Charlie Gordon, IQ 68, is a floor sweeper and the gentle butt of everyone's jokes - until an experiment in the enhancement of human intelligence turns him into a genius.

But then Algernon, the mouse whose triumphal experimental transformation preceded his, fades and dies, and Charlie has to face the possibility that his salvation was only temporary.

Winner of the 1960 Hugo Award for Best Short Story, and subsequently expanded into a Hugo-nominated novel, Flowers for Algernon earned Daniel Keyes the honour of SFWA Author Emeritus in 2000 for his contribution to Science Fiction and Fantasy.

'Heartbreaking and beautiful. Required reading, as far as I am concerned' - Wil Wheaton
'A masterpiece of poignant brilliance . . . heartbreaking, and utterly, completely brilliant' - The Guardian
'Excellent . . . extremely moving' - The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction


Welcome to The Best Of The Masterworks: a selection of the finest in science fiction

"This is one of the greats: a story and a central character that have stayed with me for thirty years, from the first moment I picked it up" - Conn Iggulden

"A masterpiece of poignant brilliance . . . heartbreaking, and utterly, completely brilliant" - Guardian

"A timeless tearjerker" - Independent

"Excellent . . . extremely moving" - The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction

"Unflinchingly honest . . . it will make you reflect on your own life . . . and completely and utterly break your heart" - Guardian Online

"A narrative tour de force, very moving, beautiful and remorseless in its simple logic" - Science Fiction, 100 Best Novels

"Strikingly original" - Publishers Weekly

"A tale that is convincing, suspectful and touching" - New York Times