Allen Kim Lang

Never take advice from a consultant. Especially one from Mars. This short-short was probably better when it was first written.

Sounds like it would be fun to compare this to [b:The Midas Plague|18370319|The Midas Plague|Frederik Pohl|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1377341671l/18370319._SX50_.jpg|25799732].

This and seven other stories by Lang are avl. on Project Gutenberg.

Weird story. There are lost colonies, which (inevitably, according to the story) have backslid in technology. So the solution is to send people who are able to work at the tech level they have, and draw them along towards the modern world. Here, we have a farming community - of Hausa. The people chosen to go work with them - are an Amish man and his wife, who are willing to travel in the ship in order to get space for a proper farm. It goes very well until his habit of listening and not show more asking any questions, just trying to figure out what's expected and what's not, bite him badly - he breaks a major taboo (despite several mentions of the limitation). He then sits down and puzzles it out, with no further information or input - that rings badly, to me, it's too clearly authorial fiat that the problem becomes obvious so quickly. Not bad, not exciting. show less