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Imperial Stars #1
The Stars at War
Arthur Clarke said it first: If mankind is to survive, then for all but a very brief part of our history the word "ship" will mean "space ship." We will spread through space. We will build a colony on the moon: if we had a government of courage and imagination we would have that in time to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Columbus's voyages of discovery. As it is, it will take a bit longer; but we will go back to the Moon. We will settle other moons, and asteroids, and the planets; and we will go to the stars. Where mankind goes, government goes.
It is no idle thing, then, to think about what forms of government we will take to the stars. We in this enlightened age think we know; but do we? We are, after all, no smarter than our ancestors. We know more, but that's quite a different thing - and we have forgotten much that we had best relearn before we pay dearly for what they knew and we don't.
Contents:
Introduction: Empire by J.E. Pournelle
In Clouds of Glory by Algis Budrys
The Star Plunderer by Poul Anderson
Two Editorials & Postscripts by John W. Campbell
Hymn of Breaking Strain by Rudyard Kipling
The Miracle of Government by James Burnham
To A Different Drum by Reginald Bretnor
The Whirligig of Time by Vernor Vinge
Nightmare with Angels by Stephen Vincent Benet
The Aristocrat by Chan Davis
The Sons of Martha by Rudyard Kipling
Mail Supremacy by Hayford Pierce
Herbig-Haro by Harry Turtledove
The Fighting Philosopher by E.B. Cole
The Voodoo Sciences by J.E. Pournelle
Pax Galactica by Ralph Williams
The Proper Study of Mankind by J.E. Pournelle
Finger Trouble by Edward P. Hughes
Yellow Rain and Space Wars by Adrian Berry
That Share of Glory by C.M. Kornbluth
The Stars at War by J.E. Pournelle
It is no idle thing, then, to think about what forms of government we will take to the stars. We in this enlightened age think we know; but do we? We are, after all, no smarter than our ancestors. We know more, but that's quite a different thing - and we have forgotten much that we had best relearn before we pay dearly for what they knew and we don't.
Contents:
Introduction: Empire by J.E. Pournelle
In Clouds of Glory by Algis Budrys
The Star Plunderer by Poul Anderson
Two Editorials & Postscripts by John W. Campbell
Hymn of Breaking Strain by Rudyard Kipling
The Miracle of Government by James Burnham
To A Different Drum by Reginald Bretnor
The Whirligig of Time by Vernor Vinge
Nightmare with Angels by Stephen Vincent Benet
The Aristocrat by Chan Davis
The Sons of Martha by Rudyard Kipling
Mail Supremacy by Hayford Pierce
Herbig-Haro by Harry Turtledove
The Fighting Philosopher by E.B. Cole
The Voodoo Sciences by J.E. Pournelle
Pax Galactica by Ralph Williams
The Proper Study of Mankind by J.E. Pournelle
Finger Trouble by Edward P. Hughes
Yellow Rain and Space Wars by Adrian Berry
That Share of Glory by C.M. Kornbluth
The Stars at War by J.E. Pournelle
464 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1986
3 people are currently reading
104 people want to read
About the author
Jerry Pournelle
269 books555 followersDr Jerry Eugene Pournelle was an American science fiction writer, engineer, essayist, and journalist, who contributed for many years to the computer magazine Byte, and from 1998 until his death maintained his own website and blog.
From the beginning, Pournelle's work centered around strong military themes. Several books describe the fictional mercenary infantry force known as Falkenberg's Legion. There are strong parallels between these stories and the Childe Cycle mercenary stories by Gordon R. Dickson, as well as Heinlein's Starship Troopers, although Pournelle's work takes far fewer technological leaps than either of these.
Pournelle spent years working in the aerospace industry, including at Boeing, on projects including studying heat tolerance for astronauts and their spacesuits. This side of his career also found him working on projections related to military tactics and probabilities. One report in which he had a hand became a basis for the Strategic Defense Initiative, the missile defense system proposed by President Ronald Reagan. A study he edited in 1964 involved projecting Air Force missile technology needs for 1975.
Dr. Pournelle would always tell would-be writers seeking advice that the key to becoming an author was to write — a lot.
“And finish what you write,” he added in a 2003 interview. “Don’t join a writers’ club and sit around having coffee reading pieces of your manuscript to people. Write it. Finish it.”
Pournelle served as President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 1973.
