[snip-snip]
(++) Plague of Demons - Laumer (re-read)
One of James’ posts, or perhaps one of the responses that followed, mentioned this one. I had read it years ago, but I couldn’t remember anything tangible about it. A human discovers that aliens have
infiltrated Earth, and he decides to allow himself to become
(experimentally) bio-engineered to help fight back. It’s a short, action-packed story, which would undoubtedly be a bloated trilogy
nowadays. Is this the best book you’ll ever read? No, but it is
fast-paced, entertaining, never ponderous, and reminds me of the best
Van Vogt works, where things move faster and faster to a conclusion.
(+ -) Mathenauts: Tales of Mathematical Wonder - ed. by Rucker
Not very good - it took months to get through this, with not many
memorable (or good) stories at all. Full disclosure: I’m a
mathematician, and I find fiction that (supposedly) focuses on math to
almost aways fall flat. I believe this phenomena falls under one of my “reading rules”: “The more you know about a subject, the less likely you’ll enjoy fiction about it.” [snip-snip]
On 2/1/2024 8:24 PM, Tony Nance wrote:
[snip-snip]
(++) Plague of Demons - Laumer (re-read)
One of James’ posts, or perhaps one of the responses that followed,
mentioned this one. I had read it years ago, but I couldn’t remember
anything tangible about it. A human discovers that aliens have
infiltrated Earth, and he decides to allow himself to become
(experimentally) bio-engineered to help fight back. It’s a short,
action-packed story, which would undoubtedly be a bloated trilogy
nowadays. Is this the best book you’ll ever read? No, but it is
fast-paced, entertaining, never ponderous, and reminds me of the best
Van Vogt works, where things move faster and faster to a conclusion.
Glad to hear _Plague of Demons_ is still readable. It wasn't my favorite >Laumer novel, but it was one of the better ones.
[snip]
(+ -) Mathenauts: Tales of Mathematical Wonder - ed. by Rucker
Not very good - it took months to get through this, with not many
memorable (or good) stories at all. Full disclosure: I’m a
mathematician, and I find fiction that (supposedly) focuses on math to
almost aways fall flat. I believe this phenomena falls under one of my
“reading rules”: “The more you know about a subject, the less likely >> you’ll enjoy fiction about it.” [snip-snip]
I suspect that adding "how much the author knows about the subject" to
the formula may help improve it.
Highlights and Lowlights - January 2024
(+++ 1/2) Inhibitor Phase - Reynolds [Revelation Space #5]
Very good - almost excellent. The first three-fourths (roughly) actually
was excellent; but once they got to Ararat, it was a little unsatisfying
and a bit of a letdown (reasons would be spoiler-y). There were a lot of references and tie-ins to the previous Revelation Space books, and I’m
sure I missed some, too. The resolution was fine, and also hints at a
lot of strong issues ahead. Overall a very good read.
On 2/1/24 9:56 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 2/1/2024 8:24 PM, Tony Nance wrote:
[snip-snip]
(++) Plague of Demons - Laumer (re-read)
One of James’ posts, or perhaps one of the responses that followed,
mentioned this one. I had read it years ago, but I couldn’t remember
anything tangible about it. A human discovers that aliens have
infiltrated Earth, and he decides to allow himself to become
(experimentally) bio-engineered to help fight back. It’s a short,
action-packed story, which would undoubtedly be a bloated trilogy
nowadays. Is this the best book you’ll ever read? No, but it is
fast-paced, entertaining, never ponderous, and reminds me of the best
Van Vogt works, where things move faster and faster to a conclusion.
Glad to hear _Plague of Demons_ is still readable. It wasn't my
favorite Laumer novel, but it was one of the better ones.
Yeah, the re-read has me pondering looking into the many pre-stroke
Laumers I haven't read. I think I've only read Dinosaur Beach (good) and
Time Trap (not). [snip]
On 2/3/24 10:59 AM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 2/3/2024 7:36 AM, Tony Nance wrote:
On 2/1/24 9:56 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 2/1/2024 8:24 PM, Tony Nance wrote:
[snip-snip]
(++) Plague of Demons - Laumer (re-read)
One of James’ posts, or perhaps one of the responses that followed, >>>>> mentioned this one. I had read it years ago, but I couldn’t
remember anything tangible about it. A human discovers that aliens
have infiltrated Earth, and he decides to allow himself to become
(experimentally) bio-engineered to help fight back. It’s a short,
action-packed story, which would undoubtedly be a bloated trilogy
nowadays. Is this the best book you’ll ever read? No, but it is
fast-paced, entertaining, never ponderous, and reminds me of the
best Van Vogt works, where things move faster and faster to a
conclusion.
