Customer Reviews (2)

Ian Myles Slater on: Getting the Right Book
The (very brief) review already appearing with this title actually refers to "The High Crusade," a science fiction novel by (the late) Poul Anderson. "Against Time's Arrow: The High Crusade of Poul Anderson" is acritical survey of Poul Anderson's writings through the mid-1970s. The allusion in Miesel's title has obviously caused some confusion somewhere and Amazon may eventually straighten it out.

Although not nearly as much fun as Anderson's account of a medieval English lord's acquisition of an interstellar spaceship, "Against Time's Arrow" is a worthwhile review of Anderson's main themes and literary devices. Although the entertainment value of Anderson's fiction is always remembered, it is particularly good on the various moral dilemmas faced by characters. (Miesel who is also known for her critical studies of Gordon Dickson and Tolkien, and for several science fiction stories, may also be familiar to some readers as a Catholic journalist.)

High crusade was a night of fun reading
I found this book very fun to read. The basic premise of the story could happen. Although I found it stretching the limits a little. That aliens have massive technology, yet lack any real experience in warfare because of it being so long since they were opposed. The characters were entertaining, as was the plot line. The basic premise that a primitive, and superstitiouspeople could take control of such a deep technology is a little absurd. But, it was fun all the same.Not a perfect book, but a very entertaining one at least. ... Read more

Product Description
To save Earth from the crushing grip of totalitarianism, Kyra Davis journeys from the planet's rebel enclaves to the decadence of a lunar colony to a new world threatened by a dying star as she seeks to rescue the leader of Earth's last refuge of freedom. Reprint. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

too many words and a weird final act
My biggest beef with this book is that it is too big. The prose is painstaking in its detail. Conversations among the players are overlong and too smart for their own good. They plan for every foreseeable contingency down to the grittiest detail; meanwhile, the reader is lost because he can't see the forrest through the trees! It's irritating because not only does it slow down the plot but renders much of that reading a waste of time. Then Anderson unleashes a surprise at the end of Part II that completely changes the game. Which brings me to my second beef...

Part III. This part of the book is completely out of step with the rest of the novel. It seems to me that Anderson intended to end the book after Part II, but once he got there he wasn't satisfied, so he wrote 150 pages more. Several hundred years elapse, whereas the events in the first two acts take place over a month or thereabouts. Halfway through this false ending I had completely lost interest. The plot also takes a couple of fantastic turns that stretch science fiction to science farce.

Lastly, the book is a difficult read. The following sentence is indicative of the flowery narration sustained over the hulking 530 pages: "Turbulence eddied from each of the bodies and bodies and bodies that hurried, dodged, dawdled, gestured, swerved, lingered. Colors and faces lost meaning in their swarm. The air was thick with their breath, harsh with their footfalls and voices. Wind drove clouds like smoke across the strips of sky between walls."

Really held my interest from start to finish
With North America having embraced a controlling, almost-police state that promises great advances, but delivers only repression and economic regression, the state turns hungry eyes towards the space-going Fireball Corporation. They plan on seizing Fireball's assets, and using its expertise to deliver the utopia that their cherished philosophy never could. However, a group of Fireball loyalists, headed by cyber-entity Anson Guthrie, is on the run, determined to thwart the government's evil plans. And, if in the course of their work they bring the whole rotten structure down, so much the better!

Poul Anderson (1926-2001) is remembered as one of the giants of the sci-fi industry, and this book shows off why. I found the story to be quite gripping, and I really like his view of the not-so-far-off-future. And as for the politics, would the people of North America ever embrace a philosophy that promised a utopian future delivered through government control? Oh yeah.

The one fly in this ointment is the bothersome way that the Lunarians talk - like characters out of a Shakespeare play. But, as for me, I did not find it to be all that distracting. No, I found this to be a very interesting book, one that really held my interest from start to finish - I highly recommend this book!

Engaging and eventually very cool
Harvest of Stars really is two separate but related stories.The first story is primarily a political commentary, but also involves immortality achieved through cybernetics (it has no connection to Anderson's The Boat of a Million Years). Anderson envisages the consequences of a series of continuous impairments in personal liberties, leading to a totalitarian state.One guesses that some of the negative reviews of this book have to do with the reader not agreeing with the many uncompromising aspects of the story.These comments are unreasonable.Anderson is using a classic aspect of science fiction to its best:set up a possible future, be clear about the boundaries defining that future, and see what happens.This is very good science fiction.The prose is occasionally choppy--better editing would have helped--but it never is problematic.The story reads well and is quite interesting.

The 2nd story runs naturally from the first, but with a big time separation.The central issues of this story are no longer political, but rather familial and eco-centric.I don't want to give details, as those would detract from the conclusions of the 1st story (e.g., who survives to get to the 2nd story).This 2nd story is really great science fiction.My only wish is that Anderson had expanded it more, making it a longer (it could easily have been a complete novel in itself).In any case, this 2nd story is very cool, with a very good conclusion.

Harvest of Stars is of those books that is satisfying on its own, but also leaves the reader looking forward to the next book in the series.

Not the best Poul Anderson book I've ever read, but a darn good one nevertheless.
In the not-so-far-off future, machines have taken over much of the work that Humans once did. The government of what was the United States of America, dominated by a movement called Avantism, polices its citizens ruthlessly and punishes deviance from this philosophy's ideals. That's undoubtedly why Fireball, a vast private company that owns the entire space travel industry, has its headquarters in Ecuador. Anson Guthrie, Fireball's founder, died in the flesh decades ago. But his "downloaded" personality, and all his knowledge and life experience, lives on as a sentient computer program. As the story opens, Fireball pilot Kyra Davis finds herself on the run with her "jefe" - Download Guthrie - to protect from capture by the American government that wants to use him to gain control of Fireball.

The first half (and more) of this book recounts Guthrie's flight from the Avantist authorities, and Kyra's adventures among the genetically engineered and no longer quite Human "Lunarians" who have built an independent and unique new culture on Terra's natural satellite. The remainder of the novel takes us along with Guthrie, Pilot Davis, and others whom we've come to know as a band of hardy souls sets out to transform an alien planet into their new home. This gives the book an odd structure, with so many of its pages covering a relatively short period of time and the rest leaping through events decades apart. You might say that "change of pace" takes on a whole new meaning.

Anderson's characters engaged me despite lapses into stereotype, and I found his descriptions of the Lunarians' culture and of Demeter's transformation vivid and enthralling. Anson Guthrie's politics are those of the old-line, 1950s science fiction hero: the standard "government's job is to leave people alone" sermon comes out of his mouth repeatedly, reminding me very much of Heinlein's juvenile SF books. Whatever one's politics (Guthrie's are certainly Libertarian!), the questions the characters have to answer are valid ones for Humans today. What will technology make of us? (Not necessarily, "What will we make of technology?") And what is it that makes us Human, anyway? Having Download Guthrie as the book's protagonist (for he occupies that role, in the end, more than does Kyra Davis) lends that last question special poignancy.

Not the best Poul Anderson book I've ever read, but a darn good one nevertheless.

A masterwork
Poul Anderson has brought lifetime's worth of craftsmanship and pure artistic genius to bear to create this, the crowning acheivement of his science fiction career. The downloaded copy of late Anson Guthrie, with the help of Fireball pilot Kyrie Davis, is fleeing the totalitarian Avantist world order; but the Avantists have secured and brainwashed another copy of Guthrie, so that his most dangerous opposition is himself.

