If you're in the mood to discover exciting adventures that take you on a journey through space and time, today is your lucky day. If is a science fiction magazine that is available to read for free online.
Published in 1952 by Quinn Publications, If was a monthly American science fiction magazine that featured many award-winning stories over its twenty-two-year run. While the magazine enjoyed moderate success, it never reached the heights of other genre publications like Astounding Science Fiction and The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.
If circulated until December 1974, after which it merged with its sister publication, Galaxy Science Fiction. If you never had the chance to check it out, you can now read the issues of If for free and online through Internet Archive.
Browsing the site, you can see most of the published issues, though a few are missing. One thing that might work against you is the language, as everything is only available in English. But beyond that, over its 175 issues, If published a series of excellent stories and serializations, including Robert A. Heinlein's novel "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" and Harlan Ellison's short story "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream."
In fact, several well-known authors sold their first stories to If; the most successful was Larry Niven, whose story "The Coldest Place" appeared in the December 1964 issue. Although If initially had few sales, it eventually achieved its greatest success under editor Frederik Pohl, winning the Hugo Award for Best Professional Magazine three consecutive years from 1966 to 1968.
So now you know: if you're eager to read good science fiction and the language doesn't bother you, nothing is better than the free, online issues of If.
