Tag: Haldeman

Joe Haldeman, Planet of Judgment (1977)

On By piotrekIn books, Piotrek, reviews1 Comment

I rather like Star Trek: Discovery and I’ve decided to finally read some Star Trek novels. Searching for the best to start my adventure with, I’ve come across a book written by Joe Haldeman. And then I realized something – we have Scalzi, we even have Jean Johnson, but there is no Haldeman review on this blog! So, one will appear, but not of his Forever War, but a Planet of Judgment, a short (152 pages) novel published in 1977 and set in Trek Verse in the classic era of Kirk and Spock.

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Old paperbacks have certain charm!

It’s just as aged as The Original Series* and not as good as Forever War, but it was a worthy beginning of my adventure with the written Star Trek.

*meaning – not too much, the form might be a bit out of date, the characters sometimes sound like they belong to our past, not future, but it’s still a smart read, and isn’t that what a Trekkie is looking for in a book? This franchise never was the first choice for quick action and cheerful violence…

This is a tie-in created by a really good author and it shows. It could be a TOS episode, or, if slightly expanded, a solo s/f book, as it is – better know who Kirk, Spock or McCoy are, if you want to fully appreciate it. I admit I felt, at times, that knowing more about the original tv series would give me more context. And what is the novel about?

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John Scalzi, “Old Man’s War”

On By piotrekIn books, Piotrek, wyszperane2 Comments

Ola’s out of town and we’re behind the schedule… so a filler from me 😉

There is a s/f series well worth reading, one heavily indebted to its predecessors. Heinlein and Haldeman were not reviewed here, but favourably mentioned. Heinlein’s “Starship Troopers” is a great book, slightly problematic in its glorification of the citizen-soldier ethos, Haldeman’s “Forever War” reflects its author’s Vietnam experience and is one of the great anti-war novels. John Scalzi wrote “Old Man’s War”, and following novels (there are 6 so far), a great space opera where attitude towards war is much more balanced. Inspired by masters of the genre, he managed to retain his own voice, somewhere between their idealisms.

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Vacation

On By Ola GIn books, Ola4 Comments

Today no review – I’m on vacation :). Instead, I prepared a short list of recommended summer readings 😉

For when you have lots of time and still some inquisitiveness in you, after frying in the sun and drinking alcoholic beverages all day, or else taking care of overactive children (all in all, highly improbable, but whatever :P):

Robert A. Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (1966) – a classic sf tale, hard sf, with some landmark ideas of Heinlein and judged among his best works. An inexhaustible source of inspiration for literal hordes of writers and a must-read for every sf fan. Warning: demanding!

Heinlein_The Moon

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