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Time Patrol #2
Time Patrolman
Contents
7 • Ivory, and Apes, and Peacocks • [Time Patrol • 6] • novella by Poul Anderson
117 • The Sorrow of Odin the Goth • [Time Patrol • 7] • novella by Poul Anderson
7 • Ivory, and Apes, and Peacocks • [Time Patrol • 6] • novella by Poul Anderson
117 • The Sorrow of Odin the Goth • [Time Patrol • 7] • novella by Poul Anderson
254 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 1983
4 people are currently reading
384 people want to read
About the author
Poul Anderson
1,621 books1,105 followersPseudonym A. A. Craig, Michael Karageorge, Winston P. Sanders, P. A. Kingsley.
Poul William Anderson was an American science fiction author who began his career during one of the Golden Ages of the genre and continued to write and remain popular into the 21st century. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy, historical novels, and a prodigious number of short stories. He received numerous awards for his writing, including seven Hugo Awards and three Nebula Awards.
Anderson received a degree in physics from the University of Minnesota in 1948. He married Karen Kruse in 1953. They had one daughter, Astrid, who is married to science fiction author Greg Bear. Anderson was the sixth President of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, taking office in 1972. He was a member of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America, a loose-knit group of Heroic Fantasy authors founded in the 1960s, some of whose works were anthologized in Lin Carter's Flashing Swords! anthologies. He was a founding member of the Society for Creative Anachronism. Robert A. Heinlein dedicated his 1985 novel The Cat Who Walks Through Walls to Anderson and eight of the other members of the Citizens' Advisory Council on National Space Policy.[2][3]
Poul Anderson died of cancer on July 31, 2001, after a month in the hospital. Several of his novels were published posthumously.
Series:
* Time Patrol
* Psychotechnic League
* Trygve Yamamura
* Harvest of Stars
* King of Ys
* Last Viking
* Hoka
* Future history of the Polesotechnic League
* Flandry
Poul William Anderson was an American science fiction author who began his career during one of the Golden Ages of the genre and continued to write and remain popular into the 21st century. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy, historical novels, and a prodigious number of short stories. He received numerous awards for his writing, including seven Hugo Awards and three Nebula Awards.
Anderson received a degree in physics from the University of Minnesota in 1948. He married Karen Kruse in 1953. They had one daughter, Astrid, who is married to science fiction author Greg Bear. Anderson was the sixth President of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, taking office in 1972. He was a member of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America, a loose-knit group of Heroic Fantasy authors founded in the 1960s, some of whose works were anthologized in Lin Carter's Flashing Swords! anthologies. He was a founding member of the Society for Creative Anachronism. Robert A. Heinlein dedicated his 1985 novel The Cat Who Walks Through Walls to Anderson and eight of the other members of the Citizens' Advisory Council on National Space Policy.[2][3]
Poul Anderson died of cancer on July 31, 2001, after a month in the hospital. Several of his novels were published posthumously.
Series:
* Time Patrol
* Psychotechnic League
* Trygve Yamamura
* Harvest of Stars
* King of Ys
* Last Viking
* Hoka
* Future history of the Polesotechnic League
* Flandry
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
December 7, 2020
It just goes to show. Poul Anderson gets REALLY good in his later years. I really, really loved "The Sorrow of Odin".
In the previous tales I read, I had said I thought the characters and the tale were somewhat bloodless. The same cannot be said in this. Indeed, I'm kinda bleeding.
We have a Patrolman going back to the mid 4th century to hunt down Goth and Visigoth legends that had disappeared from history, but he falls in love, loses her, and thanks to practical immortality treatments, follows his children through history, unable to let go.
Mind you, he's still being a proper cop/historian, but the PEOPLE who he keeps visiting have kept note of the Wanderer.
Suffice to say, this is one hell of a tragic tale that's overflowing with real history and a very classic theme that includes the interweaving of myth and religion into SF.
I TOTALLY fell in love with it.
In the previous tales I read, I had said I thought the characters and the tale were somewhat bloodless. The same cannot be said in this. Indeed, I'm kinda bleeding.
We have a Patrolman going back to the mid 4th century to hunt down Goth and Visigoth legends that had disappeared from history, but he falls in love, loses her, and thanks to practical immortality treatments, follows his children through history, unable to let go.
Mind you, he's still being a proper cop/historian, but the PEOPLE who he keeps visiting have kept note of the Wanderer.
