There was one actual book I bought on Free Comic Book Day. I probably could’ve slipped it in with the comics when I was going through those, but eh. This is The Dark Crystal Tales by Cory Godbey. It is, quite simply, a picture book of short stories set in the world of The Dark Crystal. There is no framing device, although the cover implies such a thing.
First is “Feast for the Skesis”. The Skeksis decide that they’re tired of the food their Podling servants make. So a Garthim is sent to get better food, to go hunting. It sets traps, but catches nothing worthwhile until it reaches out and nabs a bird in one claw. The bird is not particularly large and the Skeksis are unimpressed. Frustrated, the Garthim lets the bird go.
Next is “Circles of Kindness”, showing a young Jen living among the Mystics. He’s found an injured bird (it is unclear if this is meant to be the same bird from the first story or an unrelated one) and brings it to his master. The Mystic is able to heal it. This makes Jen feel small and unimportant and he sulks. The Mystic points out that the small acts of kindness Jen is capable of can have wider-reaching results, which comforts the Gelfling.
Last is “Fizzgig’s Mighty Quest”. Kira’s Podling mother is ill and needs a specific flower to heal her. The Gelfling fears that she cannot leave her mother’s side long enough to find the flower, and asks Fizzgig to find it. The fuzzball goes on a quest and finally finds a bird that knows exactly where to find the flower. Thus, the Podling woman lives another day.
These stories are simple and short. There is a lesson in Jen’s story, but the others seem to be a little more comedic. Overall, it just seems like Godbey wanted to draw in the world of The Dark Crystal and not spend a lot of time developing a story. If you’ve got a small child who enjoys the world, even if they’re scared of it, this is probably a great picture book for them. Actually, if they found the Garthim terrifying, the first story is likely an excellent way to help blunt that fear.
If I was inclined to collect anything and everything Dark Crystal, anything with lovely art like this, I’d probably keep the book. But I expect more of my stories, even from children’s books. I don’t think this is cute enough overall to justify my keeping it. In fact, it’s making me think about what Dark Crystal books I have, and which ones I don’t actually need to keep. The ones that parallel the Netflix show, for example. I’ve kept those so far, but I’ve known that they weren’t great since I read them. Maybe it’s time to give someone else a chance.
My main book today is Give Me Liberty, an anthology edited by Martin H. Greenberg and Mark Tier. It’s published by Baen, rather than DAW, which tells you a few things right there. Having come out in 2003, it has a reflective cover featuring a muscular man, a beautiful woman in some sort of distress, one female (co)author, and no stories newer than 1985. So, pretty typical Baen.
With a title like that I definitely had some misgivings, but I was always going to read this book. I bought it specifically for the first story, Lloyd Biggle Jr.’s “Monument”. This is the second of three tales Biggle put out in a particular universe, the first of which I read in Intergalactic Empires, the Asimov anthology. And that story, “Orphan of the Void”, was more than powerful enough that I looked up the other two and made plans to acquire them.
“Monument” is about an old Earthman, living in a virtual paradise, who realizes he’s dying. He found himself on a compatible alien world, became friendly with the natives, and made it his home. As in, he assimilated into the native lifestyle and found happiness in that. But, he remembers the world he came from and knows that as soon as some government or corporation notices the planet, they’ll try to exploit it. This is why he formulates a Plan and trains a hundred of the smartest young men to execute it should he die before it’s necessary.
Is it very white savior? Yes. Does it offer no explanation for the basically human natives capable of interbreeding with a human? Also yes. Is it a satisfying read? Still yes. I don’t know that it really touched a chord the way the first story did, but it was well written and I’m happy to have sought it out.
“Gadget vs. Trend” comes from Christopher Anvil and it shows how society can be changed by a single invention. This was where I had to start checking original publication dates for the stories and why it’s relevant that the very newest (not this one) is from the eighties. Anvil’s tale is from 1962, but it’s still rather astute in a number of ways. Obviously the actual gadget doesn’t exist in today’s world, but if you look at all the ways it changes people’s lives and then consider if it had been a cell phone or smart phone instead…you can see where I’m going, at least.
