Never Go Back

[Anthony G Williams]

In the last couple of years I've had a bit more time for reading so I've been alternating between reading new (to me) books and re-reading old ones - sometimes for the first time in decades. I've been surprised by how well all my old favourites have held up; I didn't really expect that. Of course, since I now write as well as read I've become more conscious of stylistic issues and have spotted more flaws, but I still enjoy them.

What I have noticed is that I still most enjoy the relatively short, fast-paced novels which grip you so tightly that it's an effort to put the book down - and a lot of those were written in the 1950s and 60s. Too much modern SFF is over-long, over-padded, and pedestrian IMO. Some authors seem more concerned with achieving literary respectability than with writing a rattling good yarn!

[yngvi]

I'm in the same boat as you. With new authors I find I have to kiss a lot of frogs to get a prince, and for sure having read a lot I am probably more discerning and find it hard to find anything which comes across as fresh.

With re-reading, this is about 80% of what I do. Sometimes stuff holds up really well in all respects, sometimes I can see the flaws but my original liking for the work allows me to accept them, and just sometimes I am rather disappointed. Some authors I wouldn't even try again (like Michael Moorcock). I read everything he wrote at the time but even then I could see the limitations of his plotting, charectorisation and prose but was carried along by the flood of ideas he had.

I wonder what I would make of 'The Jewel in the Skull' if I read it now?

Has anyone re-visited Moorcock all these years later?

[Anthony G Williams]

The only Moorcock books from his early years I've kept are the Elric series. I haven't read them in years, but intend to at some point: I think they are true classics of original fantasy. After that, he churned out a lot of potboilers.

[Connavar]

Originally Posted by Delvo

One of Heinlein's big few claims to fame was how much he worked against racism, being among the first authors to include sympathizable minorities and minority protagonists, and he didn't just do it once but made a point of doing it repeatedly and explicitly, deliberately and pointedly projecting racism as being very stupid and ignorant. I don't get how your impression could be so thoroughly the opposite of what everyone else considers fact.

When it comes to sex, he's not known for sexism or for working so hard against it; the main Heinleinism on that issue is that he advocated sexual "liberation" and presented various taboo sexual ideas and behaviors out in the open without disdain or condemnation, although not necessarily always particularly positive either.

'


I think the reason is that for a SF writer of his time his stories was very social and political. Those things that are sexism in todays world was totaly different in his time.

I doubt he was one of few who has old fashioned views of women in his time but since he is so famous and wrote so many political,social SF people, he gets diss.

Personally i think his stories are timeless. Some of his issues are still current.

[Amalthea]

Originally Posted by yngvi

Anyone else go back somewhere they really shouldn't have?

The Stand by Stephen King.
I remember how great I thought that book was when I was a teenager.
When I read it years later, I realized that the characters were one-dimensional and seemed to be created by someone with the depth of a 12-year old.

No offense intended toward Stephen King fans and 12-year olds.

[Nesacat]

David Eddings' Belgariad and Mallorean books. I loved them to bits when I read them in school and I still recommend them to people who are starting to read fantasy and want something easy to start with. It's not that I don't like the books anymore of think they are bad books. I think I've just grown out of them.

[Quokka]

Similar story with Eddings, I reread the Sparhawk series a few years ago and knew then that I wouldn't be rereading Eddings again anytime soon. Like you said good books if you're just starting out reading, Harry Potter probably plays a similar role now but there's certainly a lot better reads out there.

I've basically stopped rereading books at all for now, just too many new books I want to try.