Suffice to say, this is one hell of a tragic tale that's overflowing with real history and a very classic theme that includes the interweaving of myth and religion into SF.
I TOTALLY fell in love with it.
October 23, 2009
Sometimes, I find that a book can be a welcome surprise because the blurb on the back doesn’t nearly do justice explaining the story within, and I wonder why they couldn’t have spent a little more time to accurately describe its awesomeness to move more copies and assist in enlightening the world. Time Patrolman wisely avoids that dread failure, but unfortunately veers into rocky territory by having a synopsis which left me completely perplexed. This summary promises a story of a member of the Time Patrol named Odin the Goth, who suffers the tragedy of loving a woman in the epoch he is assigned to protect, but is unable to rescue her from the terrible fate he knows she is destined for, due to his sworn duty to keep the events of the past inviolate. This seems pretty simple, but just you wait.
Also complicating matters is the fact I’m a Time Patrolman myself, currently on vacation in October 2009, but next week I’ll be going back in time to this previous May, at which time I shall read this book, and also to tie up some loose ends from a previous assignment gone wrong.
When I get about a quarter of the way through this book, I’ll wonder if the wrong cover had been put on my copy, sure the story will involve a Time Patrolman, but his name is going to be Manse Everard, and he’s going to be stationed in Phoenicia circa 950BC (where/when Goth activity is obviously minimal), and instead of being involved in a juicy love affair tempting his loyalty to the Patrol, he’ll relentless pursue Merau Varagan, a power-obsessed bandit hell-bent on changing the course of history for his own destructive purposes, in this case, to attack Jewish history at its nexus in Tyre.
This doesn’t mean that the story which I will actually get won’t progress decently or hold my interest, it’ll just be vastly different than my expectations, which I think is understandable in these circumstances. This switcheroo may initially do a disservice to my opinion of the book as there’s only one parallel I’m going to make with this shady bait-and-switch, and it’s a painful memory (it still is now and will be then). The little lady and I were purchasing some porn videos, and she wisely opted for “Jail Whores” (which delivered in accordance to its simple, but honest, title) whereas I went with “Brunette Cocksuckers Gone Wild”, which was so low-budget that the studio ran out of brunettes by the third scene and began tossing blondes and other undesirables into the mix. As both a proud grown-up and staunch optimist, I can cope with these sorts of disappointments and find the silver lining hiding somewhere on this cloud; it still contained a stunning variety of fellatio, so all wasn’t completely for naught. I shall eventually say the same for the illustrious Poul Andersen’s Time Patrolman, sure, it won’t be quite what I’ll want, but it will still include time-travel and a badass who’ll guard the continuity of the past while beset by devastating misfortunes. My biggest surprise will be the revelation that this plot will start seeming more promising than the sappy-sounding shit initially offered, plus, I either have or will read Ken Grimwood’s Replay (can’t recall which) and still don’t see the need for anything challenging that as my favorite time-travel/heartbreaking-romance.
Befuddled beyond belief, I’ll soon be taken for another dizzying turn; Time Patrolman will surprisingly contain two stories (the book won’t mention this fact anywhere, and it’s going to wallop me square in the testes with sledgehammer force), the second of which will involve the saga of love-stricken Odin the Goth. I’m going to hoot a few times in merriment upon discovering this, despite the staggering blow recently delivered to my aching nads, before silently giving Poul Andersen mad props for being a crafty cur.
The coupling of these two stories is going to seem relatively strange initially, they’ll have very little in common (Patrolman Everard will return in the second story, in a supervisory role to the Patrolman who’ll become Odin the Goth, Carl Farness) and the writing styles will differ as the first shall be presented in the third person and the second is going to alternate between first and third person. The first tale’s gonna be a straightforward action tale in which Everard will immerse himself in Phoenician society in order to better thwart his nemesis, while occasionally providing some insight into the history and laws of time travel, which won’t be incredibly exceptional; I’ll learn that when the technology to move freely in time was discovered by mankind, a group of time-travelers (called the Danellians) from their distant future were on hand (this was the Time Patrol supervising this pivotal breakthrough) to make sure this power wasn’t abused and to set their savage ancestors straight on the do’s and don’ts). The second story will get a lot more complicated, involving more back-and-forth movement in time, as Farness will be more of a researcher than a full-fledged Patrolman. His actual duty shall be to gather a more complete history of the Goths, and to complete the lacunas in their poems and literature, while avoiding a world-wrecking fuckup, rather then chasing down radicals. His jaunts in time are going to take him from studying his subjects in the fourth century, to his flashbacks of joining the Patrol in the 1980’s, and to his present-day living with his wife in the 1930’s. However, with the first story providing a background for the Patrol and Everard, including their use and directives concerning time travel, and the second story concerning a sloppy Patrol recruit and the causal loop he’s unintentionally creating, the to halves will result in a relatively decent whole.
