Wanderlust

Some desires cannot be argued away, postponed, or softened by reason. In Wanderlust, a family confronts the quiet terror of watching someone they love feel called toward a life that promises wonder and meaning—but may demand everything in return. This is not a story about rockets and distant worlds so much as it is about longing, fear, and the invisible line between responsibility and destiny. Alan E. Nourse delivers a deeply human science fiction tale where the real conflict unfolds around a dinner table, not among the stars. As one generation remembers the price of exploration and another feels its irresistible pull, the story builds emotional tension with restraint and honesty. The stakes are intimate, the choices irreversible, and the silence between words often speaks the loudest. Alan E. Nourse was known for blending speculative ideas with strong emotional realism. Trained as a physician, he brought a grounded understanding of human limits, fear, and sacrifice to his fiction. Wanderlust stands as one of his most personal-feeling stories, capturing the ache of ambition and the sorrow of understanding it too well.