The background is awe-inspiring in its complexity and completeness. Instead of a stale monoculture, or an endless array of postapocolyptic punks, the reader is treated to a tapestry of cultures of the future, including the eerie, elfin Lunarians, perhaps Anderson's most successful and memorable creation.

The main action of the book, however, is just a backdrop for a more chilling and larger threat: the spectre of bioengineering and true artificial intelligence slowly displaces Man from his seat as lord of his own fate, and an increasingly inert and sheeplike humanity becomes merely the clients and wards of a supreme cybernetic system. The only hope for Man to retain his human spirit is a risky and uncertain project to colonize one of the doomed worlds of Alpha Centauri.

HARVEST OF STARS moves from an action thriller seamlessly into profound conflict over the ultimate spiritual destiny of man, whether one of numb security or perilous liberty.

Magnificent on all levels, rich in characterization, vivid in detial, profound in scope and philosophic depth, I cannot imagine how any science fiction reader could help but award this book the highest possible rank. A classic. ... Read more

Product Description
"I know. Earth's mercantile policies and so forth," said Lindgren. He fancies himself a student of interplanetary history. This has led to quite a few arguments since Amspaugh, who teaches in that field, joined the Club. Mostly they're good. I went to the bar and got myself another drink, listening as the mine owner's big voice went on:
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Customer Reviews (1)

Sci Fi from Yesteryear
INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION - 1963

It reads like a story of Big Government trying to shut down Independent Business.The setting is early in the 1960s at the advent of the modern space age.An enterprising company has set up a mining endeavor on an out-world to collect, process, and sell atmospheric gas products.The company is initially successful and an unnamed government entity of Earth has mobilized the Navy (??) to manufacture an incident to enable to government to shut down the operation and subsequently take it over.The company rebels and, led by the protagonists Mike Blades and Jimmy Chung, manage to derail the incident and save the company. This leads to the eventual successful establishment of quasi-independent out-worlds able to hold their own in the marketplace without Big Government control.A good, is somewhat fanciful story smacking of the time in which it was written.Worth the effort.


DUEL ON SYRTIS - 1951

A good short period piece of the "Buck Rogers" style.A trophy hunter of the future has arrived on Mars to "bag" a wild indigent Martian before they are all gone.You immediately form a dislike of the hunter and find yourself siding with the Martian character who is intelligent and aware.The hunter has all the modern advantages, and the Martian has little besides his cunning.In the end, the Martian survives and the trophy hunter is defeated, receiving a fitting end to his heinous quest.A quick enjoyable read.


... Read more

Product Description
Blending characters historical and mythological, science fiction and fantasy grandmaster Poul Anderson has crafted a novel of magic, mystery and the might of ancient nations to rival Marian Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon.

In the tenth century, during the violent end of the Age of the Vikings, Gunhild, the daughter of a Norse Chieftan, is sent away to learn the magic of a pair of Shamans.She learns her lessons well, and uses her power to summon her hearts desire, Eirlik Blood-Ax.Gunhild's magic is a powerful compliment to Eirik's strength, but it is not enough to save him from death at the hands of his vicious rivals.Still, the sons they had will each become kings, and Gunhild's own struggles are far from over.
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Customer Reviews (8)

Poul Anderson writes a very good book
I would describe this as a historical fantasy. Features Gunnhild 10th century Viking queen & Eirik Blood-ax. I like it as a period piece and it seems to cover all the relevant details. I enjoyed the read. As far as historical fantasies of this genre go I also enjoyed Last Light of the Sun by Guy Gavriel Kay.

Involving history but flat fantasy
"Mother of Kings" is a good historical novel, but as a fantasy, it's flat.

Let me explain.

First, Poul Anderson did a remarkable job tracking down source material, and in sorting fact from fancy.He deserves much credit for this, as most of the surviving documentation is either spotty or nonexistent.

Second, as a fantasy, "Mother of Kings" doesn't read well.

How can Mr. Anderson have done both?Simple.Gunnhild, the titular "Mother of Kings," is not a nice person.She meets her husband young, and vows to marry him because he is handsome.This sometimes happens, and it's about the only thing that led me, the reader, into believing that Gunnhild might be worth something.But after Gunnhild gets to the throne by marriage, other than loving her husband and birthing many babies, she does a variety of things that aren't so nice.This is mostly because she wants her own way, and because she's highborn and married well, she gets it.And that means if she has to kill her magic teachers, she does it without a qualm -- and without any regrets.If she feels she has to kill to save her husband or children, ditto, even if the person/people in question have done nothing to upset, anger or threaten her or her family.

I'm sorry, but I just can't warm to a character who acts this way.And I'm unsure Gunnhild really was this bloodthirsty; she may have been a pawn, or she may have been as strong as Mr. Anderson paints her -- but not so unthinking or uncaring.

Getting back to this story, the other big problem with it is that Gunnhild's offspring are mostly not likable, either.The only likable one in the lot is Gunnhild's daughter, who Gunnhild inexplicably marries off to the most odious man she knows.Granted, it's to form and forge a contract between her family in exile and the rulers of the place they get stranded at, but still -- if she loved her daughter, why do that to her?Especially if Gunnhild is supposed to be so powerful of a shaman?

And the shamanic magic isn't really gone into; Gunnhild uses it some of the time, but most of the time she leaves it alone.The reasons for this are spotty.And later, the fact that her sons have turned to Christianity keeps her from her magic as well.

Basically, the historical elements (who did what to whom when, and why) are all there, and are masterful.But Gunnhild is cold, and her children (with the sole exception of her daughter) are worse.Her husband, Eirik Blood-Ax, is a cipher, and most of the other folks she knew or grew up with end up dead.Granted, this is probably accurate for the time frame, but it does nothing to further Gunnhild's character.

And because I disliked Gunnhild very much (when I was expecting to like her), I could not like this book.Admire it, yes.But like it?No.

Mr. Anderson wrote three far better historical books in the "Last Viking" trilogy about Harold Hardrede, and I recommend them, but not this.

Three stars.

Barb Caffrey

Ian Myles Slater on: Taking on the Masters
It is probably a matter of taste whether one considers this mainly an historical novel, set in the tenth century as remembered by the Icelanders in the thirteenth century, or a fantasy novel based on medieval Icelandic imagination about the past. The late Poul Anderson warns the reader that he is using "facts" about some of the characters which have only a limited connection to historical probability, even discounting the frankly supernatural elements. From either point of view, I consider the book an astonishing success. It is well worth the time, and for the uninitiated in saga-literature, the effort probably needed to read it through.

I say astonishing because, despite my very great admiration for Poul Anderson, I had some misgivings about this project. Anderson was setting himself some stiff competition. Gunnhild, the "Mother of Kings," figures prominently in at least three major medieval works: Snorri Sturluson's "Heimskringla" (a history of the kings of Norway); "The Saga of Egil Skallagrimsson" (which some have thought to be Snorri's work, and which is a biography of one of his ancestors); and, more briefly, but equally memorably, in "The Saga of Burnt Njal." In all of these she figures both as a queen and as a sorceress, and in the last especially as a dangerous lover of younger men.