Another bonus will certainly be that the book is gong to be much better than the cover art (which I always consider to be a great gauge when selecting material). Once I finish reading it, I may not think it’s a suitable recommendation for all science fiction fans, but I’ll probably think that any supporters of the time-travel niche may enjoy this.
Also complicating matters is the fact I’m a Time Patrolman myself, currently on vacation in October 2009, but next week I’ll be going back in time to this previous May, at which time I shall read this book, and also to tie up some loose ends from a previous assignment gone wrong.
When I get about a quarter of the way through this book, I’ll wonder if the wrong cover had been put on my copy, sure the story will involve a Time Patrolman, but his name is going to be Manse Everard, and he’s going to be stationed in Phoenicia circa 950BC (where/when Goth activity is obviously minimal), and instead of being involved in a juicy love affair tempting his loyalty to the Patrol, he’ll relentless pursue Merau Varagan, a power-obsessed bandit hell-bent on changing the course of history for his own destructive purposes, in this case, to attack Jewish history at its nexus in Tyre.
This doesn’t mean that the story which I will actually get won’t progress decently or hold my interest, it’ll just be vastly different than my expectations, which I think is understandable in these circumstances. This switcheroo may initially do a disservice to my opinion of the book as there’s only one parallel I’m going to make with this shady bait-and-switch, and it’s a painful memory (it still is now and will be then). The little lady and I were purchasing some porn videos, and she wisely opted for “Jail Whores” (which delivered in accordance to its simple, but honest, title) whereas I went with “Brunette Cocksuckers Gone Wild”, which was so low-budget that the studio ran out of brunettes by the third scene and began tossing blondes and other undesirables into the mix. As both a proud grown-up and staunch optimist, I can cope with these sorts of disappointments and find the silver lining hiding somewhere on this cloud; it still contained a stunning variety of fellatio, so all wasn’t completely for naught. I shall eventually say the same for the illustrious Poul Andersen’s Time Patrolman, sure, it won’t be quite what I’ll want, but it will still include time-travel and a badass who’ll guard the continuity of the past while beset by devastating misfortunes. My biggest surprise will be the revelation that this plot will start seeming more promising than the sappy-sounding shit initially offered, plus, I either have or will read Ken Grimwood’s Replay (can’t recall which) and still don’t see the need for anything challenging that as my favorite time-travel/heartbreaking-romance.
Befuddled beyond belief, I’ll soon be taken for another dizzying turn; Time Patrolman will surprisingly contain two stories (the book won’t mention this fact anywhere, and it’s going to wallop me square in the testes with sledgehammer force), the second of which will involve the saga of love-stricken Odin the Goth. I’m going to hoot a few times in merriment upon discovering this, despite the staggering blow recently delivered to my aching nads, before silently giving Poul Andersen mad props for being a crafty cur.
The coupling of these two stories is going to seem relatively strange initially, they’ll have very little in common (Patrolman Everard will return in the second story, in a supervisory role to the Patrolman who’ll become Odin the Goth, Carl Farness) and the writing styles will differ as the first shall be presented in the third person and the second is going to alternate between first and third person. The first tale’s gonna be a straightforward action tale in which Everard will immerse himself in Phoenician society in order to better thwart his nemesis, while occasionally providing some insight into the history and laws of time travel, which won’t be incredibly exceptional; I’ll learn that when the technology to move freely in time was discovered by mankind, a group of time-travelers (called the Danellians) from their distant future were on hand (this was the Time Patrol supervising this pivotal breakthrough) to make sure this power wasn’t abused and to set their savage ancestors straight on the do’s and don’ts). The second story will get a lot more complicated, involving more back-and-forth movement in time, as Farness will be more of a researcher than a full-fledged Patrolman. His actual duty shall be to gather a more complete history of the Goths, and to complete the lacunas in their poems and literature, while avoiding a world-wrecking fuckup, rather then chasing down radicals. His jaunts in time are going to take him from studying his subjects in the fourth century, to his flashbacks of joining the Patrol in the 1980’s, and to his present-day living with his wife in the 1930’s. However, with the first story providing a background for the Patrol and Everard, including their use and directives concerning time travel, and the second story concerning a sloppy Patrol recruit and the causal loop he’s unintentionally creating, the to halves will result in a relatively decent whole.
