What do you think?
Rate this book
Federation #2
Four-Day Planet
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
172 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1961
75 people are currently reading
352 people want to read
About the author
H. Beam Piper
296 books242 followersHenry Beam Piper was an American science fiction author. He wrote many short stories and several novels. He is best known for his extensive Terro-Human Future History series of stories and a shorter series of "Paratime" alternate history tales.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
July 11, 2019
Rating: 3.5* of five
The Publisher Says: Four-Day Planet . . . where the killing heat of a thousand-hour "day" drives men underground, and the glorious hundred-hour sunset is followed by a thousand-hour night so cold that only an Extreme Environment Suit can preserve the life of anyone caught outside.
Fenris isn't a hell planet, but it's nobody's bargain. With 2,000-hour days and an 8,000-hour year, it alternates blazing heat with killing cold. A planet like that tends to breed a special kind of person: tough enough to stay alive and smart enough to make the best of it. When that kind of person discovers he's being cheated of wealth he's risked his life for, that kind of planet is ripe for revolution.
My Review: Fenris might not be the Garden Spot of the Galaxy, sort of like the future's equivalent of a "shithole country" in fact, but the men there are a hardy, self-sufficient lot. Yes, I said "men" and made no attempt to be inclusive. H. Beam Piper, the author, was born in 1903 and died of self-inflicted starvation due to absurd, overweening pride in 1964. He was a gun nut. He married once, and was divorced or separated from his wife in short order because he was convinced that she married him for money.
Not a likely feminist icon's profile. His writing and his attitudes show that. Strangely enough, though, there's an admixture of Powerful Woman hints that make me think his was a late-life learned misogyny.
So anyway, this 1961 tale from the Terro-Human Future History of Piper's creation never called to me. I assumed it would be all about the great-man theory of history that libertarians tend to like. It is, in a way; Steve Ravick, the successfully ensconced ruler of the economy on Fenris, is a master manipulator and born gangster, an exceptional man in all the wrong right ways. He lied successfully to the economic engines of Fenris, the workers, telling them how things were terrible and he'd have to fight Those Others just to give them half of what their labor got them before. He did this by cutting them off from any source of information he didn't like and insulting and belittling the one outlet he allows to remain in business. He reminds me of the Koch brothers and their stooge 45. Like, a lot.
What I didn't expect was to feel so nostalgic for the narrator of the story being a journalist. A young lad very eager to seek out The Truth and to be the one who, in H.L. Mencken's memorable definition of a journalist's job, "afflicts the comfortable and comforts the afflicted." As a result he breaks the story of a lifetime. At seventeen! Of course, his dad owns the paper, but he's the one who found, followed, and shaped the story, which is the central trait of a born reporter.
Ultimately, the reason I enjoyed the read was the ending, wherein Right(s) and Reason prevail over caddish, greedy oligarchy. I was amused by the sixty-year-old vision of future technology, but charmed by the sixty-year-old faith in the ability of The People to rebel against unjust, unprincipled rulers. Piper's writing was serviceable, failing to ignite my passion in this book's telling. I was ignited by what was told. In a different political and economic climate I would've been pretty much uninterested in the tale.
Piper tends to lard his story with way too many names...characters we'll never meet have first and last names like one Oscar Fujisawa, the tall, blond Viking action hero of part of the story. Piper wants to make the point that, away from Earth and far into the future, names are just handy labels. Ethnicity is a relic, a distant and fading social construct. I like the idea, at least insofar as it makes plain the social system doesn't discriminate based on superficial qualities, but to give *every* minor character a first and last name with such a heavy significance makes this reader tired.
Still and all, despite low expectations, reading this elderly writer's surprisingly sanguine take on Humanity's future was a tonic. I'm glad I did it, and since the book is a whopping 99¢ on Kindle, I think you would be as well.
The Publisher Says: Four-Day Planet . . . where the killing heat of a thousand-hour "day" drives men underground, and the glorious hundred-hour sunset is followed by a thousand-hour night so cold that only an Extreme Environment Suit can preserve the life of anyone caught outside.