From the beginning, Pournelle's work centered around strong military themes. Several books describe the fictional mercenary infantry force known as Falkenberg's Legion. There are strong parallels between these stories and the Childe Cycle mercenary stories by Gordon R. Dickson, as well as Heinlein's Starship Troopers, although Pournelle's work takes far fewer technological leaps than either of these.
Pournelle spent years working in the aerospace industry, including at Boeing, on projects including studying heat tolerance for astronauts and their spacesuits. This side of his career also found him working on projections related to military tactics and probabilities. One report in which he had a hand became a basis for the Strategic Defense Initiative, the missile defense system proposed by President Ronald Reagan. A study he edited in 1964 involved projecting Air Force missile technology needs for 1975.
Dr. Pournelle would always tell would-be writers seeking advice that the key to becoming an author was to write — a lot.
“And finish what you write,” he added in a 2003 interview. “Don’t join a writers’ club and sit around having coffee reading pieces of your manuscript to people. Write it. Finish it.”
Pournelle served as President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 1973.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
partly-read
September 24, 2024[partly-read] 15/21 entries read
Herbig-Haro by Turtledove drew me to this book.
Below, I have listed the entries (which include stories, poems and essays) I have read till now, sorted in reverse by read-date.
Just to get it out of the way, Pournelle's introduction to the book is interesting but somewhat strange. The book has 'Imperial Stars' in its name and the Introduction centers around that, with good historical references. However, the way Pournelle puts the Empire as a feasible way of administration for a good society, is somewhat unrefined, controversial even.
Also see:
https://marzaat.com/2017/09/12/imperi...
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
https://www.blackgate.com/2019/02/25/...
---
* The Fighting Philosopher by E.B. Cole 3/5
(See comment section for details)
---
* Finger Trouble by Edward Hughes 3/5
Some of my thoughts echo the aforementioned marzaat.com review regarding this.
It's strange tale about a duke's troubles regarding succession planning mixed with an interstellar setting, a hint of genetic experimentation, and eugenic infanticide... I guess there's a regular story out there which the author 'adapted' to this exotic setting.
Editor's intro doesn't quite fit in well either.
---
* Pax Galactica by Ralph Williams 4/5
From 1950s.
Basically, advanced aliens decide that humans' technology has progressed way too further than their social maturity. They bomb nuclear establishments and spread an 'inhibitor' throughout the planet inhibiting explosive chemical reactions.
They expect these actions to push humanity towards social refinement, but the results might not go the way they intended.
---
* To a Different Drum by Bretnor 3.5/5
A story exploring how a society can rebuild itself, set in interstellar context, with the customary fantasy FTL element - and here it actually is quite fantastical which BTW has some similarity with W40k Warp (from the cursory knowledge I have about it). I have some ideas of my own on the overall topic, which I would like to see more in stories, or better, write about :). This one does touches on some aspects of it.
The introduction talks about how rule ultimately derives from being able to convince the concerned parties - in an autocracy those are the immediate subordinates of the autocrat, and in a democracy, ideally, it's the electorate.
It's kinda related to the story but, not quite a satisfying connection.
And in any case, this society fails the test of 'would it do any better than dinosaurs', which seems like a good yardstick to me. So, it's an interesting story, but ideologically not quite satisfying.
---
* Yellow Rain and Space Wars 3.5/5
The former is an essay regarding threats of biological and chemical weapons. The latter regarding space-based weapons.
The first essay did make me wonder as to how far the Soviets (and even the later Russian govt.) took their bio/chemical weapon programs.
The second one makes one ponder of the limit to which the arms race could have gone. Could Project Orion-style battleships have been roaming the heavens? Fascinating - but dangerous.
---
* That Share of Glory 3.5/5
This is a 1952 novelette by Cyril M. Kornbluth. And the author has a great reputation despite his short life: http://www.librarything.com/work/137604.
The intro by the editor includes several paragraphs from The Machiavellians by James Burnham, with quite a few interesting lines... (Quote set 3 in comments)
Most of what I know about Machiavelli is from a read of The Prince at Wikipedia. My rough idea about his mindset and the mindset of his times is that, because people knew less and were less in control (agriculture, transport, medicine, etc.) instability was more probable and more likely to be violent, Machiavelli put forth his extremely expedient recommendations for the need of maintaining order and stability, like an evolution over tribal customs, and far removed from the utopian visions we today can dare to think of; some of Machiavelli's ideas may be relevant today also. Though I'm not sure if ALL of it was appropriate for his time. In India, Chanakya seems to be in the broadly same category but without the notoriety.
The editor concludes that the story "turns Machiavelli loose on the stars".