Another bonus will certainly be that the book is gong to be much better than the cover art (which I always consider to be a great gauge when selecting material). Once I finish reading it, I may not think it’s a suitable recommendation for all science fiction fans, but I’ll probably think that any supporters of the time-travel niche may enjoy this.
August 3, 2022
Read about 2/3 of this. Interesting stories, but the characters are not very deep. Time travel has never been one of my things. I just can't swallow going back in time to muck about to make sure the timeline remains unchanged? 25 cents at a book sale, so not a lot invested. Will donate book back so it can live on...
March 21, 2008
Read this book soon after it came out in 1983 and have loved it ever since. If you are into European myth, Ragnarok and Viking tales, then you should not pass this one by.
The book has two stories in it --- guess you could call them novellas. The first is OK but not memorable. The second is entitled, "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth" and it's a killer! In "Sorrow", Poul Anderson "retells" an Odin story in a SciFi way. A time-traveling literary researcher tries to track down the origin of a thread of Viking mythology by disguising himself as a common traveler. It takes him a while. Generations pass as he goes from homestead to homestead, listening to the stories told in the hall and around the campfire. But his prescence has unintended consequences . . . What transpires is filled with pathos and tragedy in keeping with the story he is tracking. Intriguing, moving and powerful, this story has the authentic taste of Norse mythology. Five stars!
The book has two stories in it --- guess you could call them novellas. The first is OK but not memorable. The second is entitled, "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth" and it's a killer! In "Sorrow", Poul Anderson "retells" an Odin story in a SciFi way. A time-traveling literary researcher tries to track down the origin of a thread of Viking mythology by disguising himself as a common traveler. It takes him a while. Generations pass as he goes from homestead to homestead, listening to the stories told in the hall and around the campfire. But his prescence has unintended consequences . . . What transpires is filled with pathos and tragedy in keeping with the story he is tracking. Intriguing, moving and powerful, this story has the authentic taste of Norse mythology. Five stars!
July 17, 2020
Actually two Time Patrol stories collected together and a character does show up in both, once as the protagonist, and then as a supporting character.
First story is just a straight forward adventure ( or as straightforward as you can get with time travel), the second story digs a little deeper into both history and time travel.
First story is an entertaining time waster, the second is excellent and what pushes this book into 3 stars.
First story is just a straight forward adventure ( or as straightforward as you can get with time travel), the second story digs a little deeper into both history and time travel.
First story is an entertaining time waster, the second is excellent and what pushes this book into 3 stars.
March 31, 2018
Six-word Review: Time travel is dangerous and paradoxical.
This book is actually two Novellas packaged as a book. The connection between the two is Manse Everard, who is the main protagonist in the first novella, Ivory, and Apes, and Peacocks and an overseer in the second, The Sorrow of Odin the Goth.
The first takes place in 950 BC Tyre, which the time traveler administration has identified as a nexus which if messed with will change the future of the planet. Merau Varagan, a villain from the further future and someone who Everard has faced before, wants to create a different future than his own present and doesn't care who gets hurt in the process. Along with the expected paradoxes, one would expect from time travel, there is the intrusion of the time patrolman into the situation.
Everard does manage to ingratiate himself with the King and also pick up a young confederate as well as contact the on-site couple placed to monitor the situation. He has to abide by the rules of time travel so he is limited in ways that Varagon is not. He, with the help of his young rascally helper, manages to uncover Varagan's plot and intercede in time to save the world. This is not a spoiler. I knew that Everard would triumph from the first couple pages. The suspense is in how he does it.
The second story is more complicated and more interesting, in my opinion. Carl Farness goes back in time and becomes the legendary Odin of Goth and Viking mythology. He complicates his life and his task by falling in love and marrying Jorith, from the past. This in spite of the fact he is already married in his time, the 1930s. Jorith and Farness have a son and Jorith dies in childbirth. Farness breaks a number of time travel rules and endangers his own future. Everard, his supervisor, convinces him to set things right no matter how painful.
