REFUGE. That was what the humans called this rich, attractive planet - a refuge from starving, over-populated Earth. And the Colonists could provide millions of tons of desperately needed produce for the hungry billions left on their home planet. If only the native inhabitants of Refuge weren't so natural-born lazy: harmless, it's true, but actually nothing more than a bunch of loafers. If the loafers could be made to turn to, Refuge could really be the Earth's breadbasket. But the Loafers steadily refused to turn to - there was nothing the humans could do about it. And the years went by. And everything remained friendly and quiet. Until one day, a young human, born and raised on Refuge, decided he'd rather join the Loafers!
Joseph l. Green (1931 - )
Joseph Lee Green was born in Florida in 1931. He worked for almost four decades on the American space programme, retiring from NASA as Deputy Chief of the Education Office at the Kennedy Space Center. A prolific writer of short fiction, he produced only five novels, the best known of which is 1971's Gold The Man. He was a charter member of the SFWA and one of the first American writers to be published on Victor Gollancz's nascent science fiction list.