Fenris isn't a hell planet, but it's nobody's bargain. With 2,000-hour days and an 8,000-hour year, it alternates blazing heat with killing cold. A planet like that tends to breed a special kind of person: tough enough to stay alive and smart enough to make the best of it. When that kind of person discovers he's being cheated of wealth he's risked his life for, that kind of planet is ripe for revolution.
My Review: Fenris might not be the Garden Spot of the Galaxy, sort of like the future's equivalent of a "shithole country" in fact, but the men there are a hardy, self-sufficient lot. Yes, I said "men" and made no attempt to be inclusive. H. Beam Piper, the author, was born in 1903 and died of self-inflicted starvation due to absurd, overweening pride in 1964. He was a gun nut. He married once, and was divorced or separated from his wife in short order because he was convinced that she married him for money.
Not a likely feminist icon's profile. His writing and his attitudes show that. Strangely enough, though, there's an admixture of Powerful Woman hints that make me think his was a late-life learned misogyny.
So anyway, this 1961 tale from the Terro-Human Future History of Piper's creation never called to me. I assumed it would be all about the great-man theory of history that libertarians tend to like. It is, in a way; Steve Ravick, the successfully ensconced ruler of the economy on Fenris, is a master manipulator and born gangster, an exceptional man in all the wrong right ways. He lied successfully to the economic engines of Fenris, the workers, telling them how things were terrible and he'd have to fight Those Others just to give them half of what their labor got them before. He did this by cutting them off from any source of information he didn't like and insulting and belittling the one outlet he allows to remain in business. He reminds me of the Koch brothers and their stooge 45. Like, a lot.
What I didn't expect was to feel so nostalgic for the narrator of the story being a journalist. A young lad very eager to seek out The Truth and to be the one who, in H.L. Mencken's memorable definition of a journalist's job, "afflicts the comfortable and comforts the afflicted." As a result he breaks the story of a lifetime. At seventeen! Of course, his dad owns the paper, but he's the one who found, followed, and shaped the story, which is the central trait of a born reporter.
Ultimately, the reason I enjoyed the read was the ending, wherein Right(s) and Reason prevail over caddish, greedy oligarchy. I was amused by the sixty-year-old vision of future technology, but charmed by the sixty-year-old faith in the ability of The People to rebel against unjust, unprincipled rulers. Piper's writing was serviceable, failing to ignite my passion in this book's telling. I was ignited by what was told. In a different political and economic climate I would've been pretty much uninterested in the tale.
Piper tends to lard his story with way too many names...characters we'll never meet have first and last names like one Oscar Fujisawa, the tall, blond Viking action hero of part of the story. Piper wants to make the point that, away from Earth and far into the future, names are just handy labels. Ethnicity is a relic, a distant and fading social construct. I like the idea, at least insofar as it makes plain the social system doesn't discriminate based on superficial qualities, but to give *every* minor character a first and last name with such a heavy significance makes this reader tired.
Still and all, despite low expectations, reading this elderly writer's surprisingly sanguine take on Humanity's future was a tonic. I'm glad I did it, and since the book is a whopping 99¢ on Kindle, I think you would be as well.
January 3, 2020
2.5⭐
Typical H. Piper Beam fare. Heroic pioneers on a harsh world carve out a living by catching monstrous fish while at the same time battling the oligarchs who would enslave them. Written with a YA focus. It wasn't special but it wasn't terrible so a solid 2.5 stars, right in the middle. Pretty dated in terms of technology and social attitudes.
Typical H. Piper Beam fare. Heroic pioneers on a harsh world carve out a living by catching monstrous fish while at the same time battling the oligarchs who would enslave them. Written with a YA focus. It wasn't special but it wasn't terrible so a solid 2.5 stars, right in the middle. Pretty dated in terms of technology and social attitudes.
October 12, 2012
The eponymous planet, Fenris, has a slow rotation rate, causing days and nights lasting 1000 hours each. This forces the populace to live underground except around sunrise and sunset. And, while this odd planet provides the back-drop to the story, it isn't the story itself.