I am a Poul Anderson fan and this book does not disappoint, in spite of the fact that I thought I was buying a novel, not two novellas. If you, as a reader, can handle the paradoxes of time travel, both these stories are worth your time.
This book is actually two Novellas packaged as a book. The connection between the two is Manse Everard, who is the main protagonist in the first novella, Ivory, and Apes, and Peacocks and an overseer in the second, The Sorrow of Odin the Goth.
The first takes place in 950 BC Tyre, which the time traveler administration has identified as a nexus which if messed with will change the future of the planet. Merau Varagan, a villain from the further future and someone who Everard has faced before, wants to create a different future than his own present and doesn't care who gets hurt in the process. Along with the expected paradoxes, one would expect from time travel, there is the intrusion of the time patrolman into the situation.
Everard does manage to ingratiate himself with the King and also pick up a young confederate as well as contact the on-site couple placed to monitor the situation. He has to abide by the rules of time travel so he is limited in ways that Varagon is not. He, with the help of his young rascally helper, manages to uncover Varagan's plot and intercede in time to save the world. This is not a spoiler. I knew that Everard would triumph from the first couple pages. The suspense is in how he does it.
The second story is more complicated and more interesting, in my opinion. Carl Farness goes back in time and becomes the legendary Odin of Goth and Viking mythology. He complicates his life and his task by falling in love and marrying Jorith, from the past. This in spite of the fact he is already married in his time, the 1930s. Jorith and Farness have a son and Jorith dies in childbirth. Farness breaks a number of time travel rules and endangers his own future. Everard, his supervisor, convinces him to set things right no matter how painful.
I am a Poul Anderson fan and this book does not disappoint, in spite of the fact that I thought I was buying a novel, not two novellas. If you, as a reader, can handle the paradoxes of time travel, both these stories are worth your time.
November 27, 2025
I came to this book to read "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth", as it was mentioned elsewhere[1], and was sufficiently intrigued to read the rest of the book (which is basically the first story).
It's a collection of interrelated stories all passed in the Time Patrol universe. They are not bad, and they're a nice mix of science fiction plus historical fiction and true history, and was enjoyable and fast-paced enough to entertain, for the two weeks that took me to read it through, but had no great ideas, no surprises (well, perhaps a mild one near the end), and so not really worth of a 4-star rating. 3 stars also doesn't really do it justice, but this time I resisted my natural tendency to round things up and stuck to 3 stars.
If you love Poul Anderson (which I am) and/or his Time Patrol universe (which I'm not as much), it's probably worth your while to read this; if no fan of either, I would not bother -- and to someone who's not acquainted with either, I would recommend to start with "Guardians of Time
Guardians of Time", the first book of the series.
[1] https://poulandersonappreciation.blog...
It's a collection of interrelated stories all passed in the Time Patrol universe. They are not bad, and they're a nice mix of science fiction plus historical fiction and true history, and was enjoyable and fast-paced enough to entertain, for the two weeks that took me to read it through, but had no great ideas, no surprises (well, perhaps a mild one near the end), and so not really worth of a 4-star rating. 3 stars also doesn't really do it justice, but this time I resisted my natural tendency to round things up and stuck to 3 stars.
If you love Poul Anderson (which I am) and/or his Time Patrol universe (which I'm not as much), it's probably worth your while to read this; if no fan of either, I would not bother -- and to someone who's not acquainted with either, I would recommend to start with "Guardians of Time
Guardians of Time", the first book of the series.
[1] https://poulandersonappreciation.blog...
October 26, 2024
Esimeses loo puhul saan aru, miks ulmet mõnikord noortekirjanduse alla liigitatakse või ajaviitekirjanduseks nimetatakse. Pahad on pahad ja head on head, pahadel õigupoolest pole nägugi. Natuke põnevaid kultuurilisi iseärasusi, aga see on ka kõik. Pärast alguse väikest ehmatust ei juhtu midagi, peategelane liigub oma eesmärgi poole, esitab õigetele inimestele õigeid küsimusi, käitub väärikalt, kõik on abivalmid ja kui keegi suudab üllatada, siis ainult positiivselt.
