The novel “The Shrinking Man”, later published as “The Incredible Shrinking Man”, by Richard Matheson was published for the first time in 1956.

Scott Carey is enjoying what looks like a normal vacation day on a boat when a strange cloud hits him. Initially, the cloud appears to have had no effect on him, but after a few days Scott realizes that he’s getting smaller, slowly but with no end to it. He undergoes a series of medical tests, but nobody can find a cure for his condition.

When he’s less than two centimeters tall, Scott risks becoming the victim of a spider that becomes his increasingly mortal enemy. His struggle for survival becomes increasingly difficult because of the spider that seems relentless in trying to make him its meal. Even if he defeats it, he has little time left before his height drops to zero.