It seemed Earth was a rich, and undefended planet in a warring, hating galaxy. Things can be deceptive though; children playing can be quite rough -- but that ain't war, friend!

-- JOHN W. CAMPBELL's original blurb for this tale

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When we first read Campbell's blurb for this novella, we wondered what the devil he (and, after a page or two, del Rey, too) were on about. We were still wondering, halfway through the tale -- until it fell on us, just the way you'd expect it to in a work out of JWC's Astounding/Analog.