Alen, the protagonist, is a trainee under an interstellar religiopolitical order and is towards the end of his training. The story basically deals with the twists and turns during his assignment on a trade expedition.
(A few selected lines in quote set 4 in the comments)
I'm not sure if the story encapsulates the Machiavellian mindset well, but it was an amusing read. This could also have been set in a medieval period/fantasy setting with little loss of essence.
---
* Tribesman, Barbarian, And Citizen (Essay) 3/5
* The Barbarians From Within (Essay) 3.5/5
The author of these essays, John W. Campbell, was the highly influential editor of Astounding Science Fiction magazine, and Pournelle pays a pithy tribute to him in the introduction. And there are some specific interesting statements...
((Quote set 1 in comments))
The first essay puts forward the notion that the three states of society mentioned in the title, are three STAGES, and in that order. I'm no scholar of anthropology, and know more about Indian history than European, but I surely found same statements questionable. However, it does provide a good overview of the states themselves with relevant historical examples.
The second essay discusses the significance of nature over nurture in context of the contemporary (1960s?) discourse, with references to (most probably) the 1964 riots in Northeast America. And of course he makes clear that the 'barbarian' referred to here, can be of any race.
Well, he's not nuanced here, but he does make quite a few intriguing points.
Some random interesting statements...
((Quote set 2 in comments))
Also: https://aynrkey.blogspot.com/2010/03/...
---
* Hymn of Breaking Strain (Poem) 3/5
Kipling ponders on human pain, contrasts it to the certitude of engineering strains, and prays for strength, I guess. http://www.kiplingsociety.co.uk/rg_pa...
The editor introduces the poem in the context of the Challenger disaster.
I don't read poems much, so my rating is very approximate.
---
* Mail Supremacy 3.5/5
A short, absurd, humorous sci-fi story
---
* In Clouds of Glory 2.5/5
A 1955 novelette by a 24-year-old Algis Budrys, this story primarily deals with a mercenary enterprise a few centuries in the future, where the Earth is isolationist but neighbored by other warring interstellar species.
http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cg...
This had a lot of potential but ended up being a downer.
The good:
1. Provides hints of an interesting universe and offers a few thought-provoking comments on interstellar politics/geopolitics - Cold war going hot, then peace, defeat by an interstellar species, isolationism, a mercenary agency, interstellar conspiracy, setting the path for future domination
2. Weird but creative 'shape shifting' medical technology
The bad:
1. I guess it's not considered good writing when exposition is too direct, but here it's just too oblique and focused more on the unnecessary parts. That also means it didn't justify its length. Was this really supposed to get published or was it a private outline for a novel?
Also, the editor's into to this was quite irrelevant to the story. He does provide interesting points about the author's background, but just adds a single line about the story itself.
---
* The Miracle of Government (Essay) 3/5
The first 2/3rd discusses that government (at least in forms seen till now) needs to be based on some form of irrationality. In the past it was the myth of god-given powers to the king. Though, I'm not sure how well the arguments holds for more evolved forms of governance. 'How can a good government be assigned power?' I felt this question wasn't addressed well. Democracy, at least in theory, is based on logic... though, the assumption that the choice of the majority is 'good', might be what the author considered kind of an irrationality.
The other question was discussed quite well - 'What is a good government?'. The author points out strength and justice as the key values and criticizes both anarchist (even libertarian) and totalitarian (e.g. communists) approaches, and makes a case for balance.
---
* The Proper Study Of Mankind (Essay) 5/5
* The Voodoo Sciences (Essay) 5/5
A review of the book brought my attention to two essays in it - the couple of essays in the chapter 'The Proper Study Of Mankind'. The review: https://www.amazon.com/Imperial-Stars... - Jason Gonella. I'm not feeling like giving a detailed analysis highlighting their value (even though they deserve it). So, I'll just summarize.
First let's discuss the man himself. His wiki itself makes for an interesting read, but let's summarize... Pournelle had an interesting academic and professional path. He got degrees in social sciences - however a lot of his work there actually involved maths. Then he got into aerospace industry in operations research before becoming a full-time Sci-Fi writer - and an influential one at that. He also wrote technical articles related to computers, in popular magazines. ... I can't do justice here. Please read the wiki :) Watching his video interviews, his interesting personality is also there to see - a confident, slightly quirky genius from Louisiana. And he's not someone you'd call a leftist - so, as far as the field of writing/media in concerned, he represents diversity. :)
'The Proper Study Of Mankind'. The first essay in this chapter is on the ridiculousness Pournelle sees in the academics of social sciences. It's exactly what you think it is about...