Each of these works has been translated into English several times. Translators of the first include William Morris, and of the second E.R. Eddison, both major fantasy writers. Those familiar with Eddison's "Worm Ouroboros" will probably remember the passage from George W. Dasent's translation of "Njal's Saga" which is read aloud in the opening pages. Three original works of genius, all of which happen to be closely associated with the development of fantasy literature in English. Not exactly minor predecessors. (Gunnhild also shows up in other sagas, including accounts of the kings of Norway by other hands, and, in a passage parallel to the account in "Njal," in the great "Laxdaela Saga," but these appearances are, I think, of lesser literary importance. The two-volume 1860 edition of Dasent's "Burnt Njal" included an essay on medieval accounts of Gunnhild, now very obsolete, but interesting to compare to Anderson; single-volume reprintings of Dasent's translation omit this, along with the rest of Dasent's elaborate introduction and appendices.)

I was not, however, completely surprised by how successful I found the book to be. Anderson had reworked Icelandic literature in the past, including Snorri's account of a later Norwegian king, Harald Hard-Counsel (in "The Last Viking" trilogy), and the legendary "Hrolf Kraki's Saga," and retold the story of the Volsungs in science fiction terms in "Time Patrolman," before turning to divine mythology (and the relatively obscure accounts of Saxo Grammaticus) in "War of the Gods." He virtually began his career by extending the legendary sagas in "The Broken Sword." In none of these cases, though, were the originals quite so intimidating. He had not lost his touch in "Mother of Kings," despite the length of the story, and the complexity of the histories and legends he was working with.

An admirable, if not easily readable, novel
A rather incredible achievement for one of the late Poul Anderson's novel-but not actually a good read. Anderson subsumes his personal style to create the feeling of an Icelandic Saga. He uses historical figures and locations and combines them with minutely researched details about everyday Viking life to the point that you can easily forget you are reading the work of a modern author.

However, this epic, distanced style and the overload of characters and kinship ties makes for a ponderous, slow-moving reading experience. Copying the flow of the sagas, the plot often skips quickly over large battle scenes or dismisses them with a few phrases. The fantasy element is slight; Gunnhild sometimes work magical spells to aid her sons maintain power in Scandanavia. It shows a realistic outlook on magic that mirrors the way contemporaries viewed their world. Anderson also handles the primitive conflict between paganism and emerging Christianity extremely well, and is the most involving dramatic element in this extremely admirable but not very likable farewell novel. Casual readers will probably not enjoy it. Readers who love Anderson or have a fascination with Scandanvian culture will adore ever moment of it.

Another excellent Anderson novel
Set in the tenth century, this is the story of Gunnhild, Queen of Norway and England (a real person). This was the waning days of the Age of Vikings.

As a child, Gunnhild learns the ways of withcraft from a Finnish concubine of her father, a powerful Norse chieftain. She also notices Eirik, son of their king. Growing up, Gunnhild keeps her eyes open and learns the relationship between the powerful and the weak. But she doesn't want to stop there. She becomes a spaewife, a master in witchcraft and sorcery, a knower of the Gods.

She marries Eirik, and things are wonderful for a while. She gives him seven sons, all of whom become great warriors, and one daughter, Ragnhild. Forced into a political marriage, Ragnhild gets a reputation as someone whose husbands tend to die before their time. Eirik's strength and Gunnhild's craftiness and knowledge of sorcery make them formidable foes.

Haakon, another son of Eirik's father, has an equally strong claim as Eirik to be King of Norway. This is a time of building alliances for both men among the groups in that part of the world. The fortunes of Eirik and Gunnhild start taking a turn for the worst. They are forced to flee Norway and live for a time in York, England. Anotherv time they flee to the Orkney Islands, part of present-day Scotland. Eirik dies in battle, as do his sons, one by one. Meantime, Christianity comes to that part of the world. Haakon embraces this new religion, partly because his best friend becomes a priest. He expects those in aliiance with him to do the same. But, there are those, including powerful people, who are not happy with the old gods being tossed aside.

This is a great novel. It's a big novel, both in size and in scope, so it is not easy or quick reading. Once again, Anderson shows why he was a master of the genre. The style of writing gives the impression that it was actually written a thousand years ago. Recently translated, it was mispackaged as Fiction instead of History. I know of no other contemporary writer in the field who can consistently do that like Anderson.

This book will take some patience, but it is highly recommended. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Closure to Anderson's Technic Civilization series
Poul Anderson's future history group of short stories and novels is one of the more imaginative ones in the genre of "future history" sagas.Essentially, Anderson postulates that at some point in the near term, our present Western civilization through various political and technological turmoil collapses but re-emerges as "Technic" civilization.Technic civilization is recognizably Western, but even more focused on the individual, free enterprise, and the use of technology and risk to (yes) acquire wealth.It is controlled by the spacefaring entrepreneur-industrialists of the Polesotechnic League, (The "League of Selling Skills") and before it is finished the League encompasses many civilizations and worlds, and is more powerful than any of them.There are many fine short stories and novels that derive from the Technic portion of Anderson's "future history."See for example "Satan's World", "The Man Who Counts" "The Trouble Twisters" and "Mirkheim" ...

The Technic Civilization decays into the Terran Empire, a huge empire of 4 million star systems in which government has once again gained ascendance over the merchant princes of the Polesotechnic League.This is mainly the "Dominic Flandry" series of novels.

"The Long Night" is a group of short stories that are set before, but mostly after, the fall of the Terran Empire.Here, humanity and other civilizations are recovering from the Fall. "Starfog" is my favorite among these, and this story explains how civilization stabilizes in the aftermath of the Fall.It is a good story.The others in this collection are all pretty good examples of Anderson's writing, and I recommend them.If you have not read the Nicholas van Rijn stories, (the Technic Civilization stories) or the Dominic Flandry stories, don't miss them.

Poul Anderson was a giant among writers of Science Fiction's "Golden Age."He passed away in 2001 and I am somewhat distressed that his considerable body of writing is already becoming difficult to find.Hopefully we can look forward to more republishings to allow future generations of readers to benefit from and enjoy his excellent writing.

The beginning of twilight
For those of us who eagerly awaited each new chapter in the Polesotechnic saga, this set of short stories was a rude closure.Of course, all good things must end, and Poul went on to additional great yarns,but this was kind of a sad farewell.From the back cover of the 1983 TOR publication:

After Western Civilization, the Polesotechnic League.After the League, the Terran Empire.Then...
Nicholas Van Rijn was a smart old bird.He guessed it was inevitable that he and all that the Merchant Princes stood for would tumble into darkness.Dominic Flandry lived in its shadow; he knew that struggle and pot though he might, the ever hungry darkness would have him and his world at last.But for those who came after, that darkness was no mere tragedy.It was reality.It was THE LONG NIGHT.
This book contains:
The Star Plunderer
Outpost of Empire
A Tragedy of Errors
The Sharing of Flesh
Starfog
A Chronology of Technic Civilization ... Read more

Product Description
When the two star-faring races from which they are descended enter into war against each other, the two species who share the planet Avalon--one of humans, the other of winged creatures--must make enemies of friends. Reprint. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Great Poul Anderson Space Opera....
Notable Awards: Hugo and Locus SF Awards nominee, 1974 Nebula Award nominee, 1973

*some spoilers*

Poul Anderson's delightful space opera chronicles the struggle between the growing Terran Empire and the Ythrian Domain (inhabited by birdlike beings).The main action occurs on the planet Avalon, a colony of Ythri but settled by BOTH humans and Ythrians who have managed to create a multicultural society.