The story itself revolves around the conflict between corrupt local politicians and the equivalent of earthly whale hunters. And, damn, but it's a lot of fun.
The novel is an example of old-skool sci-fi with competent manly men doing things and not fretting overly much about their damn feelings. It's bracing and refreshing after some of the stuff I've read recently.
There's a great running joke about how, with humanity expanding and interbreeding on a global scale, names no long match ethnicity. (Although, having Nip Spazoni's nickname being a commentary on his race is, well, awfully awkward today.)
It has that wonderful feel of sci-fi from an era which doesn't know what's actually coming. Everyone's packing heat and the guns all shoot bullets, not lasers of some sort. Folks get lost in a way that GPS wouldn't allow today. The newspaper still physically pastes layout. Holy crap, they even pull out a goddamn slide rule at one point. It's awesome!
Granted, the big reveal isn't all that astonishing. So what? It detracts not at all from my enjoyment of the book.
The story itself revolves around the conflict between corrupt local politicians and the equivalent of earthly whale hunters. And, damn, but it's a lot of fun.
The novel is an example of old-skool sci-fi with competent manly men doing things and not fretting overly much about their damn feelings. It's bracing and refreshing after some of the stuff I've read recently.
There's a great running joke about how, with humanity expanding and interbreeding on a global scale, names no long match ethnicity. (Although, having Nip Spazoni's nickname being a commentary on his race is, well, awfully awkward today.)
It has that wonderful feel of sci-fi from an era which doesn't know what's actually coming. Everyone's packing heat and the guns all shoot bullets, not lasers of some sort. Folks get lost in a way that GPS wouldn't allow today. The newspaper still physically pastes layout. Holy crap, they even pull out a goddamn slide rule at one point. It's awesome!
Granted, the big reveal isn't all that astonishing. So what? It detracts not at all from my enjoyment of the book.
July 13, 2013
Every so often I get an urge to read lots of science fiction books in a row. There is something so thrilling about seeing how other writers deal with stuff such as world-building. But most of all, I just love to see what action takes place on these worlds. Given my love of Mark Nelson's reading and H. Beam Piper's writing, Four-Day Planet seemed the obvious choice for my next book to read.
GIST
Fenris is a backwater planet with an only export of Tallow-Wax, a substance that comes from a rather dangerous creature known as the Jarvis' Sea Monster. When the entrenched and villainous leader of the Hunters' Guild Co-Op tries to further cut the deserving monster hunters of a fair income, members start to fight against those involved in his conspiracy. But who can the hunters trust?
The numerous twists and turns of this action-packed adventure are told through the eyes of Walter Boyd, cub reporter of the Port Sandor Times.
THOUGHTS
As expected, H. Beam Piper weaves a rather exciting story set in the particularly dangerous setting of the planet of Fenris. The action sequences take place against both man and monster, allowing the reader some insight into the conditions of the planet. In the one scenario where the crew are stuck out in the middle of nowhere, we also see some of the dangers inherent on this desolate and difficult planet. Piper does well to also explain the way that the low population has also effected the gene pool of the planet in a rather intelligent way.
This is all seen through the first person POV of Walter Boyd, the son of Ralph Boyd who is the editor of the sole news service on the planet called the Port Sandor Times. Walt is a great character that is both brilliant yet has the ability to make mistakes. He is also humble enough to admit those mistakes.
The dialogue was well-written, show the unique personality of each character. The most notable of these is that of "Bish" Ware, a rather significant side character. And these conversations each add to the story through their commentary on the state of affairs.
The plot is well-paced, offering more than enough incentive to read on through the questions that it answers as much as the ones posed. He also does well to avoid info-dumps on the planet and the cast before the narrator would logically bring the numerous facts to mind. And it works wonderfully.