Making an analogy, he says ... "It's as if to get a degree in chemistry you had to spend months learning about the phlogiston theory; as if physics required a three-week course in Democritus' beliefs about atomic structure. In other words, this required course is a confession: the discipline has so little content that they've invented this artificially difficult barrier so the doctorate won't be so easy to get." I have no idea why this stuff hasn't got more popularity.
The Pournelle chart is something you must have come across in the internet (please look up the term). The second essay is something that the wiki article itself references! So, yeah. Basically Pournelle talks about this influential concept, which he originally published as part of his PhD.
'The Voodoo Sciences'. The essays in this chapter focus on a similar subject matter as the first essay above, with a particular focus on - a subject even I didn't expect to find here - economics. One particular insight which stuck with me was his successful influence on government policies through independent citizen groups. He gave the example of the L5 Society, but it seems he was involved with bigger groups as well later on.
Pournelle's content in the book have the kind of gems of insight which you would have expected to be generally more commonplace in 'works of prominence'.
Some random interesting posts by/about Pournelle (apart from his Chaos Manor)...
https://www.thecalifornian.com/story/...
https://reason.com/1975/03/01/science...
https://news.slashdot.org/story/17/09... - the comment section is more loud and biased than insightful, but interesting - with respect to Pournelle, as well as how different kinds of people thought of him.
---
* Herbig Haro 4/5
It's a fine sci-fi tale, with interstellar world building and interesting political themes, all effectively done within the length of a short story (or novelette?). This along with its prequel, 'The Road Not Taken' (my review here), have become somewhat famous for the interesting but silly 'medieval FTL tech' concept. [private note 0 link]
[private note 1 link]
Lately for me, reading books, however infrequently, have been either for some entertainment/mental exercise or to find works where socio-political issues are discussed with insight. This story didn't satisfy the latter goal fully, but did it to a decent extent.
[rant 1, in comments]
Herbig-Haro's premise (knowing that it follows TRNT) had raised hopes that this story would take the opportunity to discuss such concepts. Still, this story does feature civilizational collapse due to socio-political advancement lagging behind the technological progress, and that puts the humans 'in a spot'.
I think the first few sections seemed unrefined. For the unique kind of universe it is setting up, within the word limit it has, those sections could have been done better. Once having comprehended it also, some questions arise. 'Cienfuegos', is presumably a planet/colony in this universe, but at first it almost seems like the author is referring to a future Cienfuegos, Cuba. And mentioning 'The London Pub' alongside it didn't help either. And why was a little scout ship with a single guy, that too of a 'salvage agency', sent to investigate the loss of 3 ships? For note, the title of the story does refer to the real-world astronomical phenomenon itself, but doesn't form a big part of the plot.
BTW, it might be a good exercise to take stories like this and think over what your version would look like.
Searching around for other reviews did bring up some fascinating links...
Popularity of the two 'Roxolan stories' is somewhat evident by this comment: https://www.reddit.com/r/HFY/comments...
Full fledged articles of this little universe exist!: https://turtledove.fandom.com/wiki/Ro...
Humanity F Yeah is an interesting subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/HFY/wiki/ref...
---
[private note 2 link]
Herbig-Haro by Turtledove drew me to this book.
Below, I have listed the entries (which include stories, poems and essays) I have read till now, sorted in reverse by read-date.
Just to get it out of the way, Pournelle's introduction to the book is interesting but somewhat strange. The book has 'Imperial Stars' in its name and the Introduction centers around that, with good historical references. However, the way Pournelle puts the Empire as a feasible way of administration for a good society, is somewhat unrefined, controversial even.
Also see:
https://marzaat.com/2017/09/12/imperi...
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
https://www.blackgate.com/2019/02/25/...
---
* The Fighting Philosopher by E.B. Cole 3/5
(See comment section for details)
---
* Finger Trouble by Edward Hughes 3/5
Some of my thoughts echo the aforementioned marzaat.com review regarding this.
It's strange tale about a duke's troubles regarding succession planning mixed with an interstellar setting, a hint of genetic experimentation, and eugenic infanticide... I guess there's a regular story out there which the author 'adapted' to this exotic setting.
Editor's intro doesn't quite fit in well either.
---
* Pax Galactica by Ralph Williams 4/5
From 1950s.
