The Incredible Shrinking Man

Inch by inch, day by day, Scott Carey is getting smaller. Once an unremarkable husband and father, Scott finds himself shrinking with no end in sight. His wife and family turn into unreachable giants, the family cat becomes a predatory menace, and Scott must struggle to survive in a world that seems to be growing ever larger and more perilous--until he faces the ultimate limits of fear and existence.

The Philadelphia Inquirer

"The author who influenced me the most as a writer was Richard Matheson."--Stephen King "One of the most important writers of the twentieth century."--Ray Bradbury "Matheson is one of the great names in American terror fiction."

Brian Lumley

"Matheson inspires, it's as simple as that."

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Chapter One First he thought it was a tidal wave. Then he saw that the sky and ocean were visible through it and it was a curtain of spray rushing at the boat.He’d been sunbathing on top of the cabin. It was just coincidence that he pushed up on his elbow and saw it coming.“Marty!” he yelled. There was no answer. He scuttled across the hot wood and slid down the deck. “Hey, Marty!”The spray didn’t look menacing, but for some reason he wanted to avoid it. he ran around the cabin, wincing at the hot planks underfoot. It would be a race.Which he lost. One moment he was in sunlight. The next he was being soaked by the warm, glittering spray.Then it was past. He stood there watching it sweep across the water, sun-glowing drops of it covering him. Suddenly he twitched and looked down. There was a curious tingling on his skin.He grabbed for a towel and dried himself. It wasn’t so much pain as a pleasant stinging, like that of lotion on newly shaven cheeks.Then he was dry and the feeling was almost gone. He went below and woke up his brother and told him about the curtain of spray that had run across the boat.It was the beginning. Copyright © 1994 by RXR, Inc.

About the Author

Richard Matheson is The New York Times bestselling author of I Am Legend, Hell House, Other Kingdoms, Somewhere in Time, A Stir of Echoes, The Beardless Warriors, The Path, Seven Steps to Midnight, Now You See It…, and What Dreams May Come, among others. He was named a Grand Master of Horror by the World Horror Convention, and received the Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement. He has also won the Edgar, the Spur, and the Writer's Guild awards. In 2010, he was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. In addition to his novels, Matheson wrote screenplays, and he wrote for several Twilight Zone episodes, including “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet,” based on his short story. He was born in New Jersey and raised in Brooklyn, and fought in the infantry in World War II. He earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Missouri. He lives in Calabasas, California.

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