An interesting read if you, like most everyone who comes to this novella, have an interest in The Thing. The basic structure is the same, though in the novella much more time is spent dissecting the core idea of imitation and a few more dead ends are explored in how to establish who's who, before the end. Less explosive and less inconclusive than its movie counterpart. "Body horror" wasn't really a thing in 1938 either, but it definitely reads more like 70s or 80s scifi than 30s. ( )

Most readers are probably familiar with the deservingly much vaunted John Carpenter The Thing that is based on this story and/or the more recent prequel. Some readers are undoubtedly also familiar with the earlier, 'Thing From Another World', which the novella more closely resembles. Though there are still no mutant carrot monsters here.
As some other reviewers noted, there dialogue is pretty densely packed in here, more closely resembling the 1951 film in that way. Though it tends to be even more expository in nature, and without as much of the casual humor. The novella is, on the whole, more than a bit over-written, with a lot of not particularly deftly arranged adverb usage. However, both this and the dialogue itself feel at least somewhat a function of the time this was written. It has the general feel of those early science fiction B movies, but as if it was written by a pulp detective noir author instead of one accustomed to working in science fiction.
This does give us some great, Robert E. Howard-esque, physical descriptions of characters with the role of MacReady feeling less Kurt Russell and more Conan. And, clearly, there is some clever in print wordplay with names more reminiscent of tongue in cheak victorian social commentary than scifi of this era. Film fans likely thought of him as McCreedy, based on sound alone, rather than the much more interesting Mac-Ready...because he most certainly is ready for just about any situation.
I'd likely have given this an even 2.5 stars, if we were allowed to give fractions of stars. I think its worth a read if you don't have anything else pressing on your plate and can pick it up cheap or free. But I wouldn't prioritize it.
( )

Campbell, John W. Who Goes There? 1948. Introduction by John. W. Campbell. Orion, 2011.
Who Goes There? is a 1938 novella that has unaccountably inspired three movies, one in 1951, one in 1982, and a prequel in 2011. A team of scientists in the Arctic discovers a crash-landed alien that mimics and replaces the animals it kills. In his 1948 introduction to a collection of stories featuring Who Goes There? Campbell calls it a “concept-mood” story to distinguish it from what he calls gadget stories and character stories. The concept is the idea of biological mimicry, which he says comes close to being a gadget. He compares the mood to that of Night on Bald Mountain. It is far too talky a story for that mood to hold up. In the end, I think it was mostly a gadget story. 3.5 stars. ( )

Pretty good with some odd skips of time which thereby leave out some of the more horrific moments which are reported vaguely and second hand. Also the ridiculous overuse of 'bronzed' to describe the bronzed McReady's bronzed body and bronzed beard every bronzed time he's bronzed mentioned made my bronzed brain lose all bronzed concept of what the bronzed word means. Also McReady was bronzed. ( )

This is one of those times I wished I'd read the original prior to seeing any adaptation of it. I can't imagine what a kick in the head this story must have been for anyone who experienced the written version as their first exposure to the story.

It's very well written--if a little heavy on the technical--and a brilliant idea.

Definitely worth the read. ( )