-
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
What’s become of screwloose? — 9
Junior partner — 24
Hardcastle — 35
Into the shop — 44
Prez — 55
Confessions — 72
Monte Cristo complex — 93
The yes-men of Venus — 102
Keeping an eye on Janey — 112
Hobo jungle — 125