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Haven't posted lately...last month, and pretty much this month, I read a bunch of books that didn't impress me that much (though most were good).
I reread Into the Silence: The Great War, Mallory, and the Conquest of Everest, by Wade Davis---excellent book, covering so much ground and conveying so much detail in a fascinating manner. I recommended it a few, oh, years ago now, and I'll rerecommend it.
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"Raised Eyebrows" the bio of the last 4-5 years of Groucho Marx, by a young man who ended up being his secretary and archivist. He told of the paranoid/schizophrenic woman who controlled Groucho's life and alienated him from his family. Very interesting. The author (his secretary), was selling it on line and autographed it. Would have been nice to have had Groucho's. But very interesting and a bit sad.
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Some intellectual reading here abouts-wish I had time for same as I have stated before.
Anyway, Reading "Alchemystic" by Anton Strout.
An alchemist-romance combo I believe so far. Not bad, a very interesting world designed by Anton and there are mysteries that need explaining but he's taking his time in doing that, which is good and shows his writing ability. A worthy read.
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Am still analysing Aristotle's Poetics and skimming through a first pass of Freytag's Technique of the Drama. Interesting stuff if you can translate it into today's language and motifs.
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I'm reading "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak I love his descriptions: "Allow me to play you a picture..." "In his stomach was the electric combination of nourishment and nausea." "Your soul will be in my arms. A color will be perched on my shoulder." "You will be caked in your own body. There might be a discovery; a scream will dribble down the air. The only sound I'll hear after that will be my own breathing, and the sound of the smell, of my footsteps."
A new book on five generals who not only beat their enemy but saved the day by doing so.
Victor Davis Hanson is a long time farmer, historian and Political commentator. He's taught collage and has other bragging rights. With this book he goes back to history, I've heard many interviews with him and he knows his history.
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Haven't posted in awhile...been distracted by a number of things, not least of which were the mssive computer problems I detailed / whined about elsewhere. So I might as well post a few things here and now.
The delay did give me time to read a few more interesting books, though. Also being on vacation, after awhile my reading speed picked up some and I could cover more territory.
Here's a sampling:
Bunker Hill: A City, a Siege, a Revolution, Nathaniel Philbrick. This is a good account of the early events of the American Revolution, by a writer who's turned out a number of books on aspects of American history. Well recommended even for those who know the facts.
How the Beatles Rocked the Kremlin: The Untold Story of a Noisy Revolution, Leslie Woodhead. I have a collection of Beatles books and am always fascinated by the subject---though the subject here is, really, the downfalll of the Soviet Union. Seems, despite appearances at the time, Beatlemania took hold among the Russians just like it did everywhere else in the world. (Also there's a brief bit that answers a long-standing mystery over an event early in the career of the Beatles---so for those who find the political part boring, there's that to entertain them.)
July 1914: Countdown to War, Sean McMeekin. This attempts to tell the story of what led up to the events described in Tuchmann's The Guns of August---leaving the impression that World War II was less inevitable than it may have been. An interesting saga.
Pepper: A History of the World's Most Influential Spice, Marjorie Shaffer. I'm fond of some of the "detail work" books---working through the story of often-neglected stories and historical figures. The story of pepper is interesting, often violent, and drove a good deal of history from its introduction down to the present day. (I can't remember if I've read this writer's earlier book Salt, but I picked up a paperback copy a couple days ago.)
*****
I can't wholly endorse A Curious Man: The Strange & Brilliant Life of Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley, chiefly because of two errors on one page---one of which amounts to a blood libel on the origins of the science fiction magazines, describing them as "knockoff magazines." (Also the writer gets the middle initial of Charles M. Schulz wrong---Ripley's cartoon might have said F. but there's no excuse to repeat the error.)
*****
I might've mentioned, awhile ago, that I was taking books to work and reading them on my breaks. I'd taken to picking up paperback reprints of the classics---I started with Herodotus, moved on to one volume of Plutarch, then got halfway through an abridged Edward Gibbon before my vacation started. I have plans to read others---seems a good way to work through the classics I've long neglected. (I think I'd rather read the "unabridged" Gibbon, which skims over one section I was interested in reading about, but this edition was what I can get---I haven't actually looked for it, but I'm sure I can get the full edition and put it on my Nook Color.)