CONCLUSION
The dialogue was rather clever, plot well-paced, action sequences chaotic enough to have legitimacy, and the conclusion a worthy pay-off for all of the different things happening throughout the story. Much in all as I love reading pulp sci-fi, there is something to be said for reading a fully-fledged science fiction novel. Four-Day Planet doesn't feel rushed yet has enough excitement packed in to make even a disillusioned reader take note. Other readers may have other opinions, but I thought this book was perfect!
GIST
Fenris is a backwater planet with an only export of Tallow-Wax, a substance that comes from a rather dangerous creature known as the Jarvis' Sea Monster. When the entrenched and villainous leader of the Hunters' Guild Co-Op tries to further cut the deserving monster hunters of a fair income, members start to fight against those involved in his conspiracy. But who can the hunters trust?
The numerous twists and turns of this action-packed adventure are told through the eyes of Walter Boyd, cub reporter of the Port Sandor Times.
THOUGHTS
As expected, H. Beam Piper weaves a rather exciting story set in the particularly dangerous setting of the planet of Fenris. The action sequences take place against both man and monster, allowing the reader some insight into the conditions of the planet. In the one scenario where the crew are stuck out in the middle of nowhere, we also see some of the dangers inherent on this desolate and difficult planet. Piper does well to also explain the way that the low population has also effected the gene pool of the planet in a rather intelligent way.
This is all seen through the first person POV of Walter Boyd, the son of Ralph Boyd who is the editor of the sole news service on the planet called the Port Sandor Times. Walt is a great character that is both brilliant yet has the ability to make mistakes. He is also humble enough to admit those mistakes.
The dialogue was well-written, show the unique personality of each character. The most notable of these is that of "Bish" Ware, a rather significant side character. And these conversations each add to the story through their commentary on the state of affairs.
The plot is well-paced, offering more than enough incentive to read on through the questions that it answers as much as the ones posed. He also does well to avoid info-dumps on the planet and the cast before the narrator would logically bring the numerous facts to mind. And it works wonderfully.
CONCLUSION
The dialogue was rather clever, plot well-paced, action sequences chaotic enough to have legitimacy, and the conclusion a worthy pay-off for all of the different things happening throughout the story. Much in all as I love reading pulp sci-fi, there is something to be said for reading a fully-fledged science fiction novel. Four-Day Planet doesn't feel rushed yet has enough excitement packed in to make even a disillusioned reader take note. Other readers may have other opinions, but I thought this book was perfect!
September 6, 2025
If you’re only going to read one H Beam Piper book, make it Little fuzzy, not this one.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a terrible book, but it doesn’t even remotely feel like a science fiction novella. In turns it evokes the feeling of Western Pioneer fiction, Hard-boiled crime noir, and a survival adventure a-la Moby Dick. what it doesn’t, at any point, feel like is science fiction.
In addition, don’t expect this one to pass the Bechdel Test. In fact, just don’t expect much in the way of women full stop. That kind of thing doesn’t bother me (I don’t feel that all books must have a balanced representation of both sexes. Not all situations in life do, so why should fiction be any different?), but I know it’s a deal-breaker for some people, so fair warning.
I was also very surprised to learn that the MC was not even 18 yet. He read like a 30-y-o!
What I did like about this was the Norse mythology influences, and the way that future society seemed to have put racial squabbles behind itself and had become a true melting pot. Quite unusual for its time, I think!
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a terrible book, but it doesn’t even remotely feel like a science fiction novella. In turns it evokes the feeling of Western Pioneer fiction, Hard-boiled crime noir, and a survival adventure a-la Moby Dick. what it doesn’t, at any point, feel like is science fiction.
In addition, don’t expect this one to pass the Bechdel Test. In fact, just don’t expect much in the way of women full stop. That kind of thing doesn’t bother me (I don’t feel that all books must have a balanced representation of both sexes. Not all situations in life do, so why should fiction be any different?), but I know it’s a deal-breaker for some people, so fair warning.
I was also very surprised to learn that the MC was not even 18 yet. He read like a 30-y-o!
What I did like about this was the Norse mythology influences, and the way that future society seemed to have put racial squabbles behind itself and had become a true melting pot. Quite unusual for its time, I think!