Glad to hear _Plague of Demons_ is still readable. It wasn't my
favorite Laumer novel, but it was one of the better ones.
Yeah, the re-read has me pondering looking into the many pre-stroke
Laumers I haven't read. I think I've only read Dinosaur Beach (good)
and Time Trap (not). [snip]
When it comes to Laumer, there are a few things to keep in mind.
First, almost everything that he published after he partially
recovered from his stroke in the mid-1970s is unlikely to be worth
your time. It ranges from "mostly readable" ("Rogue Bolo") to "what
was the publisher thinking??" (_Zone Yellow_). _The Ultimax Man_
(1978) was apparently started pre-stroke and finished after the
stroke. It starts as a run of the mill adventure and then jumps off a
cliff.
Second, note that Laumer revised and/or expanded some of his old
stories (to their detriment) during the 1980s, as happened with "Once
There Was a Giant" (1968). Make sure to check the copyright page when
buying reprint editions. I won't be mentioning the rest of his
post-stroke works below.
Third, even pre-stroke his humorous works were all over the place.
Sometimes the humor was broad, as in _The Monitors_ (1966) and _Time
Trap_ (1970). Other times it was more sophisticated and enjoyable as
in "The Devil You Don't" (1970). Eric Flint's _Keith Laumer: The
Lighter Side_ (2002) is representative.
Next, his series. The original, pre-stroke, "Bolo" stories (1960-1969)
collected in _Bolo: The Annals of the Dinochrome Brigade_ (1976) were
pretty solid. A bit repetitive after the first few, but worth a read
and historically important the way Saberhagen's "Berserker" stories
are historically important. I have only read a few of the many
"sequels by other hands" published in the 1990s and the 2000s
(https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pe.cgi?1485), so take it with a grain
of salt, but I liked S. M. Stirling's "Bethany Martins" stories
(collected in _Ice, Iron and Gold_, 2007) more than the rest.
The _Imperium_ series started well with _Worlds of the Imperium_
(1961), although I liked H. Beam Piper's Paratime stories, which cover
similar territory, more. The two pre-stroke sequels, _The Other Side
of Time_ (1965) and _Assignment in Nowhere_ (1968), were decent and
had some colorful, New Wave-y, imagery.
The _Lafayette O'Leary_ series was another take on the parallel worlds
theme. The first volume, _The Time Bender_ (1966), was minor but
occasionally mildly amusing. The two pre-stroke sequels, _The World
Shuffler_ (1970) and _The Shape Changer_ (1972), felt unnecessary at
best and tiresome at worst.
The "Retief" stories/novels are well known and probably need no
introduction. _Retief!_
(https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?40040), the 2002 collection
edited by Eric Flint, is representative.
On to his standalone novels.
_A Trace of Memory_ (1963): Standard adventure themes, somewhat creaky
execution. I am not sure if it's still readable, but if you enjoyed _A
Plague of Demons_, then perhaps you'll enjoy _A Trace of Memory_ a well.
_The Great Time Machine Hoax_ (1963): Humorous time travel
shenanigans. I thought it was moderately enjoyable at the time, but I
suspect that, like many other humorous stories, it hasn't aged well.
_Earthblood_ (1965 with Rosel George Brown): Recently discussed here.
Nicely done anti-species-ism themes early on, then a weak ending.
_Catastrophe Planet_ (1966): I thought it was mediocre. Eric Flint
apparently liked it more and reprinted it in _Future Imperfect_ (2003).
_The Monitors_ (1966): An alien invasion story. Broad humor as
discussed above.
_The Day Before Forever_ (1967): A short novel/novella about heroism,
sacrifice, etc. Representative of Laumer's favorite themes and
reasonably well done.
_Planet Run_ (1967 with Gordon R. Dickson): Routine adventures and
character growth.
_Galactic Odyssey_ (1967): Another routine adventure, although Eric
Flint and others liked it more than I did.