*****
Also long about early April, I extracted about a year's worth of Galaxy magazine from my files, 1976-1977, and had a high old time reliving my youth and rereading the stories and features. (Some of the issues contained Gateway, which we discussed elsewhere, and I wanted to look at that, plus a commentary by Pohl on the writing of it.) Also, one of the letter columns in the issues contains my first published appearance, if you're remotely curious.
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Whoops! Seems the book Salt I mentioned isn't by Marjorie Shaffer, it's by Mark Kurlansky. Either way, just a quarter of the way in, it's interesting as hell...
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Another later interruption...I thought I mentioned this four or five pages back, but I couldn't find it, so I'll recap.
Back in 1954, Robert A. Heinlein published one of his "juveniles," The Star Beast, through Scribners. By the time I encountered it, though, there was a page or so in the middle that wasn't reprinted---and I never saw it in anything other than the Scribners edition, which I happened to run across in a library. It wasn't even in a recent trade paperback reprint.
There wasn't much to it; the main character finished reading a diary from his grandfather, then moved on to another book that covered the rest of his ancestors, some eleven generations, of which the very first ancestor was in the omission.
But yesterday I happened upon a Baen Books paperback reprint, dated May 2013, that I took to be the reprint of the abovementioned trade paperback. I glanced inside---and there it was, the long-missing page! (Runs from the bottom of page 161 to almost the bottom of page 162, if you're interested.)
But if you're not, it might be worth your time. Like most of Heinlein's work, it's a hell of a story.
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I didn't get this in time I actually finished the book tonight.
"The Iron Wyrm Affair" by Lilith Saintcrow
Interesting in that there is an interview with Ms Saintcrow in the back of the book.
But before I get into more on the book That last name would make an interesting premise for a story.
Anyway, (Please look at my comment in the "Word tick" thread)the book is steampunk. With Lots of magic. Ms Saintcrow did a great job in forming the world and characters. The adventure was great and she was able to put her MCs (Yep, there is two) into more and more danger. Even though she may not be as skilled at that as some writers but still a well done book and worthy of being read. Well, (another look at the "word tick" thread please) the world is very dark which for myself lessened my enjoyment but still I will get the next one, which is out.
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During my 6 week convalescence I've written less and read/listened more:
Titan, Wizard, and Demon (the Gaean sf Trilogy) by John Varley.
The third hopefully soon to be published wonderful Evenmere classic adult fantasy novel by James Stoddard.
Graphic novels: Magician: Apprentice by Raymond Feist New Spring by Robert Jordan The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan The Great and Secret Show by Clive Barker Wyrms by Orson Scott Card Red Prophet by Orson Scott Card
Tarzan of the Apes by ER Burroughs, read unabridged by Ben Kingsley
Tarzan: The Epic Adventures novelization by RA Salvatore of 1996 television screenplay by Burt Armus based on ERB's The Return of Tarzan and Tarzan At the Earth's Core (two of my favorite Tarzan novels)
Begun Gods of Opar containing the three novels Hadon of Ancient Opar, Flight to Opar by Philip Jose Farmer and the posthumous completed The Song of Kwasin by Farmer and Christopher Carey. The stories takes place 10,000 BCE in Tarzan's Africa and intermingle Farmer's Wold Newton universe with ERB's Tarzan universe.
Begun Behemoth unabridged steampunk YA audiobook by Scott Westerfeld read by Alan Cumming.
I'll need select a Jack Vance volume next to honor the memory of the esteemed sf/fantasy/mystery Grandmaster who passed away this week.
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
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Raymond Chandler, The Big Sleep. Never read anything of his before. So far, impressed by the fun wordplay and banter.
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I've just read The Dog Stars by Peter Heller. The front cover cheesily declares it to be "A novel about the end of the world which makes you glad to be alive" which almost put me off. But it's brilliant: haunting and brutal. If you don't cry in chapter 6 you have a heart of stone.