July 3, 2012
This book has combined air / water craft, piloted by roughneck fishermen hunting sea monsters on an alien world. It's steampunk decades before the term was invented!
Beyond the outstanding throwback technology, this is a compact adventure, centering around a plucky young newspaper reporter raised on a climactically brutal planet, working to uncover corruption in the small-time government running the place. This deserves a read for anyone interested in what science fiction looked like in the pre-transistor (and pre-star-trek) days, after rockets were a real thing, but before the moon landing.
Beyond the outstanding throwback technology, this is a compact adventure, centering around a plucky young newspaper reporter raised on a climactically brutal planet, working to uncover corruption in the small-time government running the place. This deserves a read for anyone interested in what science fiction looked like in the pre-transistor (and pre-star-trek) days, after rockets were a real thing, but before the moon landing.
September 10, 2023
A young man's adventure. Similar to "Captain's Courageous" or "Kidnapped". This story comes from the reference point of the town's young news reporter. As he covers the stories, he uncovers a deeper conspiracy that could lead towards murder.
June 12, 2020
Another good installment in the Terro-future history series. Piper has some really interesting writing, and I'm honestly amazed I had never heard of him before this year. Based on what I've read so far, he seems to have been very influential on the authors I grew up reading (Niven, Pournelle, Barnes, Stirling, etc), as he was writing in his prime in the 50s and 60s.
September 30, 2015
It is what it is: pulpy, 1950s Heinleinian science fiction aimed at nerdy young boys.
The "four day planet" is Fenriss, a planet with a 2000 hour rotation rate. That is, any given spot on the planet is in darkness for 1000 hours, and sunlit for another 1000. Piper accurately describes the weather extremes that this would lead to: baking hot temperatures at noon, causing wild anabatic winds, followed by evening storms coming in off the ocean, followed by nighttime storms, followed by seriously below freezing temperatures at midnight, accompanied by wild katabatic winds until sunrise.
Against this background Piper tells the story of a pioneer colony, inhabiting the Four Day Planet so they can hunt "sea monsters" to obtain the long chain hydrocarbon molecules in their blubber.
The protagonist is a 17 year old boy reporter for a family-owned news service, investigating the corrupt government of the planet, especially as it relates to the monster-hunters, and the growing development of what a poli-sci professor would call an anarcho-syndicalist form of government when the monster-hunters rise up.
In between there are shootouts, and monster hunts, and intrigue, and forest fires, and blubber fires, and revolution and college applications.
Oh, and: there's not a single important female character in the entire book.
The "four day planet" is Fenriss, a planet with a 2000 hour rotation rate. That is, any given spot on the planet is in darkness for 1000 hours, and sunlit for another 1000. Piper accurately describes the weather extremes that this would lead to: baking hot temperatures at noon, causing wild anabatic winds, followed by evening storms coming in off the ocean, followed by nighttime storms, followed by seriously below freezing temperatures at midnight, accompanied by wild katabatic winds until sunrise.
Against this background Piper tells the story of a pioneer colony, inhabiting the Four Day Planet so they can hunt "sea monsters" to obtain the long chain hydrocarbon molecules in their blubber.
The protagonist is a 17 year old boy reporter for a family-owned news service, investigating the corrupt government of the planet, especially as it relates to the monster-hunters, and the growing development of what a poli-sci professor would call an anarcho-syndicalist form of government when the monster-hunters rise up.
In between there are shootouts, and monster hunts, and intrigue, and forest fires, and blubber fires, and revolution and college applications.
Oh, and: there's not a single important female character in the entire book.