However, unlike other sci-fi writers who portray societies of aliens and humans as perfectly cordial (David Brin's completely hokey Utopian society on the planet Jijo in `Brightness Reef' comes to mind) Poul Anderson excels at illustrating the problems that each race has with the other (and even within each race -- no monumentally homogeneous societies here).The fact that problems exist yet the society can be maintain itself and grow stronger is by far the most interesting theme of the work.

For example, both Ythrians and humans have segments of their society (mostly young adults) who decide to "join" the other race -- for humans, they "go bird."They done antigrav belts so they can flit around with the Ythri.Even more appealing to some humans, is the decentralized society Ythrians have to offer -- they create small choths with separate customs.This decentralized facet is also realized in the entire Ythrian domain -- Avalon was settled by humans because it's semi-independent from the greater state.

The Terran Empire wants to annex Avalon.So, Poul Anderson presents us with a series of moral questions -- what are the humans who have settled on the planet supposed to do?How to the humans, when they decide to fight the Empire, supposed to adapt Ythrian society to face the threat?And, vice versa, when human tactics and mentalities fail, how do the Ythrians respond?

It is this dialogue between races where our main characters emerge -- Tabitha, a human gone bird; Christopher Holm, another human whose gone bird; Eyath, Christopher's "galemate sister", a Ythrian female in the same choth; David Holm, Christopher's father and defacto leader of the human population.Poul Anderson introduces a virtual host of other secondary character to give the Terran Domain a face.There's no black vs. white, good vs. evil here!

The Ythrians are quite an interesting species with some series flaws -- they still maintain slavery, some take advantave females during their "love periods", look down various segments of society (for example female Ythrians who are constantly undergoing "love periods"), and are adversely afflicted by various human traditions.

Despite the simplistic plot -- large Terran Empire wants to annex small colony -- Poul Anderson creates enough interesting characters whom we care about and such a complex dialogue (cultural/social) between the two races to really lift this book above the standard space opera of the day.However, a turgid middle section describing various love triangles and betrayals is rather silly and the battle sequences verge on dull.However, the last act is top notch (if somewhat rushed). All in all, `The People of the Wind' fully deserved its Hugo, Nebula, and Locus award nominations.

An excellent component of Poul Anderson's Technic Civilization series
"People of the Wind" is an interesting story about the Planet Avalon, which has been jointly and amicably settled by Earthmen and Ythrians.Ythrians are an avian race, quite capable of flight.One of Poul Anderson's strengths as a writer was his ability to create imaginative non-human races and extrapolate and attribute a non-human psychology to them.The Ythrians are an unusually imaginative example of this, and the interaction between humans and Ythrians makes for a very interesting tale.

This story is part of Poul Anderson's Technic Civilization future history series, which features some of Anderson's best writing.This story is set during the rise of the Terran Empire after the fall of the free-market Polesotechnic League.The rise of the Empire and its encroachment upon Avalon is the theme of the story, and it is excellent entertainment; typical of this series.Highly recommended for lovers of "hard" science fiction.RJB.

One of the 10 best reasons to read sci/fi
All of us go through a phase of doubting whether we should adhere to the genre.This provided one of my most compelling reasons to continue.Forthwith is the "blurb" from the 1982 Signet back cover.

"THE PEOPLE OF THE WINDWherever the borders of the Terran Empire and the Ythrian Domain touch, there is the possibility of war.Caught in the middle of this galactic power struggle is the Ythrian colony planet Avalon, a world inhabited by Ythri and humans alike.But Avalon has formed a culture all its own, which it will defend against all comers - including the two most powerful empires in the universe...
THE DAY OF THEIR RETURNBack under the thumb of the Terran Empire after an almost successful rebellion, the Aeneans were looking for trouble - and finding it.A fanatical religious movement was spreading like wildfire.There were rumors of the fabled Elder Race's return.Aeneas' leader was hiding from possible retribution at Empire hands.And agents from the Ythrian Domain and Merseia, Terra's ancient foe, were abroad in the land..."

Excellent interplay between races
This may be Anderson's best work.The interplay between two races, the flying carnivorous Ythri and the human Terrans, in the midst of a powerful space attack, makes for an interesting study.The book is also importantbecause it is the bridge between two, originally separate, futurehistories.A descendant from the chronologically earlier history plays animportant part in the later one. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

My First Fantasy Book
I first read this book back when I was in high school (year isn't important), and I fell in love with Poul Andersen instantly. The story is a bit sad, as it's about the end of the sea kingdom, but it's a good sort of sadness. I think it really spoke to me because it was about the ending of one thing, but the beginning of another, and that's what graduating high school is about as well. Definitely a good story for someon in a transition period. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Surprising (minor) work in Anderson's canon
I was impressed with Poul Anderson's minor novel, Shield.The other reviewers have commented that the novel is dated.Yes.But so are almost all sci-fi novels written in the 1960s when it came to describing computers etc.Also, it has been suggested that the redundancy of the technology in the "kinetic force shield" somehow detracts from the story.I would argue that if anything Poul Anderson's novel creates the vibrant world that many of these other novels lack (i.e. Asimov's Space Rangers).In addition, unlike the Space Ranger series this is slightly more serious and might appeal to a slightly older audience.

That said, the basic plot is as follows:Koskinen, a naive young astronaut, returns from Mars and an extended séance with the planet's friendly natives (thankfully never fully explained -- the"mystery" adds some depth) with a kinetic force shield.Unknown to him, every faction of Earth wants to get their hands on it including his government whom he is VERY reluctant to disown.He falls in with a local warlord and his mob which inhabits a World War Three crater decked out with pill boxes and the beautiful Vivienne.A bomb is placed around his neck and he is forced to create more force shields.In order to avoid spoilers I will stop at this point.

Poul Anderson manages to create a very interesting world: the inhabited craters, the cities attempt to suppress these crime dens.However, the characters are one dimensional of course, the plot semi-predictable, and the technology is not that original.That said, this is a fun read!

Scientist runs for his life with new technology
When the first manned Mars mission returns from an alien-populated Mars, they radio ahead with one scientist's adaptation of alien science: a kinetic force shield.Big mistake - now all the governments of the worldwant his prototype for themselves, and will kill anyone in theirway.

Fleeing into Earth's underground to meet up with the mob, the lonescientist tries to survive long enough to keep his invention from becomingthe ultimate superpower device.

This is an old novel, and some of theplot is dated, but fits the general American setting.The kinetic forceshield is seen in various other sci-fi, from Issac Asimov's Space Rangernovels to today's Stargate: SG-1 series. ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Space ships; Interstellar travel; Fiction / Science Fiction / General; Fiction / Science Fiction / General; ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The stars as a new and even more splendid America
The theme of this story, part of the "Orbit Unlimited" novel by Poul Anderson, is that American colonists seeks to leave Earth for the planet Rustum, the only "earthlike" planet yet discovered by humans.At enormous cost and sacrifice, they board an interstellar vessel and depart Earth. Earth has become Statist, with the Government aiming to educate young people away from believing in libertarian ideals.But as the starship approaches Rustum.... well, more would be telling.

A good yarn by one of the greats of science fiction.RJB.

