This is a classic story done several times in the film format, and not always successfully.

The audiobook edition opens with a 6-or-7 minute introduction written by the narrator which provides background on Campbell, the story and 'The Thing.' Useful, but longer than needed. I think a professional narrator might have done a better job, but Nolan's narration is more than acceptable. He is hampered by the fact that there are about a dozen speaking characters (all men), and making them all sound distinct is rough.

Nolan's narration is good, if a little slowly-paced. The 1950's movie, 'The Thing,' and John Carpenter's later remake, are (loosely) based on 'Who Goes There?'. In addition to being a great story in itself, many of the themes and concepts have crept into many places in sci-fi and horror. Although the plot revolves around alien monsters, the interplay of the human characters makes the story very real and very well-balanced. Well written, carefully thought out plot, (mostly) realistic characters and setting. 'Who Goes There?' is one of the top science-fiction novellas ever published. This is probably not a good story for someone to listen to who's on the edge of a paranoid psychotic episode and has stopped taking their meds.The plot is quite simple: a scientific expedition isolated in Antarctica discovers a long-frozen alien ship, and a long-frozen alien corpse. Oscar nominated and Emmy Award winning Special Effects Artist Ed French narrates this suspenseful story that originally appeared in the 1938 edition of Astounding Stories Magazine. How can you be sure the guy next to you is actually your pal or some shape-shifting horror from outer space which is just waiting for a chance to eat and assimilate YOU? The base members fight back with resourcefulness and determination, but they don't really have any special qualifications for something this incredible. That's when the paranoia justifiably kicks in. Thawing revives the alien, a being which can assume the shape, memories, and personality of any living thing it devours, while maintaining its original body mass for further reproduction. They also recover the alien pilot from the ancient ice. A group of scientific researchers, isolated in Antarctica discover an alien spaceship where it crashed twenty million years before.

Who goes there by john w campbell jr