February 10, 2018
Have you ever read a book and thought this book is not written for me? This was written in the 1960's. I am sure it was written for teenage boys. There is heavy description about guns and high tech gear. Every time someone fired a gun, you knew the millimeter of the barrel. The story takes place on a planet named Fenris. It was a failed experiment, but some people stayed and tried to make the best out of life. It was a lawless planet, with not much of a government, just a group of corrupt people that called themselves officials. This was a good story but very predictable. The only export was tallow wax that came from hunting sea monsters. If you have one export that is sold to a cooperative, it sets up price fixing from a corrupt government. The hunters were tired of prices dropping, officials lining their pockets and getting rich. You knew there would be a civil war. The story was told from a newspaper perspective. Walt was a 17 year old kid. He was a reporter that worked for his Dad's journalism, TV business. He was a good kid, growing up and working in the press business in tough conditions. Some of the creatures on Fenris were frightening and deadly. I would recommend this if you like old science fiction. A good story even though it was predictable.
September 16, 2011
Another one of my favorite works by H. Beam Piper. I love the harsh planets that he creates.
“When people have to stay underground most of the time to avoid being fried and/or frozen to death, they have a lot of time to kill, and reading is one of the cheaper and more harmless and profitable ways of doing it. And travel books are a special favorite here. I suppose because everybody is hoping to read about a worse place than Fenris.”
Fenris is basically an unlivable planet, but people persist in trying any ways. They live underground, and the story follows a young man, part time news journalist in an adventure on his home planet. It looks at the inherent aggression in our species, and is all around a fun story.
Favorite quote: "Yes. And you'd die of old age before you got a quarter through the first film bank, and you still wouldn't have an education. Do you know which books to study, and which ones not to bother with? Or which ones to read first, so that what you read in the others will be comprehensible to you? That's what they'll give you on Terra. The tools, which you don't have now, for educating yourself."
“When people have to stay underground most of the time to avoid being fried and/or frozen to death, they have a lot of time to kill, and reading is one of the cheaper and more harmless and profitable ways of doing it. And travel books are a special favorite here. I suppose because everybody is hoping to read about a worse place than Fenris.”
Fenris is basically an unlivable planet, but people persist in trying any ways. They live underground, and the story follows a young man, part time news journalist in an adventure on his home planet. It looks at the inherent aggression in our species, and is all around a fun story.
Favorite quote: "Yes. And you'd die of old age before you got a quarter through the first film bank, and you still wouldn't have an education. Do you know which books to study, and which ones not to bother with? Or which ones to read first, so that what you read in the others will be comprehensible to you? That's what they'll give you on Terra. The tools, which you don't have now, for educating yourself."
January 10, 2014
On a H. Beam Piper bender for a couple of weeks and quite enjoying it. In many ways, this is highly typical golden-era Sci-Fi, with its plucky, self-reliant young men, hostile planets, "interesting" governments (or in this case, lack thereof), and the like. The twist on the planet of Fenris is that, despite an Earth-length year, said year consists of only four days. Not surprisingly, life out of doors is untenable outside of a handful of days each quarter.
In most ways the planet's oddities are secondary to the plot, which revolves around a dishonest cooperative which is squeezing the profits out of the sole export: "wax" harvested from a dangerous sea creature. But the read was fun, and as in previous Piper books I am impressed at the brevity with which a coherent and engaging story is told.
In most ways the planet's oddities are secondary to the plot, which revolves around a dishonest cooperative which is squeezing the profits out of the sole export: "wax" harvested from a dangerous sea creature. But the read was fun, and as in previous Piper books I am impressed at the brevity with which a coherent and engaging story is told.
August 20, 2018
2018 grade A
I'd guess this is about half a novel. It sort of reminded me of a USA wild west story with crooked leaders but solidly in a SciFi future. The end reminds me of the first Star Trek series. The story follows a 17 year old adult reporter on a very odd frontier planet (good world building) as the "whalers" defeat a crooked co-op leader. It is a fast and easy read, and it is free for Kindle. Pick up a copy and the free reader app for some fun. Be forewarned that because it was written a while ago, women are under represented and most everyone smokes. It does not affect the quality of the story.
I'd guess this is about half a novel. It sort of reminded me of a USA wild west story with crooked leaders but solidly in a SciFi future. The end reminds me of the first Star Trek series. The story follows a 17 year old adult reporter on a very odd frontier planet (good world building) as the "whalers" defeat a crooked co-op leader. It is a fast and easy read, and it is free for Kindle. Pick up a copy and the free reader app for some fun. Be forewarned that because it was written a while ago, women are under represented and most everyone smokes. It does not affect the quality of the story.
