Book excerpt: Frederik Pohl was on a streak when this Hugo Award–finalist novel was published in 1980. Now back in print after an absence of nearly a decade, this unique science fiction novel is as fresh and entertaining as ever. The story begins when the hero of Gateway finances an expedition to a distant alien spaceship that may end famine forever. On the ship, the explorers find a human boy, and evidence that reveals a powerful alien civilization is thriving on a transport ship headed right for Earth.... At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.