Free SF Reader
A Science Fiction Story

Rustum 'em up.


3 out of 5 ... Read more

Product Description
Others have written SF on the theme of immortality, but in The Boat of a Million Years, Poul Anderson made it his own. Early in human history, certain individuals were born who live on, unaging, undying, through the centuries and millenia.We follow them through over 2000 years, up to our time and beyond-to the promise of utopia, and to the challenge of the stars.

A milestone in modern science fiction, a New York Times Notable Book on its first publication in 1989, this is one of a great writer's finest works.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (45)

Lives of ageless people through human history
Three vessels fared by moonlight. Hanno the phoenecian, an explorer and adventurer, wants to travel and learn. At china, a traveller Tu Shan is heard to master the Tao. Many claim his great age is due to enlightenment. A thousand years later in ancient Rome. A crowd is hounding somebody. The fugitive, Rufus, was built for strength, not speed, and his pursuers were yelling: "Sorcerer"; the man has lost his old toothless wife, but he never seemed to grow old. People didn't understand. 200 years later. A fashionable and expensive courtesan in Constantinople was overdue for a change of identity. And Hanno had a first chance to meet a female of his kind, who would also share the secret. He hoped for companion from years gone past him. Were there more of them? How many?

Immortality. The story is about few men and women that live through ages. Taking identities and changing occupations as ground starts to burn around them. People around them grow old and there comes a time when they can't hide their youthful look any longer. They are lonely. At the end there is no more hiding in modern society, but to go to the stars to find a planet, home of their own, to settle down. The book consist of historical episodes where these ageless people appear in different name: in Phoenicia, in Scandinavia, in Gaul, in Rome, Japan, Russia, Native American tribes etc. Each one of them is suffering under the onus of an extraordinary curse; their children and wives fade from the memory. They are not immortal, they can die when hurt, but they don't age. None of them know why.

Two (2) stars. Written in 1990 there is almost no science fiction that would follow from the high hopes of the book cover presenting a spaceship. Of 600 pages the historical episodes fill 90 percent of the book: best described as a short story collection. The cultures and time periods are well researched but the flaw is the book's extreme length; eventually the obsessiveness of the history starts wear off reader. Without an explained purpose or hinted goal, following the lives of ageless people through human history is not very engrossing. In the last chapters eight immortals experience space and an alien encounter but there is not enough drama to keep it pinching. The next phase of their lives is too tidy (happily ever after) because aliens takie them under their wings. It would have been interesting to cover the problem of human nature to enduring 2000 years. Would anyone really want to live that long? What psychological strains could it cause to have to endure and cope with losses of one's closest people? The book is silent about these aspects and pours on being on adventure mode through the end. This may be personal work of the author, but from the reader it takes a great deal of conviction to finish the book.

nice boat ride
There are a number of science fiction stories about prolonged lives, but this is one of the best.Poul Anderson had the good idea of having the long-livers represent numerous ethnic and personality types bound together only by their mutation, allowing him to explore several possibilities at once.Even their strategies for covering up their mutation varies: an adventurous man travels endlessly; a bureaucrat fudges his own dates; a peasant and a prostitute stay under the radar; charismatic types attract friends who are willing to help with coverups.In the meantime the loose premise gives Anderson a pretext for giving snapshots of dramatic moments in history, from the explorations of a Greek philosopher to the drama of an escaped slave on the Undergound Railroad to the Battle of Stalingrad.

I would have given this 5 stars were not for the long, extraneous last chapter, which puts the long-livers in the future.It has none of the interest of the rest of the book: the secrets are out; there is no more historical background, and the characters have lost their individuality.That chapter should probably have published as a sequel to the book rather than its conclusion.

Disappointing
An excellent idea poorly developed. What might be the behaviour of a 3,000 yo human being? Would he/she still behave like all of us? I doubt it. I also doubt anyone could survive for so long since the immortals can be killed as easily as ordinary human beings. Let alone any mad guy who would enjoy doing away with them.

The short stories are rather unequal in quality and the whole plot somewhat misfired.

What a Drag it is Not Getting Old
Poul Anderson's book follows a handful of characters through millennia of their unnaturally long lives.We first encounter them in ancient times and hide with them in the dark corners of history from the jealousy and superstitious fear of others.The author's braided story structure resembles a Tom Clancy novel as the characters paths first twist near each other and finally come together.Once united in the "present," this small band of immortals shapes the future by helping medical researchers share their immortality with humankind.The original immortals then crew a spaceship in search of nonhuman civilizations.

The first half of this book, from the past through present time, is excellent.Readers feel the special concerns of long-lived individuals among normal humans.We feel the pain of losing loved ones to death, and the different pain of love grown cold.The lessons we learn ring true--lessons about keeping secrets, hiding up treasure, and always preparing to run from that heavy knock on the door.The suspicion and distrust of others makes the few good relationships precious, and is believable motivation for our heroes to find and join with other immortals.

I wish the book had ended shortly after the immortals found each other.The transition to the "normal" science fiction of space exploration is jarring.In my opinion, it was not particularly interesting space exploration, either.I continued on out of loyalty to the characters, having spent so many centuries with them.Perhaps it was part of the author's strategy to make readers feel trapped with the characters the same way some of them did with each other.I think a good editor should have removed the future scenes, leaving us with excellent historical fiction.

Readers who both enjoy the book's strengths and forgive its primary flaw will almost certainly enjoy Kim Stanley Robinson's The Years of Rice and Salt.In this book, the characters are continually reincarnated rather than immortal.They face analogous problems in learning time's lessons.Oddly, Robinson's book also loses steam when it moves into the future.Perhaps there is some lesson for us to learn about the different natures of alternate history and future-oriented science fiction?

A major author's least successful work
Poul Anderson is one of the great authors of the 1950s whom readers of my age grew up on, along with Heinlein, Simak, Bradbury, and Asimov. Sadly, his best work is far behind him. Though described as a novel, this one isn't. Rather, it's a series of mostly short, often disconnected episodes poorly stitched together. The theme is an old one: There are immortals living among us, only a few of them, who can die -- but not of old age. They reach maturity and then a plateau from which they never decline like the rest of us. They watch their spouses and children and friends grow old and die. Eventually, they must move on and take new identities, in order to escape the awe, and then fear, and then hatred of the people around them. And they either learn to cope with the realization of their differentness, or they don't. As I said, an old theme. Heinlein did it with Lazarus Long (though in his case it wasn't chance genetics), and there have been any number of "Wandering Jew" tales and vampire stories. I've even written a few myself, because it gives one a chance to play with a variet of historical settings. Anderson establishes a handful of immortal characters here, the oldest being Hanno the Phoenician, and in the first three-quarters of the volume he sets them in various backgrounds over the past two thousand years. Sometimes the result is merely a pleasant little vignette, and you have to wonder why he bothered. The best of these is a chapter called "No Man May Shun His Doom," probably because it was published originally as a short story. In the last section, set in the future, the little band of undying have finally joined up to explore the stars -- sort of an obvious destiny for people who live forever, and most readers will see it coming a mile away. Anderson's grasp of history is (of course) accurate and detailed -- perhaps a little too much so for many readers -- but the book itself just sort of sits there and stares at you. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (3)

Very disappointing
I am an avid Dominic Flandry fan, but this one was a disappointment.It just did not work for me.It appeared to me that Poul Anderson simply did not have his heart in this one, and it showed.I was barely able to finish this novel and I have already forgotten what it was about because it did not, at any time, capture my interest.

