Catching up to do…
I just finished Shambleau and about half way through the Review. But I’ve decided I’m not going to begin on a new book until I’ve caught up and squared away all the outstanding books. So, what I’ve got to do is this:
Shambleau and Others: Review
Cosmic Engineers: Read and Review
Renaissance: Review
The Robot and the Man: Review
The Mixed Men: Close Up & Review
Aside from the first two, I’ll have to re-read the others to refresh my feelings about them. Especially Renaissance, I didn’t really know what to make of that particular story.
The Great Gnome Press Science Fiction Odyssey 
August 27, 2009 at 4:03 pm
Just finished RENAISSANCE. Look forward to reading your impressions. I thought the Raymond F. Jones novel was a largely successful effort at mining the territory that A. E. van Vogt (almost) exclusively owned in the Astounding of the WWII years. It certainly had all the VV trademarks— fast pacing, sense-of-wonder revelations, conspiracy layed upon conspiracy with shocking role reversals. The only thing it may have lacked is a final plot twist on the last page. And a memorable last line.
August 27, 2009 at 7:39 pm
Thanks Mark. You are on the money regarding Renaissance. I have to say though, I was left scratching my head after I finished it. Very convoluted, confusing and difficult to straighten out upstairs. Perhaps it will be a bit easier after a second read. Regards, Aaron.
August 27, 2009 at 10:34 pm
I read RENAISSANCE over a four week period so I was able to digest the story more slowly. Plus I read the original 4-part serialization in the July-October 1944 issues of Astounding so I had synopses of Parts One through Three to help clear up any plot confusion.
I don’t have the Gnome edition but I do have the 1963 Pyramid Books MAN OF TWO WORLDS. I didn’t do a line-by-line comparison between the Pyramid and Astounding versions but the text appears to be identical. Except — the last paragraph of Chapter 22 in Astounding is missing in the Pyramid version.
Chapter 22 in the Pyramid paperback ends with the sentence- “The altar tipped crazily and Ketan cried out Elta’s name.” Chapter 22 in the September 1944 Astounding has this additional paragraph after the above sentence– “Then the scene was gone and he was again in the cradle of space among the stars, alone with them in the realm where time had stopped forever, yet great suns were born and grew old and vanished in the quick fire of novae, all in an instant.”
Nothing major but interesting to note which version of Chapter 22 is in the Gnome edition. If I was betting it would be the Pyramid.
August 28, 2009 at 9:48 am
Mark… It’s the astounding ending for Chapter 22 with that extra paragraph.
August 28, 2009 at 10:52 am
Aaron, thanks for the info. I guess I lost that bet. 🙂
August 28, 2009 at 8:36 pm
Pity we didn’t have anything on it… anyway, stay tuned for the review for that and others!! Cheers, Aaron.