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Bright Lights, Big City by Jay McInerney. If you're not familiar with it, it's known for being written entirely in 2nd person. I was very skeptical, but finally got around to reading it, mostly out of curiosity. The 2nd person narration didn't bother me nearly as much as I expected. It mostly disappeared for me, actually. Every once in a while I noticed it again (maybe half a dozen times in the course of the novel). I actually liked the book. Odd, considering the weird POV and the fact that it's mostly about some guy (me, according to the book) doing about a ton and a half of cocaine and striking out with chicks at New York clubs. Somehow, it still managed to be good. Not great, but good. The writing is clever, and that's what saved it.
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I'm reading something that you can't have...not yet anyway.
Laura Anne Gilman wanted to publish a book her publisher didn't want to so she used Kickstarter. I donated some money and she rewarded me with two e-novelettes in a new series. The Sylvan Investigates series. He is a minor character in the Wren book and later in the P.U.P.I. books.
I think this is her best writing yet. Her writing in the Wren books made me fall in love with the adventures of Wren but this writing is even better.
One thing though that some readers have stated they don't like. Her POV keeps changing. Most of the time it's between the two MCs but she adds one or two others to the mix too. I don't mind that at all it is still a good mystery-adventure type.
Eventually-soon these two tales along with others, will be made available to everyone.
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The Ocean At The End of the Lane by Neil Gaimen
Admittedly, I've been a fan of Neil Gaimen since The Sandman #1, DC comics, Vertigo imprint, October 1988. His ability to create characters and stories that touch the heart through the reimagining of myth, through touching the subconscious inherited memory of our species, I now recognize as profoundly influential. That he is a fellow lundsman, something I did not learn to many decades later, perhaps also accounts for this affinity.
In any event, as in his wonderful work Coraline, and also reminiscent of Clive Barker's Thief of Always and Abarat here is another wonderful work of Old Child (contrary to Young Adult) fiction, filled of wonder and regrets, and growing up and being forever young (but never changeless).
From the critical eye of a would-be author, I (again) admire the evoking of feeling/emotion in the reader. Something I believe we need strive for to make our works memorable. And nothing is more memorable than the costs of our actions and the sacrifice and love of others.
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
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Somehow, I've never gotten around to reading Neil Gaiman yet. I want to, but just never get to it.
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That is enough for me to run out to the book store and rectify the problem. Any recommendations for which of his books to buy first?
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I noticed today that I never listed here what I was currently reading. I did say something on my blog if any one here read it.
But here it is again:
Reading two Space Opera at the same time . I didn't set out to do that but I started one on my Nook and I needed to go somewhere I would want a book to read. The Nook is great but it has one drawback all readers and tablets have. I can't place it in the back pocket of my pants. If I could I wouldn't because it probably isn't tough enough to take sitting on.
But to the books:
One is the ninth book in the Lt. Leary series or RNC series, by David Drake.
An interesting universe David came up with--I won't say much except that Earth and a few first colonies were destroyed in a war over a hundred years before the action takes place so the two worlds that lead humans were on the fourth or fifth level of importance even though now they are top.
Second the ships used are very low tech. Computers and radios are futuristic but the ships and missiles are something we could do today almost. Still the series is very interesting and entertaining, not to mention well written. Oh, they use sail boats to go through hyper space. You would have to read the books to get that, it would take a while to explain how it works, but very well thought out.
Second book is "Furious" in the Kris Longknife series by Mike Shepard which is I believe is a pen name. It's the ninth of tenth book. Interesting in this series there are two E-published short stories about Kris.
Mike is a good writer but he's not the best, he has a habit of doing a couple of things I find a little annoying now that I have learned something about writing. Still overall I will continue to buy the Longknife books and I will try the one he write under his real name when I find it again.
There are a couple of issues with how he treats Kris and one or two of her family I don't particularly like but my above statement still applies.
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Later, maybe, I'll post some of the other stuff I've read this month, but for here-and-now, 'cause I can name them...I've been taking some classic historical work to work to read on my breaks and lunches. Things I haven't read before. This past month, I finished Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, then worked through Plutarch's Lives (Volume 2 of 2---I read Volume 1 a couple months ago), and just finished Caesar's Conquest of Gaul. (Thought the translation of the latter was off---too many modernisms that might not represent what Caesar meant---but I don't have enough Latin to get through a Latin text. Nor do I have a Latin text.) Not having anyting else to hand, I brought Hemingway's A Moveable Feast, previously read, last night.