Basically, advanced aliens decide that humans' technology has progressed way too further than their social maturity. They bomb nuclear establishments and spread an 'inhibitor' throughout the planet inhibiting explosive chemical reactions.
They expect these actions to push humanity towards social refinement, but the results might not go the way they intended.
---
* To a Different Drum by Bretnor 3.5/5
A story exploring how a society can rebuild itself, set in interstellar context, with the customary fantasy FTL element - and here it actually is quite fantastical which BTW has some similarity with W40k Warp (from the cursory knowledge I have about it). I have some ideas of my own on the overall topic, which I would like to see more in stories, or better, write about :). This one does touches on some aspects of it.
The introduction talks about how rule ultimately derives from being able to convince the concerned parties - in an autocracy those are the immediate subordinates of the autocrat, and in a democracy, ideally, it's the electorate.
It's kinda related to the story but, not quite a satisfying connection.
And in any case, this society fails the test of 'would it do any better than dinosaurs', which seems like a good yardstick to me. So, it's an interesting story, but ideologically not quite satisfying.
---
* Yellow Rain and Space Wars 3.5/5
The former is an essay regarding threats of biological and chemical weapons. The latter regarding space-based weapons.
The first essay did make me wonder as to how far the Soviets (and even the later Russian govt.) took their bio/chemical weapon programs.
The second one makes one ponder of the limit to which the arms race could have gone. Could Project Orion-style battleships have been roaming the heavens? Fascinating - but dangerous.
---
* That Share of Glory 3.5/5
This is a 1952 novelette by Cyril M. Kornbluth. And the author has a great reputation despite his short life: http://www.librarything.com/work/137604.
The intro by the editor includes several paragraphs from The Machiavellians by James Burnham, with quite a few interesting lines... (Quote set 3 in comments)
Most of what I know about Machiavelli is from a read of The Prince at Wikipedia. My rough idea about his mindset and the mindset of his times is that, because people knew less and were less in control (agriculture, transport, medicine, etc.) instability was more probable and more likely to be violent, Machiavelli put forth his extremely expedient recommendations for the need of maintaining order and stability, like an evolution over tribal customs, and far removed from the utopian visions we today can dare to think of; some of Machiavelli's ideas may be relevant today also. Though I'm not sure if ALL of it was appropriate for his time. In India, Chanakya seems to be in the broadly same category but without the notoriety.
The editor concludes that the story "turns Machiavelli loose on the stars".
Alen, the protagonist, is a trainee under an interstellar religiopolitical order and is towards the end of his training. The story basically deals with the twists and turns during his assignment on a trade expedition.
(A few selected lines in quote set 4 in the comments)
I'm not sure if the story encapsulates the Machiavellian mindset well, but it was an amusing read. This could also have been set in a medieval period/fantasy setting with little loss of essence.
---
* Tribesman, Barbarian, And Citizen (Essay) 3/5
* The Barbarians From Within (Essay) 3.5/5
The author of these essays, John W. Campbell, was the highly influential editor of Astounding Science Fiction magazine, and Pournelle pays a pithy tribute to him in the introduction. And there are some specific interesting statements...
((Quote set 1 in comments))
The first essay puts forward the notion that the three states of society mentioned in the title, are three STAGES, and in that order. I'm no scholar of anthropology, and know more about Indian history than European, but I surely found same statements questionable. However, it does provide a good overview of the states themselves with relevant historical examples.
The second essay discusses the significance of nature over nurture in context of the contemporary (1960s?) discourse, with references to (most probably) the 1964 riots in Northeast America. And of course he makes clear that the 'barbarian' referred to here, can be of any race.
Well, he's not nuanced here, but he does make quite a few intriguing points.
Some random interesting statements...
((Quote set 2 in comments))
Also: https://aynrkey.blogspot.com/2010/03/...
---
* Hymn of Breaking Strain (Poem) 3/5
Kipling ponders on human pain, contrasts it to the certitude of engineering strains, and prays for strength, I guess. http://www.kiplingsociety.co.uk/rg_pa...
The editor introduces the poem in the context of the Challenger disaster.
I don't read poems much, so my rating is very approximate.
---
* Mail Supremacy 3.5/5
A short, absurd, humorous sci-fi story
---
* In Clouds of Glory 2.5/5
A 1955 novelette by a 24-year-old Algis Budrys, this story primarily deals with a mercenary enterprise a few centuries in the future, where the Earth is isolationist but neighbored by other warring interstellar species.
http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cg...
This had a lot of potential but ended up being a downer.