Teine lugu eraldi raamatuna saaks kõrgema hinde. Nautimise eeldus on varasem kokkupuude gootide ajaloo ja mütoloogiaga - võhikutel nagu mina on keeruline jälgida, et kes ja kus. Minajutustaja moraalset valikute taustal joonistub Ajapatrullist utoopiline tulevikuorganisatsioon, kus töötajatel on õigus olla nõrk ja ülemused ennekõike mõistvad.
Teine lugu eraldi raamatuna saaks kõrgema hinde. Nautimise eeldus on varasem kokkupuude gootide ajaloo ja mütoloogiaga - võhikutel nagu mina on keeruline jälgida, et kes ja kus. Minajutustaja moraalset valikute taustal joonistub Ajapatrullist utoopiline tulevikuorganisatsioon, kus töötajatel on õigus olla nõrk ja ülemused ennekõike mõistvad.
August 27, 2023
Basically, this book is two B-grade sci-fi novellas wrapped into one package. Mind you, the book synopsis itself makes no mention of this, so it’s a bit surprising to find out. The first story deals with ancient Tyre, the second with ancient Ostrogothia. There is a common character and time travel agency (the whole ”patrol” thing that the book takes its name from) between the two stories but otherwise they’re not related. The stories are fun enough in a cheesy throwback to the 80s kind of way, but far from Anderson’s best work.
November 12, 2023
Ajaviiteks käis kah. Teist lugu (raamat sisaldab kahte pikemat lugu) lõpetades pole enam meeles, mis esimeses toimuski. Teine lugu aga pajatab miskite gootide probleemidest4. sajandil kuskil Ukraina kandis. Kõik need Armenarichid, Theoderichid ja muud -ichid panid pea surisema ja kogu lugu oli sama huvitav nagu üleeelmise nädala hommikune uudistesaade.
Ei ole see Anderson minu autor, olen seda ammu tähele pannud (ei tea kelle autor ta üldse on?)
Keskpärane.
Ei ole see Anderson minu autor, olen seda ammu tähele pannud (ei tea kelle autor ta üldse on?)
Keskpärane.
July 11, 2025
The premise of this book is intriguing.
A patrolman goes through time to assure the integrity of the time stream.
Unfortunately, the author gets so bogged down with the details of each period that it gets in the way of the plot - of which there is too little.
He would have been better off writing a history textbook.
Shame really, it started well but then I struggled to finish it.
Cannot recommend.
A patrolman goes through time to assure the integrity of the time stream.
Unfortunately, the author gets so bogged down with the details of each period that it gets in the way of the plot - of which there is too little.
He would have been better off writing a history textbook.
Shame really, it started well but then I struggled to finish it.
Cannot recommend.
May 8, 2021
The two stories are basically interesting. The first one moves fairly fast and is engaging. The second is somewhat drawn out with sections of exposition instead to action. It's also somewhat of a downer. Still, overall, a decent read.
June 1, 2022
Two short novels in one.
They are: Ivory, and Apes, and Peacocks, set in Tyre, ancient Phoenicia.
The Sorrow of Odin the Goth, set in, well, Gothic times.
Both were interesting, but the first has a stronger style, and more interesting characterizations.
They are: Ivory, and Apes, and Peacocks, set in Tyre, ancient Phoenicia.
The Sorrow of Odin the Goth, set in, well, Gothic times.
Both were interesting, but the first has a stronger style, and more interesting characterizations.
Read
December 27, 2020Voyage ds le temps
Read
May 8, 2024the sorrow of odin the goth remains one of the most fire time travel stories ever written
Read
October 23, 2025science fiction
April 29, 2023
Enne värske raamatu kallale asumist lugesin ära aastaid tagasi maakeeli ilmunud esimese osa. Kuigi olen ajarändude fänn, siis see esimene osa millegipärast vaimustust ei tekitanud. Sellegipoolest otsustasin teisele osale võimaluse anda. Kokkuvõttes võin öelda, et oli esimesena loetust veidi parem, lisaks oli raamatus ka vaid kaks lugu, nii et sai paremini ühte maailma süveneda. Siiski tundub, et selle kirjaniku looming mulle kahjuks väga ei istu.