The Flandry novels are mostly really good, but not this one.

Actually Not At All Bad
I read this when it came out many years ago, and my opinion was the same as the first reviewer's--"the author has obviously lost interest in Flandry."Now, though, I look at the book a little differently; it feels more like Mr. Anderson was making the point that while individuals may leave the stage, the game of empire goes on, in much the same form it has since the dawn of history.Definitely worth a look, since Poul Anderson was one of the best writers in the genre.

The end of Dominic Flandry
Game of Empire is the final installation of the Dominic Flandry series of stories.As an avid Poul Anderson, and specifically Dominic Flandry, fan, I found this novel a complete disappointment.It is evident that the author has lost interest in this series, and that the novel was written to satisfy the publisher.

The book is hardly a Dominic Flandry novel at all.Flandry is an aging admiral who makes several appearances.The protagonist is Diana, a daughter of Flandry.The character has much potential, but is never truly developed.Even worse, Anderson has already used the basic plot in the short story 'The Warriors from Nowhere', the novella 'The Rebel Worlds', and the novel A Stone in Heaven.Throw us a bone, and use some imagination!The only saving grace of the novel is Anderson's (as usual) masterful craft of language and detail which bring these fictional worlds alive. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Adventure Among the Stars
Sunday, November 05, 2006
"Trader to the Stars" by Poul Anderson, ©1964
This is not a typical story. It is more like a mystery story. The first story is typical adventure and swashbuckling, the Danish hero, Nicholas van Rijn, even gets the girl in the end. It is a good start. The next two stories are more in the mode of mysteries: facts are told, deductions made and in the end everything is okay.
On an icebound planet some do-gooders are trying to save the population from extinction a thousand years in the future. Mr. van Rijn deduces the problem and acts on it to the happiness of all. It is sort of a big gamble he takes and wins, but it is a story about him. In real life, the odds are the gamble would not work, but such is life.
The other two stories are about trade missions that have problems with the natives. Mr. van Rijn solves all the problems with a bit of analysis and thinking. It is rather impressive.

Adventure among the Stars
Sunday, November 05, 2006
"Trader to the Stars" by Poul Anderson, ©1964
This is not a typical story. It is more like a mystery story. The first story is typical adventure and swashbuckling, the Danish hero, Nicholas van Rijn, even gets the girl in the end. It is a good start. The next two stories are more in the mode of mysteries: facts are told, deductions made and in the end everything is okay.
On an icebound planet some do-gooders are trying to save the population from extinction a thousand years in the future. Mr. van Rijn deduces the problem and acts on it to the happiness of all. It is sort of a big gamble he takes and wins, but it is a story about him. In real life, the odds are the gamble would not work, but such is life.
The other two stories are about trade missions that have problems with the natives. Mr. van Rijn solves all the problems with a bit of analysis and thinking. It is rather impressive.

the Danish hero, Nicholas van Rijn
Sunday, November 05, 2006
"Trader to the Stars" by Poul Anderson, ©1964
This is not a typical story. It is more like a mystery story. The first story is typical adventure and swashbuckling, the Danish hero, Nicholas van Rijn, even gets the girl in the end. It is a good start. The next two stories are more in the mode of mysteries: facts are told, deductions made and in the end everything is okay.
On an icebound planet some do-gooders are trying to save the population from extinction a thousand years in the future. Mr. van Rijn deduces the problem and acts on it to the happiness of all. It is sort of a big gamble he takes and wins, but it is a story about him. In real life, the odds are the gamble would not work, but such is life.
The other two stories are about trade missions that have problems with the natives. Mr. van Rijn solves all the problems with a bit of analysis and thinking. It is rather impressive.

Jacket review
from the back cover of the January 1977 Berkley Medallion edition

As humanity begins to expand into the galaxy, great pioneers lead.NICHOLAS VAN RIJN, the trader, owner of the Solar Spice and Liquors Company - capitalist, free spirit, manager:the man who counts.

HIDING PLACE
TERRITORY
THE MASTER KEY

Wonderful science fiction.Almost 5 stars.
This is a collection of short stories which take place in Poul Anderson's "Polesotechnic League" ("League of Selling Skills") aka Nicholas Van Rijn series.The premise is simple: 1) Humans have achieved cheap interstellar travel; 2) There are many other intelligent races and inhabited planets; 3) Humans and aliens alike are just as greedy in the future as humans are now.

Unlike "Star Trek" (which I also love!) and some other science fiction prognostications about the future, this series never, ever, assumes that people (or aliens) are or will become morally superior to people in the present day.There is no "Prime Directive" here. No, in Anderson's universe, most people are out to make a buck, and space is dominated by merchant-adventurers who make no bones about their aim of pursuing profit.Anderson presents this as mostly a good thing, albeit not without its moral hazards.The bad guys more often than not are politicians, whom Anderson more often than not, scorns.The good guys (and gals) are merchant-adventurers who, in their pursuit of profit, encounter some pretty wild situations and get into some pretty interesting (sometimes quite funny) predicaments.

The stories in this collection are highly readable, well-written, and quite imaginative.They always involve clever applications of scientific speculation combined with a good storyline.The stories generally do a fine job of keeping the reader's interest.They are crisply written and move along smartly, unlike some of Anderson's later writings (see my reviews of "Harvest of Stars" and "The Stars are also Fire" by Anderson--some of his later works.)

This book is highly recommended.If you like this one, don't miss "The Trouble Twisters" which is the next book in the series, also a collection of short stories set in the Polesotechnic League future.Enjoy both. ... Read more

Product Description
Jack Havig, a man born with the ability to move at will through the past and the future of mankind, must save the world from a doomed future of tyranny before his time runs out. Reprint. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

excellent time travel read
I have always been a big fan of sci fi, and of historical fiction, so I don't know how I missted this book. Im glad I finally saw a recommendation for it and read it.Not only did I enjoy the characters and plot, but I enjoyed mulling over the many ideas the author has about time travel, civilizations, and the future.My only quibble was that I wanted more history, esp about Constantinople, but I susped that would have detracted from his purpose.I plan on reading more of his time travel books, hope they are as good!

Hop, Skip and a Jump
Jack Havig was born with a rare gift:he is able to travel through time.As a time traveler Jack is able to visit any era in history...or travel to the distant future.Learning who he is takes Jack many years, and through the course of those years Jack builds a fortune, falls in love, and, in his hunt for others like himself, finds an enemy that threatens what humanity is to become.

In There Will Be Time, Poul Anderson takes a concept which has been done time and again in science fiction and tells a tale that is exceedingly human and believable.Born with this gift, Jack's childhood is fraught with numerous episodes where he disappears...worrying his mother to no-end.Upon reaching adulthood, Jack is ceaselessly seeking a way to determine if he is the only one of his kind.I found Jack's maturation authentic and rational.If I had this ability to travel through time like Jack, I can easily see myself traveling through the same process of error and discovery.

When Jack finally does find others of his kind...and learns who they truly are; what their motives are, Jack's actions are completely plausible, even if the actual writing of this part of the novel felt a bit edited.