_The Long Twilight_ (1969): An experimental novel in that Laumer tried
to do multiple points of view. Not entirely successful, but not bad.
_The House in November_ (1970): I don't want to spoil the themes of
this horror-tinged novel, so I'll just say that I liked it quite a bit.
_The Star Treasure_ (1971): More routine adventures, which I thought
were boring.
_Dinosaur Beach_ (1971): "Recomplicated" time travel shenanigans. My
favorite Laumer novel.
_Night of Delusions_ (1972): Occasionally nightmarish dream logic
leading to an unexpected resolution which I don't want to spoil. I
liked it.
_The Infinite Cage_ (1972): A well-executed "maimed superman" story,
one of Laumer's better takes on the subgenre. The last paragraph
includes a memorable sentence which would make van Vogt mutter about
the author not understanding math.
_The Glory Game_ (1973): More routine adventures.
Holy cow, this is wonderful information - thank you so very much for
taking the time.
Much appreciated,
Tony
On 2/1/24 9:56 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 2/1/2024 8:24 PM, Tony Nance wrote:
[snip-snip]
(++) Plague of Demons - Laumer (re-read)
One of James’ posts, or perhaps one of the responses that followed,
mentioned this one. I had read it years ago, but I couldn’t remember
anything tangible about it. A human discovers that aliens have
infiltrated Earth, and he decides to allow himself to become
(experimentally) bio-engineered to help fight back. It’s a short,
action-packed story, which would undoubtedly be a bloated trilogy
nowadays. Is this the best book you’ll ever read? No, but it is
fast-paced, entertaining, never ponderous, and reminds me of the best
Van Vogt works, where things move faster and faster to a conclusion.
Glad to hear _Plague of Demons_ is still readable. It wasn't my favorite
Laumer novel, but it was one of the better ones.
Yeah, the re-read has me pondering looking into the many pre-stroke
Laumers I haven't read. I think I've only read Dinosaur Beach (good) and
Time Trap (not).
On 2/3/24 10:59 AM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 2/3/2024 7:36 AM, Tony Nance wrote:
On 2/1/24 9:56 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 2/1/2024 8:24 PM, Tony Nance wrote:
[snip-snip]
(++) Plague of Demons - Laumer (re-read)
One of James’ posts, or perhaps one of the responses that followed, >>>>> mentioned this one. I had read it years ago, but I couldn’t remember >>>>> anything tangible about it. A human discovers that aliens have
infiltrated Earth, and he decides to allow himself to become
(experimentally) bio-engineered to help fight back. It’s a short,
action-packed story, which would undoubtedly be a bloated trilogy
nowadays. Is this the best book you’ll ever read? No, but it is
fast-paced, entertaining, never ponderous, and reminds me of the
best Van Vogt works, where things move faster and faster to a
conclusion.
Glad to hear _Plague of Demons_ is still readable. It wasn't my
favorite Laumer novel, but it was one of the better ones.
Yeah, the re-read has me pondering looking into the many pre-stroke
Laumers I haven't read. I think I've only read Dinosaur Beach (good)
and Time Trap (not). [snip]
When it comes to Laumer, there are a few things to keep in mind. First,
almost everything that he published after he partially recovered from
his stroke in the mid-1970s is unlikely to be worth your time. It ranges
from "mostly readable" ("Rogue Bolo") to "what was the publisher
thinking??" (_Zone Yellow_). _The Ultimax Man_ (1978) was apparently
started pre-stroke and finished after the stroke. It starts as a run of
the mill adventure and then jumps off a cliff.
Second, note that Laumer revised and/or expanded some of his old stories
(to their detriment) during the 1980s, as happened with "Once There Was
a Giant" (1968). Make sure to check the copyright page when buying
reprint editions. I won't be mentioning the rest of his post-stroke
works below.
Third, even pre-stroke his humorous works were all over the place.
Sometimes the humor was broad, as in _The Monitors_ (1966) and _Time
Trap_ (1970). Other times it was more sophisticated and enjoyable as in
"The Devil You Don't" (1970). Eric Flint's _Keith Laumer: The Lighter
Side_ (2002) is representative.