October 25, 2016
The 4 stars are for the second story. The first story in the book is utterly plain and boring. It presents at least half a dozen problems and then abruptly resolves them with a deus ex machina. The second story is much more intriguing. It's not particularly complicated and doesn't present any of the typical time travel predestination mysteries, rather it is very simplistic but it wins because it has a very engaging emotional side to it. I found it boring in the beginning but that's perhaps because I don't know much of goth, Huns etc histories. It was never shocking or surprising or particularly inventive as one would expect from scifi, but it just had that thing that gets the reader curious and reading just to get to the resolution. In other words, it didn't blow me away but it did manage to keep me at the edge of my seat waiting to see where it'll go. 3 star material but I had to give it one extra just for keeping me hooked with its emotional content.
February 4, 2011
Un étrange livre de science fiction. L'auteur est visiblement un amoureux d'histoire et les patrouilleurs du temps ne sont qu'un prétexte pour ses aventures au mileu des Ostrogoths ou de la Tyr antique. Il prends un mailin plaisir à faire renaître ces contrées et ces peuples oubliés.
le deuxième petit roman du recueil ("le chagrin d'Odin le goth") est très intéressante dansson idée du scientifique qui deviens la cause même de son objet de recherche. en mêm temps le tragique de la situation est poignant, je n'en dirai pas plus ici pour ne pas déflorer la surprise.
je n'ai pas adhéré à tout. mais je ne peux nier la qualité de ce livre.
le deuxième petit roman du recueil ("le chagrin d'Odin le goth") est très intéressante dansson idée du scientifique qui deviens la cause même de son objet de recherche. en mêm temps le tragique de la situation est poignant, je n'en dirai pas plus ici pour ne pas déflorer la surprise.
je n'ai pas adhéré à tout. mais je ne peux nier la qualité de ce livre.
October 2, 2011
This isn't as well written as other Poul Anderson books. But, I'm a fan of historical fiction so the focus on the barbarian times toward the end of the Western Roman Empire helps mitigate the story.
The most interesting thing about this story is the placement of an out of time person into the timeline and his impact on history. I think more could have been made around the 'butterfly effect' that we all hear about now. That said, it's a good start getting to that point.
I'm not aware of sequels to this book, but if there are any, I'd pick them up.
The most interesting thing about this story is the placement of an out of time person into the timeline and his impact on history. I think more could have been made around the 'butterfly effect' that we all hear about now. That said, it's a good start getting to that point.
I'm not aware of sequels to this book, but if there are any, I'd pick them up.
March 13, 2015
This books has 2 stories in it:
The first, "Ivory, and Apes, and Peacocks" is an entertaining little tale, but suffers from a pretty anticlimactic ending.
The second, "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth", is far more engaging, but suffers from being a bit to long.
Both are interesting, but different looks at people travelling in and actively getting involved in history (even if to preserve it).
But this isn't a huge surprise. For the most part, while it won't be the greatest thing ever, you pretty much will always get a good yarn out of Anderson. This is more than worth the time to read.
The first, "Ivory, and Apes, and Peacocks" is an entertaining little tale, but suffers from a pretty anticlimactic ending.
The second, "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth", is far more engaging, but suffers from being a bit to long.
Both are interesting, but different looks at people travelling in and actively getting involved in history (even if to preserve it).
But this isn't a huge surprise. For the most part, while it won't be the greatest thing ever, you pretty much will always get a good yarn out of Anderson. This is more than worth the time to read.
May 29, 2008
It's no Time Traveler's Wife, but a surprisingly good time travel yarn nonetheless. Solidly researched and cunningly organized, giving events an internal consistency that's almost crystalline in its organic beauty. Not a long, challenging, or deep read, but a quite satisfying literary snack.
March 7, 2015
No sé por qué me tardé tanto en terminar este libro, si las historias atrapan. Probablemente porque no fue una buena elección como lectura de camión: los cuentos son demasiado largos para el trayecto y perdía el hilo del asunto de un día para otro. Finalmente lo terminé y me gustó mucho.
December 8, 2009
Anderson adds some depth to the frequently used time patrol concept by incorporating elements borrowed from Norse mythology.
July 12, 2010
Found time for some pulp scifi. Almost done, so I'll post a review shortly.
January 18, 2011
Grade D+
September 5, 2011
Poul Anderson is generally a favorite, but I don't like time travel
May 6, 2012
Classic time travel/ time police type book - has the right 'feel'
December 7, 2020
Un chef d'oeuvre, le chagrin d'Odin le Goth... Les deux autres histoires, très bien aussi.
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