Clifford D. Simak was born in Millville, Wisconson, in 1929, growing up in a rural community, the love of which permeates his fiction work. He attended the University of Wisconsin and later worked at the Minneapolis Star as a journalist, later becoming the news editor and holding that position until retirement.

Simak was a regular contributor to ASF (Astounding Science Fiction, later known as Analog Science Fiction) during the years when John Campbell was editor and was highly regarded by the scifi community. He continued writing until his death in 1988.

Simak's work is very pleasant to read, with a calm and relaxed feeling even during the sections that are full of action. His characters are easy to like and easy to understand, but far from simple. They are simply well described. Much of his fiction is set in the environment of rural America, and the fondness he feels for those places comes through very clearly. In some ways, his work is the ultimate in speculative fiction, because it so often involves average people, with average lives, who experience something quite extraordinary.

For those who enjoy fiction from the Golden Age of Science Fiction, Simak is highly interesting and very readable.