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Originally Posted by j. d. worthington I'm not sure I'd agree with the latter part of this; if taken in historical perspective (the development of any branch of literature), it's not likely to stand out in context. But, yes, though Doc Smith was a lovely man, his literary abilities were a bit limited. However, he holds an important place in the development of sf, and influenced nearly all the major writers of the next 40 years. |
Important perhaps to all those who began reading sf in their teens. But then again, Gernsback's Ralph 124C 41+ is a truly seminal sf work... and by all accounts an awful read :-)
I still maintain that some of Doc Smith's sensibilities are somewhat hard to take these days. Masters of Space, for example, has the female characters welcoming the conversion to near-immortal android bodies because their tits won't sag (and, perversely, it's one of Smith's later novels).
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Originally Posted by j. d. worthington Even Van, whose prose is rather wonky, has some magnificent ideas and The Weapon Shops, in particular, has one of the best final lines I've ever read (though it must be read at the end of the novel; it gains its impact from all that's gone before). Slan, while flawed, still is one of the best examples of that particular kind of story not for the writing, for the exploration of ideas. |
Sorry, didn't think Slan was that good (and I read it only a few months ago). The Undercover Aliens, on other hand, remains a favourite novel because it's an unholy mix of noir and sf, and captures its time so well. I've always suspected it would make a great film... providing you could get the audience to swallow the silly bit about nuclear missiles near the end...
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Originally Posted by j. d. worthington Ellison by no means appeals to everyone, but his importance in the field is inarguable. |
Well, Ellison would certainly agree with you there :-)
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Originally Posted by j. d. worthington And those are my reasons for these particular choices.....  |
Fair enough. But no Blish? The Case of Conscience at least belongs on there. Oh, and--another heretical opinion!--I like The Stars My Destination a great deal, but I hate The Demolished Man :-)
Let's make it harder... ten books published between 1930 and 1970. Favourites or "classics", no author to appear twice...