I'll see what I can pick up while browsing at the bookstore later today.
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quote:Originally posted by wetwilly: That is enough for me to run out to the book store and rectify the problem. Any recommendations for which of his books to buy first?
Depends what you like.
Neverwhere is an urban fantasy mystery that occurs in the London Underground. It was made into a mini-series and a radio play.
American G-ds is an American urban fantasy where the old pagan gods of Europe immigrated to America with their followers and war not only among themselves but with modernity and its "gods of credit card and freeway, of Internet and telephone, of radio and hospital and television, gods of plastic and of beeper and of neon."
InterWorld is a SF YA short novel with an interesting take on parallel worlds. I have only just learned of its recent sequel The Silver Dream, which I'll need pick up.
Good Omens, co-authored with Terry Pratchett (of Discworld fame) is a delightfully funny riff on religious end-of-the-world prophecies.
Personally, I have a preference for his, what I call, Old Child fantasies: Coraline (also made into a stop-motion animation movie), The Graveyard Book (movie pending with Disney), and his newest The Ocean at The End of the Lane. They have a wonderful mythic fable style yet relate simple honest core human truths that touch the soul (at least mine). They are short and rather quick reads, but quite memorable. But if you do not like these sorts of stories, then I can recommend any of the preceding.
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
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quote:Originally posted by wetwilly: That is enough for me to run out to the book store and rectify the problem. Any recommendations for which of his books to buy first?
Depends what you like.
Neverwhere is an urban fantasy mystery that occurs in the London Underground. It was made into a mini-series and a radio play.
American G-ds is an American urban fantasy where the old pagan gods of Europe immigrated to America with their followers and war not only among themselves but with modernity and its "gods of credit card and freeway, of Internet and telephone, of radio and hospital and television, gods of plastic and of beeper and of neon."
InterWorld is a SF YA short novel with an interesting take on parallel worlds. I have only just learned of its recent sequel The Silver Dream, which I'll need pick up.
Good Omens, co-authored with Terry Pratchett (of Discworld fame) is a delightfully funny riff on religious end-of-the-world prophecies.
Personally, I have a preference for his, what I call, Old Child fantasies: Coraline (also made into a stop-motion animation movie), The Graveyard Book (movie pending with Disney), and his newest The Ocean at The End of the Lane. They have a wonderful mythic fable style yet relate simple honest core human truths that touch the soul (at least mine). They are short and rather quick reads, but quite memorable. But if you do not like these sorts of stories, then I can recommend any of the preceding.
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
Wow, missing out on all types of books.
But with Neverwhere is that a mini-series in book form or TV? And here or in England?
But come to think of it I just did see Neverwhere some place...don't remember where.
Oh, of course the London Underground.
I recall thinking maybe I could use a name sort of like that for my Fae homeland.
There's Nevernever or is that Never-never? and Neverwhere how about Where-where? Somehow I don't think so.
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I've heard that THE GRAVEYARD BOOK is a re-imagining of a well-known set of "old child" stories by Kipling. Didn't know that going in, so I'm not sure I should tell you more than that before you read it. But it was fun to look back on it and see the parallels.
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Gaimen's orphan boy protagonist adopted by the dead (and undead) of the graveyard, and the episodic narrative of the novel, was inspired by Mowgli and Kipling's The Jungle Book, although the original kernel story came from watching his 2 year son bicycle past a graveyard. He did not feel he was a good enough writer in 1985 to pen the story, which he finally completed in 2008.
I also did not make the connection to Kipling until I read about it; and it only increased my appreciation for the tale and its author.
Respectfully, Dr, Bob
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I'm also a big fan of graphic novel versions of SF novels, so I will most definitely have to check some of these out. Thanks for the recommendations, Dr. Bob.
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Here's one for those of you who know something of the History of Science Fiction: The Man From Mars: Ray Palmer's Amazing Pulp Journey, by Fred Nadis. Interesting story, maybe not just to those like me who know something of this saga already.
I did think the story would be so arcane and of so little interest to the general reading public that it wouldn't turn up in the regular bookstores, so I bought it online from Amazon-dot-com...but the next time I went into the local Barnes & Noble, I found seven or eight copies...
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quote:Originally posted by History: Yes, I read this as well.
Gaimen's orphan boy protagonist adopted by the dead (and undead) of the graveyard, and the episodic narrative of the novel, was inspired by Mowgli and Kipling's The Jungle Book, although the original kernel story came from watching his 2 year son bicycle past a graveyard. He did not feel he was a good enough writer in 1985 to pen the story, which he finally completed in 2008.
I also did not make the connection to Kipling until I read about it; and it only increased my appreciation for the tale and its author.
quote:Originally posted by wetwilly: I'm also a big fan of graphic novel versions of SF novels, so I will most definitely have to check some of these out. Thanks for the recommendations, Dr. Bob.
I haven't read any Graphic Novels even though I have looked through some. Because of the price I don't want to get hooked on them. A couple did look very interesting though.
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quote:Originally posted by Robert Nowall: Here's one for those of you who know something of the History of Science Fiction: The Man From Mars: Ray Palmer's Amazing Pulp Journey, by Fred Nadis. Interesting story, maybe not just to those like me who know something of this saga already.
I did think the story would be so arcane and of so little interest to the general reading public that it wouldn't turn up in the regular bookstores, so I bought it online from Amazon-dot-com...but the next time I went into the local Barnes & Noble, I found seven or eight copies...
There seems to be a revival of many of those older novels at B&N. The Oz books as well as John Carter of Mars--even before the movie came out--to name only a couple. And some a little new A series about a James Grimes or is it John? Anyway I read them used twenty some years ago but there are all popping out now.
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Finally to what I am reading, a little hard when I'm reading on my Nook because I have to have my Nook and it be on to get the correct title and writer. Or do as did now and go to B&N's web site.
So:
"Hounded" (Iron Druid Chronicles series #1) by Kevin Hearne.
I've heard sone good things about the series and even seen a couple of the books. I didn't realize though this one is from 2011.
I'm a bit over half way done and hmmm.
Not bad but I think the blurb on the cover is way over done. Obviously blurbs are to the attention of the reader. But this one I think is more stretching things than usual. By no means is Kevin a heir to Jim Butcher.
If I had read this to critique a new writer I would have said it needed some work: needs more of the five senses, the Hero wins too easily, more descriptions. Some of that appears as I read along but the first couple of scenes were lacking.
At the same time Kevin has some very interesting and entertaining scenes--humorous too. The scene where the goddess tries to make a smoothie because she loves them but doesn't know about electricity is an entertaining sequence. The fights are not bad even though as stated some of the earlier ones are too easily won.
The whole is a good read, with significant good points, and it is a very interesting world even though, on a personal note, his comments on Christianity are bothersome but it's one of those things I wonder if Kevin feels that way or if he thought the character would. They may deal more with Catholicism than Christianity as a whole.
And of course this is probably his first book, at least I didn't see any previous ones listed, so of course that makes a difference. More than likely I will read the next one so I'll see how he does.
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quote: The Oz books as well as John Carter of Mars--even before the movie came out--to name only a couple.
Both of these have (apparently) lapsed into public domain---and both have had big movies come out recently. So a lot of publishers will jump on them to make some money.
quote:And some a little new A series about a James Grimes or is it John?
If you mean the "John Grimes" series by A. Bertram Chandler, they're pretty old---Chandler died in 1984---but there were some recent omnibus reprints. Pretty good stuff, too---SF's answer to Horatio Hornblower---and I'll add my endorsement to the list. I've read most of 'em, but don't think I had a full list of them till recently (and online, where such things abound.)
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Having set my sites more seriously on the WOTF contest this past year, I've read the last four annual anthologies of winners, and yesterday completed the most recent (vol. 29).
I've previously shared on this Forum my conclusions regarding which stories win: 1) shorter submissions are better 2) science fiction with alien cultures/world building is better 4) character conflict is key 5) no adult content (i.e. no sexual issues or reference to human sexuality, even indirectly; no non-traditional gender issues; no swear words). 6) Stories need be 'approrpiate' for high school and middle school levels.
I believe volume 29 refutes my assumptions #2, 5, & 6 listed above. While science fiction is still predominant, I found volume 29 had significantly less world-building and alien cultures than previous volumes.