The good:
1. Provides hints of an interesting universe and offers a few thought-provoking comments on interstellar politics/geopolitics - Cold war going hot, then peace, defeat by an interstellar species, isolationism, a mercenary agency, interstellar conspiracy, setting the path for future domination
2. Weird but creative 'shape shifting' medical technology
The bad:
1. I guess it's not considered good writing when exposition is too direct, but here it's just too oblique and focused more on the unnecessary parts. That also means it didn't justify its length. Was this really supposed to get published or was it a private outline for a novel?
Also, the editor's into to this was quite irrelevant to the story. He does provide interesting points about the author's background, but just adds a single line about the story itself.
---
* The Miracle of Government (Essay) 3/5
The first 2/3rd discusses that government (at least in forms seen till now) needs to be based on some form of irrationality. In the past it was the myth of god-given powers to the king. Though, I'm not sure how well the arguments holds for more evolved forms of governance. 'How can a good government be assigned power?' I felt this question wasn't addressed well. Democracy, at least in theory, is based on logic... though, the assumption that the choice of the majority is 'good', might be what the author considered kind of an irrationality.
The other question was discussed quite well - 'What is a good government?'. The author points out strength and justice as the key values and criticizes both anarchist (even libertarian) and totalitarian (e.g. communists) approaches, and makes a case for balance.
---
* The Proper Study Of Mankind (Essay) 5/5
* The Voodoo Sciences (Essay) 5/5
A review of the book brought my attention to two essays in it - the couple of essays in the chapter 'The Proper Study Of Mankind'. The review: https://www.amazon.com/Imperial-Stars... - Jason Gonella. I'm not feeling like giving a detailed analysis highlighting their value (even though they deserve it). So, I'll just summarize.
First let's discuss the man himself. His wiki itself makes for an interesting read, but let's summarize... Pournelle had an interesting academic and professional path. He got degrees in social sciences - however a lot of his work there actually involved maths. Then he got into aerospace industry in operations research before becoming a full-time Sci-Fi writer - and an influential one at that. He also wrote technical articles related to computers, in popular magazines. ... I can't do justice here. Please read the wiki :) Watching his video interviews, his interesting personality is also there to see - a confident, slightly quirky genius from Louisiana. And he's not someone you'd call a leftist - so, as far as the field of writing/media in concerned, he represents diversity. :)
'The Proper Study Of Mankind'. The first essay in this chapter is on the ridiculousness Pournelle sees in the academics of social sciences. It's exactly what you think it is about...
Making an analogy, he says ... "It's as if to get a degree in chemistry you had to spend months learning about the phlogiston theory; as if physics required a three-week course in Democritus' beliefs about atomic structure. In other words, this required course is a confession: the discipline has so little content that they've invented this artificially difficult barrier so the doctorate won't be so easy to get." I have no idea why this stuff hasn't got more popularity.
The Pournelle chart is something you must have come across in the internet (please look up the term). The second essay is something that the wiki article itself references! So, yeah. Basically Pournelle talks about this influential concept, which he originally published as part of his PhD.
'The Voodoo Sciences'. The essays in this chapter focus on a similar subject matter as the first essay above, with a particular focus on - a subject even I didn't expect to find here - economics. One particular insight which stuck with me was his successful influence on government policies through independent citizen groups. He gave the example of the L5 Society, but it seems he was involved with bigger groups as well later on.
Pournelle's content in the book have the kind of gems of insight which you would have expected to be generally more commonplace in 'works of prominence'.
Some random interesting posts by/about Pournelle (apart from his Chaos Manor)...
https://www.thecalifornian.com/story/...
https://reason.com/1975/03/01/science...
https://news.slashdot.org/story/17/09... - the comment section is more loud and biased than insightful, but interesting - with respect to Pournelle, as well as how different kinds of people thought of him.
---
* Herbig Haro 4/5
It's a fine sci-fi tale, with interstellar world building and interesting political themes, all effectively done within the length of a short story (or novelette?). This along with its prequel, 'The Road Not Taken' (my review here), have become somewhat famous for the interesting but silly 'medieval FTL tech' concept. [private note 0 link]
[private note 1 link]
Lately for me, reading books, however infrequently, have been either for some entertainment/mental exercise or to find works where socio-political issues are discussed with insight. This story didn't satisfy the latter goal fully, but did it to a decent extent.
