Cover art: “The Ark of Mars” by Leigh Brackett

Here’s some cool magazine cover art that I’ve never seen before: Author Leigh Brackett’s novella “The Ark of Mars” (1953) as depicted by artist Stan Pitt on the cover of the June 1954, #26, issue of Australia’s American Science Fiction Magazine.

And here’s a description of Brackett's novella, taken from the website of SciFi at Dark Roasted Blend: “Last manned spaceship is launched by free men, hunted by sinister robotic spaceships; great adventure and atmosphere; the first part (chase to the nearest star) simply sizzles, desperation mixes with hope, great emotion there. The second part after the landing is a bit of a let-down, but still contains big depictions of truly alien mind processes, cuddly ESP alien herd, and pretty cool people politics.”