Vernor Vinge follows that up with “The Ungoverned”. In this story, the United States and probably the whole world has become a dystopia. People have carved out their own territories, which is why Manhattan, Kansas is the center of the story. It seems the Republic of New Mexico intends to annex the whole area on its way farther north. But they haven’t really taken into account the culture of the region and why these people are “The Ungoverned”.
In today’s world, I can’t really condone a story that advocates turning your property into a survival shelter defended with every last weapon you can afford. Which is a shame, because it’s a decent story otherwise.
“Historical Note” by Murray Leinster is another that necessitated a check of dates. It’s from 1951, which definitely puts a different spin on its Cold War setting. There’s a distinct difference from Cold War I’ve lived through (I was old enough that I could have taken note of the fall of the Berlin Wall but didn’t actually) and the Cold War as it existed in the early fifties. Anyway, a Russian scientist’s theory allows for personal fliers and through this invention the Russians lose the War. Because this is Baen and of course it’s going to publish a story where the Russians trip over their own policies.
A.E. van Vogt’s story “The Weapon Shop” gets incredibly surreal. It starts with the sudden appearance of said shop in a small village. The village is more sci-fi than fantasy still, and owes its allegiance to its Empress, and the shop is against everything the Empress stands for. Therefore it must go. And the local, ordinary man who pushes hardest is our protagonist. He’s going to have his mind blown in more ways than one.
“Second Game” is by Katherine MacLean and Charles de Vet and it’s for chess fans. Although the game they play isn’t chess, although it seems similar. There’s a planet that seems to have decided that Earth’s descendants, the Ten Thousand Worlds, are its enemies. They shot down the diplomatic fleet come to negotiate. So now a single individual has smuggled himself to the planet to do so alone. And once he’s prepared, he begins playing their Game. He’s got a method: the first time is a practice round. The second round is for keeps. This gives him a chance to analyze each opponent and formulate strategies to win when it counts. The question then becomes…how can this technique allow him to prevent all-out war?
Actually, the whole story is incredibly clever and works quite well in the end. Definitely in line with the entire concept throughout its execution.
Frank Herbert’s in this book with “Committee of the Whole”. It’s on the same lines as “Gadget vs. Trend” and “Historical Note” but with a lot more farmers and cattle ranchers involved. Honestly, none of these are particularly favorites of mine and this one, set within a court trial, might be the most tedious of the group.
The book ends with “And Then There Were None” by Eric Frank Russell. It’s one of those affairs where you’ve got two groups. One is stilted and stultified in its rigid castes and customs. The other is loose and free, but too smart to give anything away for free. The latter uses language rather literally – “do you mind answering my question?” “yes, I do mind. So I won’t” – and has no qualms about driving the former insane. It’s a concept I’ve seen before and don’t particularly care for. Mostly because every time I’ve encountered it, it’s been done very obnoxiously to the point where it drives me crazy just to read it.
Between that concept and the fact that this story was close to ninety pages long, I didn’t bother finishing it. I did try to read more even when I knew it was pointless, but decided it wasn’t worth the effort. I knew how it had to end.
Like I said, I knew what to expect from an anthology Baen put out. There’s no female protagonists, precious few female characters in general. There’s just the one female author too. There’s a lot of support for an individual’s freedom as compared to a government’s, as well as the idea of putting powerful weapons in the hand of every person. There’s a lot of themes and undertones in the book that I really don’t care for today.
But the stories were overall good. “Monument”, the reason why I bought the book, was very good. Not good enough to justify keeping the entire book, but worth the money and time to read it. And given how little there was tying “Monument” to “Orphans of the Void”, I don’t think it’ll be necessary to make sure I have all three stories. This isn’t surprising, given the era in which they were written. A series doesn’t necessarily have to have that much tying it together. It’s simply more expected today.
I definitely want a novel tomorrow. And something that isn’t forty years old at the newest. Fortunately, I have options.
mouse Reads Books 