April 8, 2019
Not too particularly interesting, but well written. The latter half of the book was by far the most interesting, as we get political intrigue and action, although most of it somewhat shallow.
The biggest problem for the book, was that it didn't take the time to present the setting and characters well enough. You didn't get a proper feel for being out there on a secluded planet, and I didn't feel anything for the characters because I didn't know them.
Fortunately it was a short listen on Audiobook (~6 hours).
The biggest problem for the book, was that it didn't take the time to present the setting and characters well enough. You didn't get a proper feel for being out there on a secluded planet, and I didn't feel anything for the characters because I didn't know them.
Fortunately it was a short listen on Audiobook (~6 hours).
December 9, 2024
4 Day Planet is the 2nd in Piper's Terro-Human Future History series. As in many SF stories of the time, Earth (aka Terra) suffered at least one nuclear war but somehow was able to develop interstellar travel and found colonies. One of these is Fenris which has a slow rotation speed - hence the title. It is extremely hot at midday and extremely cold at midnight. The colony was only a partial success due to the climate and the population is only a tenth of what it was. Its economy is a monopoly on a substance called wax which is obtained from the flesh of plesiosaur-like marine "monsters". However, the trade has been controlled by a crooked boss who gives the hunters only a fraction of the wax's market value and keeps the rest for himself. (Although what he spends his money on in a backward world like Fenris is not clear.) The story is a simple adventure story which could easily have been stripped of its SF trappings and set in a whaling community on 2oth Century Earth. (In fact there is a movie "Hell Below Zero" which does just that.)
The writing style is similar to the early Heinlein. Piper was fond of guns and it shows.
To sum up, a potboiler for a long train journey.
The writing style is similar to the early Heinlein. Piper was fond of guns and it shows.
To sum up, a potboiler for a long train journey.
September 27, 2021
A very entertaining SF novel from 1961, it's set on a planet on which days and nights each last 4 Earth days. The main industry is tallow-wax, which is obtained by hunting large sea monsters native to the planet and can be used as a protective coating on space suits and such.
The Cooperative that handles sales of the wax is corrupt and regularly cheating the monster hunters out of their rightful profits. With the story narrated by a young reporter working for the planet's only newspaper, this situation leads to a combination monster-hunting story (with deliberate shades of Moby Dick), a tale of civil conflict and possible full-scale civil war, and a detective story.
The world-building is superb and the action is exciting. The young protagonsist is intelligent and likeable. Of particular note is a sequence in which one of the monster-hunting ships is sabotaged and the crew is forced to improvise ways of surviving on a hostile planet until they are saved.
The Cooperative that handles sales of the wax is corrupt and regularly cheating the monster hunters out of their rightful profits. With the story narrated by a young reporter working for the planet's only newspaper, this situation leads to a combination monster-hunting story (with deliberate shades of Moby Dick), a tale of civil conflict and possible full-scale civil war, and a detective story.
The world-building is superb and the action is exciting. The young protagonsist is intelligent and likeable. Of particular note is a sequence in which one of the monster-hunting ships is sabotaged and the crew is forced to improvise ways of surviving on a hostile planet until they are saved.
September 4, 2021
I enjoy pulp sci-fi every so often if only to be reminded of the social and technological advancements we have made since the 50s and 60s. This was actually rather fun story. It combines an old fashioned crime drama with sci-fi and throws in a monster or two. The world-building was good. I had never heard of this author but my husband had of course read him as a kid. Women were essentially nonexistent in the story but that doesn’t ever surprise me. It seems hit or miss with these old works. The title refers to the fact that there are only four days in one year on this planet and that was not really explored further which was something I was waiting for. It intrigues me how the human body would adjust to that. Overall a good read if you are into vintage sci-fi. Don’t look for anything too exotic.