There were many indirect (and a few overt) references to sex. There is even prostitution and reference to a mother-daughter threesome in Andrea Stewart's Q3 1st place winning tale Dreameater) and indirect reference to child rape.
There is murder, deceit/lies, exploitation of the ill (and of children), theft, and even the consumption of body organs. Therefore, how can I judge what the Judges deem 'approrpiate' for high school and middle school levels?
Still, well-crafted protagonists facing both internal and external conflicts are a general feature of these stories. The majority of the stories were short (i.e ~<10K); and I found something relatively unique in each, if not the depth and breadth of world-building present as in tales within earlier volumes.
I found Andrea Stewart's tale Dreameater probably the best written, in regard to command of language and powerful character Voice. The Grand Winner's, Tina Gower's, story Twelve Seconds was a close second for me in regard to craft and Voice. These were both 1st place winners in their respective quarters. Thus, I need elevate the importance of Voice to my list. However, their settings were recognizeable pseudo-contemporary.
I found the most imaginative tales (in regard to setting and wonder) to be fantasies: Marilyn Guttridge's The Ghost Wife of Arlington and Marina J Lostetter's Master Belladino's Mask. These were both Second place winners in their respective quarters. Can I conclude that Voice trumps Imaginative Setting?
Good stories, though my personal favorites of the last few volumes remain Patrick O' Sullivan's Mady Dune's First and Only Spelling Bee(vol. 27) and Nick Tchan's The Command For Love(vol. 28) [Don't let it go to your head, Nick. These represent only my personal eclectic--and strange--tastes in fiction].
Vol. 29 puts me in somewhat of a quandry. Personally, I've refrained from sending stories to WOTF that I felt were not alien or imaginative enough, or referenced sex, or included horror and/or gore. Instead, based on the last few anthologies, I have been concentrating on science fiction with settings that are as highly imaginative and as creative as I can make them, and then dropping in my flawed struggling schlemiels of protagonists.
After reading WOTF Vol. 29, I need conclude that in regarding to anticipating what the Judges like that I am merely chasing my own tail (Hey! It's a personal genetic anomaly; don't make fun).
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
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I've only read V28. I just started reading V29. I thought V28 was fantasy heavy, but I heard that V27 was SF heavy, so maybe the last 4 volumes were SF heavy as a whole?
V29 is the first Farland anthology (IIRC he came in near the end of V28? or was it early V29?) so I would expect 29 to have a different flair.
Pirates of Venus (1934) Lost on Venus (1935) Carson of Venus (1939) Escape on Venus (1946) The Wizard of Venus (1964)--novelette
As I continue to experiment writing within different genres (urban fantasy, literary, fable, horror, alternate history/steampunk/space opera, etc...), this year I've spent much of my sparse energy on adventure world creation.
One of the most successful writers in this genre (at least in fame and income) was Edgar Rice Burroughs, who created Tarzan of the Apes (as iconic a figure as Sherlock Holmes, Frankenstein, and Superman)as well as John Carter of Mars, David Innes of Pellucidar (the world At the Earth's Core), as well as many other fantastic interplanetary tales in settings as variable as our own Moon to worlds Beyond the Farthest Star.
Like many other pre-teen/teen geek, I was stunned by the sheer scope of his imagination and inventiveness in constructing his fantastic worlds, their many strange inhabitants and beasts, and startling geographies across which his heroes and heroines had endless adventures.
One such world I recalled fondly was Amtor (Venus) and the knavish devil-may-care Carson of Venus. I have not read these books for many decades and, having recently listened to an unabridged recording of Tarzan of the Apes (read by Ben Kingsley), and being engaged in my own world creation, I chose to revisit these books.
Wrong way Carson attempts to rocket to Barsoom (ERB's Mars) and ends up crashing on Venus. Expecting to be killed by the harsh barren conditions and blood-boiling heat the scientists of his own day predicted, he is surprised to discover a lush planet beneath the clouds with mountain size trees, fierce beasts, and pre- and semi-technological peoples (they have swords and ray guns and ocean-going ships but no airplanes). Recycling from his earlier Mars and Inner Earth books, ERB has Carson fall in love with a chieftan's daughter who spurns him and he spends much of his time rescuing her and attempting to win her love. Contrary to the social norms of his day, ERB's heroine also at times fights and rescues Carson!
