Book cover of The Downstairs Room and Other Speculative Fiction

Book description

Contents: Unbirthday Party (1968) Baby, You Were Great (1967) When the Moon Was Red (1960) Sirloin and White Wine (1968) Perchance to Dream (1968) How Many Miles to Babylon? (1968) The Downstairs Room (1968) Countdown (1968) The Plausible Improbable (1968) The Feel of Desperation (1964) A Time to Keep (1962)…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked The Downstairs Room and Other Speculative Fiction as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Wilhelm is credited with having the best writing that inhabits “speculative fiction” (Robert Heinlein's coined term in 1947). I agree with that wholeheartedly, even though many others have contributed. She has dozens of novels, including mystery, suspense, and speculative sci-fi, but start with this book. Each story is unique and they don't actually connect in any way except that she put them all into this book, so I can't summarize them. Please read them all: every single one is a gem and an amazing example of great sci-fi writing.

If you love The Downstairs Room and Other Speculative Fiction...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

Want books like The Downstairs Room and Other Speculative Fiction?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like The Downstairs Room and Other Speculative Fiction.

Browse books like The Downstairs Room and Other Speculative Fiction

Book cover of The People: No Different Flesh
Book cover of The Left Hand of Darkness
Book cover of The Sirian Experiments

Share your top 3 reads of 2025!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,299

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like The Downstairs Room and Other Speculative Fiction, you might also like...

Book cover of Raggedyland

Raggedyland by Paul J. Heald,

An auctioned storage locker comes with a box of Raggedy Ann books and a dresser drawer stuffed with grisly momentos. A small college town in Georgia is now ground zero for a mind-bending cold case.

Local journalist James Murphy wishes he had never bought the storage unit which either contains…

Book cover of Selkie Moon

Selkie Moon by Kelly Jarvis,

We are all surrounded by darkness. And we are all drawn to the light.

The Orkney Islands north of Scotland are steeped in stories of selkies, seal folk who swim in cold ocean waters and shed their skins to sing and dance on land.

One young girl named Isla uses…

5 book lists we think you will like!