Next, his series. The original, pre-stroke, "Bolo" stories (1960-1969)
collected in _Bolo: The Annals of the Dinochrome Brigade_ (1976) were
pretty solid. A bit repetitive after the first few, but worth a read and
historically important the way Saberhagen's "Berserker" stories are
historically important. I have only read a few of the many "sequels by
other hands" published in the 1990s and the 2000s
(https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pe.cgi?1485), so take it with a grain of
salt, but I liked S. M. Stirling's "Bethany Martins" stories (collected
in _Ice, Iron and Gold_, 2007) more than the rest.
The _Imperium_ series started well with _Worlds of the Imperium_ (1961),
although I liked H. Beam Piper's Paratime stories, which cover similar
territory, more. The two pre-stroke sequels, _The Other Side of Time_
(1965) and _Assignment in Nowhere_ (1968), were decent and had some
colorful, New Wave-y, imagery.
The _Lafayette O'Leary_ series was another take on the parallel worlds
theme. The first volume, _The Time Bender_ (1966), was minor but
occasionally mildly amusing. The two pre-stroke sequels, _The World
Shuffler_ (1970) and _The Shape Changer_ (1972), felt unnecessary at
best and tiresome at worst.
The "Retief" stories/novels are well known and probably need no
introduction. _Retief!_ (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?40040),
the 2002 collection edited by Eric Flint, is representative.
On to his standalone novels.
_A Trace of Memory_ (1963): Standard adventure themes, somewhat creaky
execution. I am not sure if it's still readable, but if you enjoyed _A
Plague of Demons_, then perhaps you'll enjoy _A Trace of Memory_ a well.
_The Great Time Machine Hoax_ (1963): Humorous time travel shenanigans.
I thought it was moderately enjoyable at the time, but I suspect that,
like many other humorous stories, it hasn't aged well.
_Earthblood_ (1965 with Rosel George Brown): Recently discussed here.
Nicely done anti-species-ism themes early on, then a weak ending.
_Catastrophe Planet_ (1966): I thought it was mediocre. Eric Flint
apparently liked it more and reprinted it in _Future Imperfect_ (2003).
_The Monitors_ (1966): An alien invasion story. Broad humor as discussed
above.
_The Day Before Forever_ (1967): A short novel/novella about heroism,
sacrifice, etc. Representative of Laumer's favorite themes and
reasonably well done.
_Planet Run_ (1967 with Gordon R. Dickson): Routine adventures and
character growth.
_Galactic Odyssey_ (1967): Another routine adventure, although Eric
Flint and others liked it more than I did.
_The Long Twilight_ (1969): An experimental novel in that Laumer tried
to do multiple points of view. Not entirely successful, but not bad.
_The House in November_ (1970): I don't want to spoil the themes of this
horror-tinged novel, so I'll just say that I liked it quite a bit.
_The Star Treasure_ (1971): More routine adventures, which I thought
were boring.
_Dinosaur Beach_ (1971): "Recomplicated" time travel shenanigans. My
favorite Laumer novel.
_Night of Delusions_ (1972): Occasionally nightmarish dream logic
leading to an unexpected resolution which I don't want to spoil. I liked
it.
_The Infinite Cage_ (1972): A well-executed "maimed superman" story, one
of Laumer's better takes on the subgenre. The last paragraph includes a
memorable sentence which would make van Vogt mutter about the author not
understanding math.
_The Glory Game_ (1973): More routine adventures.
Holy cow, this is wonderful information - thank you so very much for
taking the time.
Much appreciated,
Tony
In article <uplc0v$340nr$3@dont-email.me>,snip
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
On 2/1/24 9:56 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
Glad to hear _Plague of Demons_ is still readable. It wasn't my favorite >>> Laumer novel, but it was one of the better ones.
Yeah, the re-read has me pondering looking into the many pre-stroke
Laumers I haven't read. I think I've only read Dinosaur Beach (good) and
Time Trap (not).
I think I would start with _Worlds Of The Imperium_.
On Saturday, February 3, 2024 at 11:00:07 AM UTC-5, Ahasuerus wrote:
[snip-snip]
_The House in November_ (1970): I don't want to spoil the themes of this
horror-tinged novel, so I'll just say that I liked it quite a bit.
My sisters did not read SF. After all, they (and not I) had read Jane Austen. But I left this book lying about, and it changed their
minds. The only downside was that years later I had to read
the entire Dune series so I could talk about it with them. [snip]
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