The first three Venus novels are a Buck Rogers like serial, the first two ending in cliffhanger's and declaration's of love (while Carson and his love Duare seek to return her home to her father--who will kill them both for violations of custom) until this is resolved in the third book.
However, the third book is a bit farcial and blatantly allegorical. Carson and Duare encounter a society where the women all demonstrate what readers of ERB's day would consider stereotypical male cultural and social traits while their men are effeminate; and then encounter a war against the Zanis, who demonstrate all the politico-cultural absurdities of the Nazis who ERB disparages and mocks candidly as a good American patriot writer. This, of course, is author/narrator intrusive to the story which dispels its magic.
The fourth novel, a series of four novelettes, is a rather contrived set of captured and escape tales depicting monsters of the month-like strange alien natives (fish-people, plant-people, amoeba-people). These were stories reportedly even difficult for ERB to sell, and he succeeded only by the popularity of his name.
The fifth book, a novelette found in his papers after his passing, is similar although it provides further insight to Carson's swarmi-trained mental powers.
Much as I recall with his other series, it is the first two Venus (and Tarzan and Pellucidar) books (the 1st three Mars books) that are the best. The rest, with few exceptions (Tarzan At The Earth's Core, for example) are inferior.
One remarkable invention for his Amtor books, is ERB's realization that the peoples of Venus would never see the stars or even the sun. Thus their conception of their world would be unique. In this case, Amtor is a flat disc floating upon a sea of fire, and Venus' equator is at the center while the pole is the circumference of the disc--thus making all their maps useless for navigation and creating the belief that there is not another hemisphere of their planet. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus_series
ERB successfully inspires wonder with his depiction of Amtorian fauna and flora and of native cultures in the first two books. Sadly I find this too contrived in the later books.
While he devotes good thought to Amtorian language, even script, often his word creation, particularly his "naming", is comparatively poor--lacking the evocative power possessed by authors like Lord Dunsany or Clark Ashton Smith in their use of names.
Thus, for me, I learned how powerful a fresh imagination can be and what happens...after. Though I should ever be as successful.
Of note, being the collector that I am, I possess and read the far more recent graphic novel Tarzan & Carson of Venus (1998) [http://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=156751] that occurs after the fourth Venus novel and includes many of its characters and ties up some loose strings. Entertaining and I always enjoy seeing artists' renditions of ERB's worlds.
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
[ July 18, 2013, 09:56 PM: Message edited by: History ]
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This celebrated award-winning YA fantasy author wrote three adult sword & sorcery stories in the classic tradition concerning the title characters: the first a noble swordsman and the latter a self-animated puppet (as in papier-mâché) sorcerer. Their task? To nullify or exterminate inimical godlets from the world.
These are delightful and inventive tales, masterfully told. Thus the volume is woefully too short for its reader. From a writer's eye, there is the appreciation of the Tolkienesque creation of a much wider canvas, lands and peoples and these heroes' prior grand adventures (and more to come) that the author deftly inserts without lessening the current story being told. Nix instills a sense of vignette, of a concise adventure thread in a larger tapestry, leaving many unanswered questions. I learned that a short story/novelette need not tie up all loose ends but instead leave the reader looking for more
The limited signed hardcover volume is well-made and boast a beautiful cover, but these three tales are available as an ebook for only $0.99 and worth far more if you enjoy these sorts of tales.
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Inheritance by Christopher Paolini http://www.amazon.com/Inheritance-Cycle-Christopher-Paolini/dp/037584631X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1374890428&sr=1-1&keywords=inheritance I listened to this final book of this young author's tetralogy, all 31 hours of it, on my daily drives to work. I say "young" since his first bestselling fantasy novel Eragon was written when he was fifteen years of age. It was this fact that piqued my curiosity. As epic fantasies go, it is pretty standard fare, more Terry Brooks (i.e. paler imitation) than Tolkien. A bit overwritten (though who am I to talk) but there are brilliant passages of evocative description, imagination, and action--and a few outstanding characters (e.g. Angela the Herbalist; Elva the child who, because of a miscast spell of the protagonist, feels and anticipates everyone's pain and suffering; Solembum the were cat).