[rant 1, in comments]
Herbig-Haro's premise (knowing that it follows TRNT) had raised hopes that this story would take the opportunity to discuss such concepts. Still, this story does feature civilizational collapse due to socio-political advancement lagging behind the technological progress, and that puts the humans 'in a spot'.
I think the first few sections seemed unrefined. For the unique kind of universe it is setting up, within the word limit it has, those sections could have been done better. Once having comprehended it also, some questions arise. 'Cienfuegos', is presumably a planet/colony in this universe, but at first it almost seems like the author is referring to a future Cienfuegos, Cuba. And mentioning 'The London Pub' alongside it didn't help either. And why was a little scout ship with a single guy, that too of a 'salvage agency', sent to investigate the loss of 3 ships? For note, the title of the story does refer to the real-world astronomical phenomenon itself, but doesn't form a big part of the plot.
BTW, it might be a good exercise to take stories like this and think over what your version would look like.
Searching around for other reviews did bring up some fascinating links...
Popularity of the two 'Roxolan stories' is somewhat evident by this comment: https://www.reddit.com/r/HFY/comments...
Full fledged articles of this little universe exist!: https://turtledove.fandom.com/wiki/Ro...
Humanity F Yeah is an interesting subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/HFY/wiki/ref...
---
[private note 2 link]
December 8, 2016
This lobro is very good because the plot makes a story turn and makes it more interesting
May 29, 2011
See http://thelogoftheantares.blogspot.com/
Jerry Pournelle (editor), Imperial Stars 1: The Stars at War
Published 12/1/1986
SKU: 0671656031
Ebook Price: $4.00
Format: Read Online
Email to My Kindle (708k)
Download Unzipped Files
EBookWise/REB1100/Rocket Format (460k)
Mobi/Palm/Kindle Format (708k)
EPUB/Nook/Stanza Reader Format (563k)
Microsoft Reader Format (556k)
Sony Digital Reader Format (647k)
RTF Format (3,235k)
Download Zipped Files
HTML Format Zip (550k)
EBookWise/Rocket Format Zip (459k)
Mobi/Palm/Kindle Format Zip (615k)
EPUB/Nook/Stanza Format Zip (558k)
Microsoft Reader Format Zip (540k)
Sony Digital Reader Format Zip (616k)
RTF Format Zip (868k)
1. Short reviews: :)
(Full disclosure: I am a friend of Jerry's.
Imperial Stars is a series of collections of short stories. I have given each component a review as well as reviewing the work as a whole. I have not reviewed the editor's introductions to the pieces.)
"In Clouds of Glory" (8 chapters), Algis Budrys :(
"The Star Plunderer" (4 chapters), Poul Anderson :|
"Tradesman, Barbarian, anc Citizen", John W. Campbell :|
"The Barbarians from Within", John W. Campbell :|
"Hymn of Breaking Strain", Rudyard Kipling :|
"The Miracle of Government" (3 chapters), James Burnham :|
"To a Different Drum", Reginald Bretnor :)
"The Whirligig of Time", Vernor Vinge :|
"Nightmare, with Angels", Stephen Vincent Benet :)
"The Aristocrat" (3 chapters), Chan Davis :|
"The Sons of Martha", Rudyard Kipling :D
"Mail Supremacy", Hayford Peirce :)
"Herbig-Haro", Harry Turtledove :)
"The Fighting Philosopher", E. B. Cole :|
"The Voodoo Sciences", Jerry Pournelle :|
"Pax Galactica", Ralph Williams :)
"The Proper Study of Mankind", Jerry Pournelle :|
"All Ends of the Spectrum", Jerry Pournelle :)
"Finger Trouble", Edward P. Hughes :)
"Yellow Rain", Adrian Berry :|
"Space Wars", Adrian Berry :|
"That Share of Glory", C. M. Kornbluth :D
"The Stars at War", Jerry Pournelle :|
2. Long reviews:
2.1. What I liked: Some very memorable stories; for example, "That Share of Glory."
Roller coaster or walk in the park?
Both. Some roller coasters. Some walks in the park.
2.2. What I did not like: The volume begins with two stories which I found slow. And it ends with Jerry's diatribe against the now-dead Soviet Empire.
2.3. Who I think is the audience: Military sf fans.
2.4. Is the book appropriate for children to read? Yes.
2.5. On the basis of reading this book, will I buy the next book in the series? I alreasdy have. The book gave good value for $4.00.