In fact, the only discernible flaw was that Anderson seemed so focused on the story he wanted to tell, that he denied diverging upon the tales of secondary characters with a ferocity one does not normally see in a novel.This is especially true of the denouement, which definitely could have been cushioned a bit more; elaboration would have been nice at several points.

Flaws aside, this is a fine, engaging tale.As a first sortie into a Poul Anderson world, There Will Be Time has left me looking forward to picking up another of Anderson's tales in the future.

How To Turn Time Travel Into a Business Venture
Here's an inevitable but different take on the time travel story. It answers the question of where you would find other time travelers and what you would do when you found them. The place to find time travelers is apparently at Jesus' crucifixion. And what you do when you find them is to form a league of time travelers who can hopefully make the future a better place. Never have I seen any other time travel author touch on these ideas, but they do seem like obvious ideas.

This story was quite enjoyable and only took a couple of sittings to finish. The time travelers in this story have a genetic predisposition to time travel with their physical body instead of by using a time machine. Their period of time travel covers quite a large period of time from the crucifixion to ancient Rome to pre-Colombian America to 1970s America to the day of judgment and beyond. It covers themes of love and deception and also tries to answer the question of what the ultimate possibility could be for a time traveler.

I definitely think this time travel novel is a sadly overlooked one that should have become more famous than it did. Poul Anderson wrote several other novels with time travel themes that I'd like to delve into soon

Doesn't hold up
I loved this book when I first read it back in the '70s, but it hasn't held up very well. The personal time travel gimmick is interesting, but too often the story gets bogged down by Anderson's politics. Not a baby boomer himself, Anderson nonetheless gets caught up in their vision of themselves as a Generation of Destiny and thus sees the "turbulence" of the '60s and '70s as more pivotal than it ever was (to be fair, a lot of other right wingers saw the Fall of Western Civilization coming in that period). Well, a bunch of hippies didn't bring about the end of the world, any more than a small bunch of "islamofascists" is going to in this generation. What's the next Boogie Man: "transhumans?"

On the plus side, no one can describe the feel, sound, and look of the past (or the future for that matter) like Anderson. In this novel, you really get what it must have been like in the Jerusalem at the time of the Crucifixion or Constantinople during the Crusades. A lot of writers of so-called historical fiction could benefit from a close study of Anderson.

One of the best time travel books extant
This is one of my favorite books.It's one of the few I can reread about every year, and enjoy as much as when I first read it.Poul Anderson was one of the science fiction genre's brightest stars, able to write sword and sorcery fantasy and hard science fiction with equal facility.This story is one of his best.

Those familiar with Anderson's work will recognize that this book ties in (however peripherally) with some of his other stories, about a post apocalyptic future where a New Zealand/Micronesian amalgam culture known as the Maurai come to dominate the world after a nuclear holocaust, and having been less hard hit by the catastrophe, are left strong enough to impose their vision of a less industrialized, more ecologically balanced ideal on the rest of the world.This story concerns a group of time travellers (whose ability is inate, and due to a genetic mutation, rather than any external time machine), led by a charismatic, but bigoted and ruthless 19th century American, whose aim is to break the Maurai domination, and re-establish industrial civilization.

The book tells the story of a bright, thoughtful, 20th century American who at first joins this group, then rebels against the ruthlessness countenanced by the group's leader.(But despite this, the book is clearly not some politically correct paean to eco-nazism, and the Maurai philosophy is represented thoughtfully as a way which does embody some genuine good, but which also became rigid, dogmatic, and even repressive -- in fact this is one of the best aspects of the story: neither side is wholly right or wholly wrong, but are each representative of good ideas and bad mingled together.This is highly realistic, as two sides in any conflict almost always have their valid points as well as their indefensible wrongs.) In addition to the adventure of the main character's war against his erstwhile comrades, there is a twofold romance story (understated, but well written), an engaging account of the protagonist's activities in the late 12th/early 13th century Byzantine Empire, and an interesting philosophical speculation about the nature of time tavel and fixed destiny versus free will.

This book is now out of print, but pick up a used copy if you can.As I said, Anderson was one of the giants of the science fiction genre.There is no author writing today who is his equal.This is a great little story by a master of the field, and is simply entertaining in its own right as well, and well worth the read. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Sorry Poul
Oh Poul. When it came to big ideas, he was unbeatable. His "Tau Zero" is on my top-10 SF list of all times, reread every couple of years. Now, in "Enemy Stars" there is an excellent idea, 4 spacemen marooned in a disaster stricken spaceship, trying to survive. The story is promising and the science is hard (I read the 1979 revised version) even though a few pages read like an air conditioner manual.

So, Poul Anderson was indeed one of the think tanks of the genre. But, when it came to characters, he just... couldn't make it right. His heroes are so agonizingly predictable and cliché, they can almost give SF a bad name.

His Japanese is annoyingly low key and always sorry. His Russian is pathetically vulgar and aggressive. His Anglo-Saxon is cocky. Had his crew included a Puerto Rican, he would be stealing fellow astronauts' wallets and if there was an Italian, he would be running the Galaxy's local arm Camorra branch. Not to mention his female characters (actually only one) where he becomes even more formulaic.

Even though this trait is evident in every Poul Anderson work I`ve read, in Enemy Stars it is so prominent that brings the novel down to two stars. Read it for the idea behind it, which is great, but do not expect much more.

Faulty synopsis mars reading
Rear cover: `The black star was not part of Creation. It was a fossil sun, left over from a Universe that had died before this one was born, circled by an iron tomb than had once been a planet. When the black star called, four men went to the galaxy's edge. Only one came back. But he did not come back alone...'

Honestly, that summarizes 90% of the book. There is little left out of the synopsis so that there aren't many surprises for the reader. Even the end tag to the synopsis points to an obvious climax. Being only 152 pages, it's a quick read as many of Anderson's tend to be. His idea of an ancient burnt out core of a star resonates with another one of his novels Mirkheim where humans and aliens politically negotiate over the remnants of a supernova blasts planet. Likewise here in Enemy Stars, the black core of an ancient supernova has stripped the surrounding planets to their respective nuclei.

What isn't mentioned in the summary is the four `spacemen' who are willing to `mattercasted' to the far-flung starship en route of being diverted to this new found astronomical relic. Once near the star, the ship is disabled by the stars bizarre properties and its' mattercaster is ruined. With limited resources, the dwindling space posse must somehow repair the ship to produce thrust AND create a new mattercaster from scratch. However implausible the construction may be, all items are easy to reproduce except for the 4 kilograms of germanium, which must be sought after elsewhere.

As mentioned in the overview, only one man makes it back to earth. What sacrifices did he have to suffer? Each man had their own motivation for self-sacrifice for the greater good of the crew. Though Anderson says that he thinks this is one of his better stories (revised in 1979 from the 1958 edition) I think many of other Anderson's novels can trump this (i.e. Tau Zero, Brain Wave, Star Fox and Planet of No Return).

One dead star = A dull read
The premise of this sci fi novel is interesting enough: four men are sent out to investigate the discovery of a dead star.They arrive on the ship by means of a matter transmitter (like a teleporting device) because the ship is already so deep into space.Now you know that tragedy will eventually strike, but it's difficult to get around the science to the real reason for the accident.Occasionally Pohl gets too deep into scientific statistics, but then again, some people enjoy that realism.I, however, don't.The flat characters add little to the book.There are lots of conversations between them after the accident, but these are not deep characters; you understand most of them pretty quickly after they are introduced.Although there is a nice dose of suspense, the lack of any interesting plot or characters made this a book I wished I hadn't spent any time on even though I finished in two days.Science fiction fans should look elsewhere for excitement.

sad story of four men
"The Enemy Stars" by Poul Anderson, © 1958, new material © 1979.