December 24, 2020
On the planet Fenrir, whose days last two thousand hours, alternating between blazing heat and glacial cold, almost everyone on the planet lives in a single underground city built for a quarter million people. A thousand colonists remained, as almost all considered the colony an abject failure, and over time the population grew to its current twenty thousand.
The protagonist is a seventeen year old journalist, the only one on the planet. While trying to find a story for his father's paper he overhears the rumors about tallow-wax, the source of almost all revenue for the planet, and the corruption that may be involved with its pricing and distribution of profits. Everyone involved in its obtainment is part of a worker's co-op, but it's anything but cooperative now.
One thing leads to another and our intrepid protagonist finds himself on a high seas adventure hunting down Jarvis's sea monster, which average 150 feet in length, and from which the tallow-wax is harvested. Treachery and excitement follow!
Basically a YA novel from 1961, with several saying it's similar to Heinlein's series of Juveniles.
Rating: 2.5/5
The protagonist is a seventeen year old journalist, the only one on the planet. While trying to find a story for his father's paper he overhears the rumors about tallow-wax, the source of almost all revenue for the planet, and the corruption that may be involved with its pricing and distribution of profits. Everyone involved in its obtainment is part of a worker's co-op, but it's anything but cooperative now.
One thing leads to another and our intrepid protagonist finds himself on a high seas adventure hunting down Jarvis's sea monster, which average 150 feet in length, and from which the tallow-wax is harvested. Treachery and excitement follow!
Basically a YA novel from 1961, with several saying it's similar to Heinlein's series of Juveniles.
Rating: 2.5/5
July 20, 2019
Fairly shallow SF adventure story. The concept of a world with days that last as long as a season on Earth is an interesting one, but not a whole lot really gets done with it. The human conflict is not that engaging - I tend to think a more "man vs the environment" tale (with the environment more fleshed out than "full of killer critters") would have been more interesting.
August 14, 2018
Whaling on another planet, with a battle between whalers and a corrupt union official. Aside from the Moby Dick slaughter bit, and from being so sexist that female characters with names (much less actual lines) hardly appear until the final few post climax chapters, pretty enjoyable.
August 1, 2020
Reads like a 2nd rate Heinlein YA
Interesting enough to keep you turning the pages but the plot is blindingly obvious and also very dated. Hunting extraterrestrial whales as the main industry of a planet?!
Interesting enough to keep you turning the pages but the plot is blindingly obvious and also very dated. Hunting extraterrestrial whales as the main industry of a planet?!
February 5, 2021
Fantasy reading 📚
A will written fantasy Sci-Fi thriller novella with interesting characters. The story line is complicated and fast moving with intense violence leading to the conclusion. I would recommend this novella to readers of fantasy. Enjoy reading 🔰2021😐
A will written fantasy Sci-Fi thriller novella with interesting characters. The story line is complicated and fast moving with intense violence leading to the conclusion. I would recommend this novella to readers of fantasy. Enjoy reading 🔰2021😐
June 21, 2021
Not so bad, given when it was written. Tried to be multicultural and probably was considered progressive when a "girl" took over the reporters job at the end, though it definitely failed the Bechtel test.
Pretty obvious story line, but told entertainingly enough.
Pretty obvious story line, but told entertainingly enough.
September 4, 2017
Great story. I read it in 4th grade and several times since then.
It is available as a free eBook download from Project Gutenberg and free audio download from Librivox.
It is available as a free eBook download from Project Gutenberg and free audio download from Librivox.
November 17, 2019
It's an pretty typical H. Beam Piper boy saves world story, but overall pretty enjoyable for people who like YA SciFi.
February 1, 2020
Seemingly random mish-mash of minimally thought out pseudoscience, bad Wild West cliches, and sea monsters. I couldn't finish it.
February 29, 2020
A fun pulpy sci-fi book
October 22, 2020
There was literally no use to set it on another planet. Couldn't force myself to read it all. Just skipped to the end.
November 23, 2020
Barely managed to finish the book. Nice premise but too focused on the time period it was written.
November 14, 2021
Audiobook. Good story
Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews