Doctor Lerne
by Maurice Renard
Often hailed as the best French science fiction writer of the early 20th century, Maurice Renard coined the term "Scientific Marvel Fiction" to pen a series of gripping, ground-breaking stories that owe as much to Edgar Allan Poe as they do to H.-G. Wells. Until now, Renard was best known to the English-speaking public for his thrice-filmed thriller, The Hands of Orlac. This is a series of five volumes, translated and annotated by Brian Stableford, devoted to presenting the classic works of this pioneering giant of French science fiction. Dedicated to H.-G. Wells, Doctor Lerne (1908) features a mad scientist who performs organ transplants not only between men and animals, but also with plants, and even machines. This volume also includes "Mr Dupont's Vacation" (1905), a story about dinosaurs returning to life, and Renard's 1909 revolutionary manifesto on "Scientific Marvel Fiction."