This is a sad story of four men who try to study the stars from up close.They are recruited and sent, by way of matter transfer, to a ship near the star.They make some choices and have to adapt and persevere because the choicesput them in danger.
The fellows are a disparate lot, one rich, one poor, but educated, one ornery and mad, and one sad and reconciled to his fate.These four come together and find out how to live and work together, which is just the first challenge they have.
They try to approach the dead star they are studying and it damages the ship.They try to fix it and lose the first man.They try something else that sort of works and crash land on a planet, losing the second person.The one fellow says the sea does not forgive mistakes and it is the same out here.This could be a simile for life in general.

An early classic by a legend of the genre
Poul Anderson, who passed away in 2001, was one of the true super luminaries in the field of science fiction, and it is unfortunate indeed that much of his writing, amounting to more than one hundred books, is hard to find and thus eroding from collective science fiction memory.The Enemy Stars is one of his earlier novels and serves as a wonderful way for readers to introduce or reintroduce themselves to this science fiction legend.This rather short novel first appeared in the magazine Astounding Science Fiction with the title We Have Fed Our Seas in August and September 1958.The title was changed, for reasons I certainly don't understand, to The Enemy Stars, and the book was nominated for a Hugo award for best science fiction novel of 1959.In 1979, Anderson went back and slightly revised the novel, principally updating the hard science fiction aspects of the tale based on the knowledge gained over the course of the twenty years since the book was written.

I can't say I was blown away by this novel, although it is certainly a good read.In my opinion, it is too short; it took me a while to get really acquainted with each of the characters, and by that time there was too little insight left to share before the rapidly approaching ending.There are some wonderful ideas wrapped into this narrative, but I didn't feel as if enough of them were given the time and care to make them truly flourish.The historical context of the drama also wasn't exploited as much as I would have liked.Basically, at some time in the future, Earth and its colonial satellites and planets maintain a tough alliance, with suspicion and dislike seemingly bred into the respective settlers.The government is some type of one-world entity called the Protectorate, but we don't learn much about the system beyond the fact that many men oppose it both philosophically and practically.In this world, a spaceship exists far out in space, a ship launched by a country that no longer exists.Scientists can effectively "beam up" to the ship across vast distances in space, and four very different men do so in order to study a newly discovered dark star.Naturally, something goes wrong, and the foursome must look death in the face and work together in order to survive.Any truths we learn from the novel come out over the course of this life and death drama in space.

The Enemy Stars didn't really provide the level of philosophical revelation I half expected at the end, and certain parts of the story (especially that concerning Earth's government) never got the attention they seemed to deserve, yet this was still an enjoyable and thought-provoking read.The science is definitely of the hard science fiction variety, yet the human element takes its rightful place at the core of the novel.Man's infinite search for truth, for a reason for being, is what Anderson approaches via The Enemy Stars, and while he might not have put a spotlight on the true answer of existence, he does manage to sweep his flashlight of imagination over some important and meaningful aspects of that ultimate answer. ... Read more

Product Description
Larry Niven called Harvest of Stars "a masterpiece."

Now Poul Anderson returns to the same brilliantly conceived future to tell a story of revolution and liberation on the Moon.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Bloated
The book is twice the length it should have been.

There are also jarring things like the gratuitious use of
common Spanish phrases, as if they would replace English
ones in common use but nothing else, and the gratuitous
use of Hawaiian (which far fewer of us know).

And then there are the undefined neologisms

Reluctant two stars
I gave it two stars, reluctantly, because despite the libertarian politico-economic spouting of some of the characters, and the tired back and forth across centuries, the first half or so of the book at least had some suspense and (slow and creaky) character development, and an expectation of an exciting and interesting denouement. But by the end I was left sitting there thinking, "That's it? That's it?!"

All along I kept thinking that there had to be something about the object of the search other than its simple existence. Why otherwise would one side try so valiantly to find it, and the other side so desperately to keep it hidden. Why, indeed? I'm still wondering...

Pass this one up. I've been a fan of Poul Anderson's for a long time, but some of his latter-day stuff just isn't up to it. This is one fine example.

A Major Letdown
This was my first foray into Poul Anderson's work, and could well be my last. From other reviews it sounds as though his earlier works are much better, though. Well, this book is the subject at hand...

For about the first two hundred pages, I felt as though I was wading through background and would soon get to the meat of the conflict, but eventually found that the minor element of conflict mentioned early in the story really was the only point of contention. Then by page 500 I was looking for a major revelation to provide a suitable climax. And then the "story" ended.

This kind of seemed like an (excruciatingly) extended "what if?" sci-fi novel, but rather than reach any interesting conclusions, Anderson leaves you wondering why you had to read nearly 600 pages to discover absolutely nothing more than what was provided in the prologue. I was disappointed on so many levels, it's difficult to focus on any one aspect of the book.

The characters were flat, but stretched out to seem larger than life... the story is really just future history, and not even remotely plausible... many actions are taken without any apparent motivation -- or consequences... most ideas in the novel are based on the fad science topics of the time: chaos theory and quantum physics...only Anderson didn't seem to understand chaos theory (it simply must have sounded too cool not to tie it into some aspect of the story every 20 or so pages).

In short, avoid this waste of time at all costs (even the 50 cents I paid for a used copy was too much). Anderson combines the worst trait of bad sci-fi (flat, contrived characters) with that of bad fiction (highly questionable and/or misunderstood science).

Good, but not Anderson's best
This book was twice as long as it needed to be.As he got older, Poul Anderson seemed to need more words to say less.This book is like that.Still a good book for those who like science fiction and who like to think.

Late in his career, Anderson seemed to conclude that it is inevitable that eventually humans would become subordinate to man-made creations of artificial intelligence.Many of his books lead to this common conclusion.Anderson plainly views this as depressing, which makes this book a dark and unhappy vision of humanity's destiny.He may be right, but he seemed to be stuck in this groove and unable to think outside of this particular box, at least towards the end.

This book epitomizes another Anderson staple: distrust of government.It compares feudal society (the Lunarians) with the ultimate State (the machine-dominated Earth government or, alternatively, the Avantist government that supplants America's present republican form of government.).

Despite the above, this book is worth reading, especially if (like me) you are a big Poul Anderson fan.This book is entertaining and imaginative, and worth more than just a look.

As brilliant in scope and accomplishment as Harvest of Stars
This second installment in Anderson's H.O.S. universe takes place about hundreds of years after the first one.Now the world is controlled by benevolent and caring but stifling machine intelligences.Dagney Beynac, adescendent of Anson Guthrie's, and others go on a round the solar systemjaunt searching for an elusive secret that she believes is the key toreigniting the passion for exploration that the majority of now-pacifiedhumans had lost in their centuries of being coddled by AI beings.A secretthat the AIs and their conglomerated consciousness, the Teramind, will doanything to protect.Really on par with Harvest Of Stars, which means alot, unless you haven't read HOS in which case you shouldn't be trying tobuy this book, because it is a sequel to an equal or better novel. ... Read more