The Guiding Nose of Ulfant Banderoz by Dan Simmons http://www.amazon.com/Guiding-Nose-Ulfant-Banderoz/dp/1596065419/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1374891189&sr=1-1&keywords=guiding+nose+of+ulfant+banderoz Like many fantasy (and sf) authors and would-be authors of today, Dan Simmons has a special youth-born affection for the writings of master world-builder and story craftsman Jack Vance who sadly passed away two months ago at the age of 94. One of his seminal works is The Dying Earth (and its sequels), a book every lover of science fantasy should read if not cherish as Simmons (and I) do. It is hard to describe: Clark Ashton's Zothique (the quintessential "dying earth" stories) meets Terry Pratchett's Discworld. This particular edition of Simmon's novella is illustrated and well done, and a delight for collectors; however the story is also included in a much larger volume of tales in honor of Jack Vance, Songs of the Dying Earthhttp://www.amazon.com/Songs-Dying-Earth-George-Martin/dp/B0096DSP0E/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1374892224&sr=1-1&keywords=songs+of+the+dying+earth which also includes stories by greats such as Robert Silverberg, Glenn Cook, Tad Williams, Elizabeth Moon, Tanith Lee, Mike Resnick, etc. I have yet to complete it but look forward to doing so as I work may through a number of Vance's classic works.
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
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But I think I have seen and maybe read "The Dying Earth" but is there more than one? I can't recall the writer of the one I saw.
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... I am here referring to the novel (collection of novellas] entitled The Dying Earth by Jack Vance, and its sequels The Eyes of the Overworld, Cugel's Saga, and Rhialto the Marvelous and perhaps the Vance-approved novel by Michael Shea The Quest For Simbilis and now the GRRM and Gardner Dozois edited anthology Songs of the Dying Earth which compose the entire literature set in Vance's created world (save for the numerous D&D-like gaming scenarios by Pelgrane Press http://www.pelgranepress.com/?p=5074 which I do not own as I never got around to becoming a gamer).
I believe there is a powerful influence (for good or ill or for indifference or despair) upon characters in their perception of their life, their fellows, their pains and pleasures, their morals, as well as their ailing world in the inescaple knowledge that all they see and know is approaching death, inevitably and more importantly, soon.
I am sure I will dally with such a setting one day.
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
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I meant that title not the plot. I might be getting my titles mixed up but it seems like there have been at least a couple of SF novels with that title.
I have seen Vance's but until I see it I won't be able to tell if it was the one I read.
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Well, The Dying Earth has a high reputation among SF aficionados, but has always been somewhat obscure as far as its publication history goes. All I know of are its original paperback publication in 1950, a paperback reprint in the early 1980s (which I read) and being collected in something called the Vance Integral Editions in the 2000s. Dunno if it's an e-book or SFBC or anything like that...
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I am unaware of any other f&sf novel entitled The Dying Earth nor series of that name except by the late Jack Vance, LD. And I see no other listed on Amazon. Thus, perhaps you have read it.
Although, I do not see that the first novel is available as an ebook, the other three are, Robert.
I'm sad I did not allocate the funds to purchase the $1.5K to $3K Vance Integral Edition [http://integralarchive.org/vie-books.htm ; http://integralarchive.org/base2.htm], a truly stupendous Vance lover's definitive collection of all his works, each in hardcover and with excellent glossaries and (my addiction) maps! [ http://www.jackvance.com/ebooks/maps/ ]
I do possess the novels and a few separately printed stories in collector's editions, most from Underwood-Miller and illustrated by artist Steve Fabian, which are quite lovely. Subterranean Press has announced a new limited edition of the first volume for later this year [ http://subterraneanpress.com/store/product_detail/the_dying_earth_preorder ], but I see that it has already sold out. Hopefully they will consider an ebook edition.
Respectfully, Dr. Bob
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I'm reading Father Elijia by Michael D. O'Brien and enjoying it immensely. It is one from his Children of the Last Days series.
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![[Smile]](smile.gif)
You would have to read the books to get that, it would take a while to explain how it works, but very well thought out. ![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
