For a collection of essays on science fiction, there are actually a lot of ideas of broad relevance here, such as Lem's thoughts on the role of criticism as a substitute for first-hand experience of a medium, or the commercialisation of genre fiction as a disposable product. I dare say that there are many other genres and media that these lessons could be applied to.

Lem has a pretty extensive vocabulary, and this book is at times difficult to read. You need a dictionary close by, because he uses a lot of 5 syllable words, some of which he either made up or are too arcane to be include in a Webster dictionary. You will also need to read the material a couple times to have any chance to understand what he is saying.

He is very fond of Philip K Dick, and speaks at length about Ubik and a couple of his other book. These parts gave me some great insight, as he goes into great detail about the plot. I have read other books about PKD and his stories, but Lem is very thorough in his explanations. He mentions a couple other sci fi authors, but the essays are somewhat dated from the 50's & 60's and the authors are long gone from modern day book shelves.

The essay on Borges was good, and the final essay on "Roadside Picnic" was especially informative. I had never heard of the book, so it was an excellent introduction and breakdown on the major points. He goes into a great deal of detail in describing the plot, but it is fairly understandable to the average reader. ( )

Occasionally Lem reverts to Latin expressions to make his point clearer - thus making me feel a little stupid for not understanding at all. Occasionally Lem makes me believe that some of what we call "science fiction" is not genre fiction at all, but simply something that gets lumped in with all the true genre fiction. Occasionally, Lem speaks so passionately that I feel the need to go further with my own studies.

Scratch that last one - there's no "occasionally" about it. Bizarrely, I'd never actually read Philip K. Dick before I came across his name again and again in Lem's critical treatise, and it was the Polish maestro that drove me back to the library to look up everything I could.

At times "Microworlds" is a difficult book - it has to be, considering its nature as literate criticism, a guide to the world of science fiction. It is rewarding, provided you invest the time and effort. ( )