2.6. Other:
This book is from the Baens Books collection: http://www.baen.com/
2.7. Links:
Jerry Pournelle @ http://www.jerrypournelle.com/
2.8. Buy the book: http://www.webscription.net/p-923-imp...
Jerry Pournelle (editor), Imperial Stars 1: The Stars at War
Published 12/1/1986
SKU: 0671656031
Ebook Price: $4.00
Format: Read Online
Email to My Kindle (708k)
Download Unzipped Files
EBookWise/REB1100/Rocket Format (460k)
Mobi/Palm/Kindle Format (708k)
EPUB/Nook/Stanza Reader Format (563k)
Microsoft Reader Format (556k)
Sony Digital Reader Format (647k)
RTF Format (3,235k)
Download Zipped Files
HTML Format Zip (550k)
EBookWise/Rocket Format Zip (459k)
Mobi/Palm/Kindle Format Zip (615k)
EPUB/Nook/Stanza Format Zip (558k)
Microsoft Reader Format Zip (540k)
Sony Digital Reader Format Zip (616k)
RTF Format Zip (868k)
1. Short reviews: :)
(Full disclosure: I am a friend of Jerry's.
Imperial Stars is a series of collections of short stories. I have given each component a review as well as reviewing the work as a whole. I have not reviewed the editor's introductions to the pieces.)
"In Clouds of Glory" (8 chapters), Algis Budrys :(
"The Star Plunderer" (4 chapters), Poul Anderson :|
"Tradesman, Barbarian, anc Citizen", John W. Campbell :|
"The Barbarians from Within", John W. Campbell :|
"Hymn of Breaking Strain", Rudyard Kipling :|
"The Miracle of Government" (3 chapters), James Burnham :|
"To a Different Drum", Reginald Bretnor :)
"The Whirligig of Time", Vernor Vinge :|
"Nightmare, with Angels", Stephen Vincent Benet :)
"The Aristocrat" (3 chapters), Chan Davis :|
"The Sons of Martha", Rudyard Kipling :D
"Mail Supremacy", Hayford Peirce :)
"Herbig-Haro", Harry Turtledove :)
"The Fighting Philosopher", E. B. Cole :|
"The Voodoo Sciences", Jerry Pournelle :|
"Pax Galactica", Ralph Williams :)
"The Proper Study of Mankind", Jerry Pournelle :|
"All Ends of the Spectrum", Jerry Pournelle :)
"Finger Trouble", Edward P. Hughes :)
"Yellow Rain", Adrian Berry :|
"Space Wars", Adrian Berry :|
"That Share of Glory", C. M. Kornbluth :D
"The Stars at War", Jerry Pournelle :|
2. Long reviews:
2.1. What I liked: Some very memorable stories; for example, "That Share of Glory."
Roller coaster or walk in the park?
Both. Some roller coasters. Some walks in the park.
2.2. What I did not like: The volume begins with two stories which I found slow. And it ends with Jerry's diatribe against the now-dead Soviet Empire.
2.3. Who I think is the audience: Military sf fans.
2.4. Is the book appropriate for children to read? Yes.
2.5. On the basis of reading this book, will I buy the next book in the series? I alreasdy have. The book gave good value for $4.00.
2.6. Other:
This book is from the Baens Books collection: http://www.baen.com/
2.7. Links:
Jerry Pournelle @ http://www.jerrypournelle.com/
2.8. Buy the book: http://www.webscription.net/p-923-imp...
September 1, 2021
Came to this book looking for the "Herbig-Haro" story by Harry Turtledove. The astronomical object the title refers to is only passingly mentioned in the story, which was kinda disappointing, but otherwise the story is so good. I give it 4 stars.
Will read the rest of the book (and complement this review accordingly) as time permits.
Will read the rest of the book (and complement this review accordingly) as time permits.
September 3, 2020
A series of really good short stories. The creation of Empire, can come in many ways. Learn how.
December 27, 2022
A thick paperback, that I somehow rolled through quickly. Most of the stories are very entertaining and thought-provoking. A bit old, now, but generally not out of date. Some political essays thrown in that slow things down. I got it because one of my favorite authors is in it, but enjoyed the rest of it almost as much.
October 8, 2020
Nice collection of short stories, and though they're over 30 years old, many explore very timely themes.
June 9, 2014
For me, this was another example of why Jerry Journelle and Larry Niven should only be allowed to work as a team or as part of a team. I felt like a lot of the stories included in this anthology were mediocre and political essays were used to fill out the required number of pages, included at least one by the editor.
January 24, 2013
Good scifi shorts
June 28, 2016
Good stories and some interesting essays.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews