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Land and Overland Series #2
Las Astronaves de Madera
Continúa la historia iniciada con tanta maestría en LOS ASTRONAUTAS HARAPIENTOS. Han sido veinticinco años desde que los habitantes de Land se vieron obligados a trasladarse a Overland, el planeta hermano que comparte su atmósfera, donde ahora están establecidos en pequeñas comunidades distanciadas entre si.
Contra todo pronóstico, los que se quedaron en Land han conseguido la inmunidad contra la pterhacosis, la enfermedad que forzó la emigración. Su ambicioso soberano reclama derechos sobre Overland, iniciando una guerra que amenaza la vida de los emigrantes. Toller Maraquine, el protagonista de la primera parte, es llamado para organizar una defensa desesperada al frente de una flota de satélites y aeronaves hechos de madera.
Al crear a Toller Maraquine, un hombre abrasado por una inextinguible necesidad de descubrir, observar y experimentar, Shaw nos ha regalado un personaje inolvidable cuya vida transcurre a lo largo de esta trilogía.
Contra todo pronóstico, los que se quedaron en Land han conseguido la inmunidad contra la pterhacosis, la enfermedad que forzó la emigración. Su ambicioso soberano reclama derechos sobre Overland, iniciando una guerra que amenaza la vida de los emigrantes. Toller Maraquine, el protagonista de la primera parte, es llamado para organizar una defensa desesperada al frente de una flota de satélites y aeronaves hechos de madera.
Al crear a Toller Maraquine, un hombre abrasado por una inextinguible necesidad de descubrir, observar y experimentar, Shaw nos ha regalado un personaje inolvidable cuya vida transcurre a lo largo de esta trilogía.
351 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1987
3 people are currently reading
207 people want to read
About the author
Bob Shaw
213 books103 followersBob Shaw was born in Northern Ireland. After working in structural engineering, industrial public relations, and journalism he became a full time science fiction writer in 1975.
Shaw was noted for his originality and wit. He was two-time recipient (in 1979 and 1980) of the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer. His short story Light of Other Days was a Hugo Award nominee in 1967, as was his novel The Ragged Astronauts in 1987.
Shaw was noted for his originality and wit. He was two-time recipient (in 1979 and 1980) of the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer. His short story Light of Other Days was a Hugo Award nominee in 1967, as was his novel The Ragged Astronauts in 1987.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
January 13, 2019
Another work of Bob Shaw which is original and stunning!!!!
This book was skilfully written and original in its plot design. It was thrilling to read but was not as good as "The Ragged Astronauts". It formed the bridge to Book 3, "The Fugitive Worlds". This book seemed to be composed of 2 parts, the war between Land and Overland and the rescue mission of Sondeweere. The 1st part was over quickly and seemed to be anti-climactic. The 2nd part seemed to be a filler for this 2nd book. See what you think, by you giving your own evaluation.
This book was skilfully written and original in its plot design. It was thrilling to read but was not as good as "The Ragged Astronauts". It formed the bridge to Book 3, "The Fugitive Worlds". This book seemed to be composed of 2 parts, the war between Land and Overland and the rescue mission of Sondeweere. The 1st part was over quickly and seemed to be anti-climactic. The 2nd part seemed to be a filler for this 2nd book. See what you think, by you giving your own evaluation.
July 21, 2011
This book is in the unfortunate position of being the rather ordinary middle child bookended by exceptional siblings.
Part of the fun of The Ragged Astronauts was the notion of a pre-Newtonian culture coming to grips with the reality of weightlessness, and that theme carried forward is a major strength of this book (as the astronauts realize that a weightless object still hits you really hard, and so forth). The author finds several ways to explore it here.
Unfortunately he also made some strange decisions about the plot and setting. The people of the planet Land have migrated to the sister planet Overland and must rebuild their civilization in the wilderness. While this set up screams for a Wild West or New World style adventure (especially as the planet Overland has this stuff called "metal" that might be extremely useful), Shaw instead moves the clock forward to some twenty or thirty years after colonization. The planet is still mostly uninhabited, but the heavy lifting of establishing governance and an economy has been accomplished. What's more, Overland has a nearly-identical ecology to Land, and is uninhabited by human natives. This, frankly, sucked most of the wind out of my sails.
The book is unevenly divided between repelling an invading force from the planet Land--rocket and balloon combat in the weightless zone between the planets, in their shared atmosphere--and later a primitive rocket trip to the distant planet Farland. The plot lines play out in parallel and are thematically linked by the self-destructive character of Toller Maraquine. This arrangement lacks the cohesion of The Ragged Astronauts, and in fact the results and discoveries of the Farland expedition (the alien superscience) crush the focus on hard science and alternative technologies.
Part of the fun of The Ragged Astronauts was the notion of a pre-Newtonian culture coming to grips with the reality of weightlessness, and that theme carried forward is a major strength of this book (as the astronauts realize that a weightless object still hits you really hard, and so forth). The author finds several ways to explore it here.
Unfortunately he also made some strange decisions about the plot and setting. The people of the planet Land have migrated to the sister planet Overland and must rebuild their civilization in the wilderness. While this set up screams for a Wild West or New World style adventure (especially as the planet Overland has this stuff called "metal" that might be extremely useful), Shaw instead moves the clock forward to some twenty or thirty years after colonization. The planet is still mostly uninhabited, but the heavy lifting of establishing governance and an economy has been accomplished. What's more, Overland has a nearly-identical ecology to Land, and is uninhabited by human natives. This, frankly, sucked most of the wind out of my sails.
The book is unevenly divided between repelling an invading force from the planet Land--rocket and balloon combat in the weightless zone between the planets, in their shared atmosphere--and later a primitive rocket trip to the distant planet Farland. The plot lines play out in parallel and are thematically linked by the self-destructive character of Toller Maraquine. This arrangement lacks the cohesion of The Ragged Astronauts, and in fact the results and discoveries of the Farland expedition (the alien superscience) crush the focus on hard science and alternative technologies.
June 24, 2012
I picked up this quite by chance from a discarded 20-year old lot at my local bookstore, and while I'd not read anything by Bob Shaw earlier, I still found the plot a rather intriguing concept - twin planets sharing a common atmosphere/ interstellar rivalry and war/ planetary exploration. Also very nice was the simple narrative technique used by Shaw throughout the book.
I rank the book a 4 on 5 because the end of the story seems hurried, almost as if Shaw reached the assigned word limit. Consequently, the climax does not do ample justice to the rest of the story. But read it to enjoy the simplicity and magic of the mid-20th century authors.
I rank the book a 4 on 5 because the end of the story seems hurried, almost as if Shaw reached the assigned word limit. Consequently, the climax does not do ample justice to the rest of the story. But read it to enjoy the simplicity and magic of the mid-20th century authors.
January 31, 2008
The sequel to The Ragged Astronauts. If you liked the first one, you can't go wrong here. Shaw has a writing style that really holds your interest.
Since it's a sequel I can't really go into much detail without spoiling the first book.
Since it's a sequel I can't really go into much detail without spoiling the first book.
March 7, 2019
Not as good as the first in the series. It’s really a book of two halves. The first half was more interesting and perhaps ended too soon and could have been developed more. The second part was just not engaging enough. I still love the idea of “Wooden Spaceships” so kudos to the author for that.
July 27, 2021
Tired of hot air ballooons in high altitude? now try Hot air balloons in SPPPAAAACCCCEEEEE. with ghosts for some reason.
quite well tied into the first novel, but in less of a great migration to save society, more of a space race to KICK SOME ASS
quite well tied into the first novel, but in less of a great migration to save society, more of a space race to KICK SOME ASS
July 2, 2019
Another good Bob Shaw read. Like most of his books, the structure is a bit off-balance and the female characters underdeveloped (although they are at least distinctive and original). But it's a clever blend of speculative sci-fi, politics, action, and psychology. It's a page-turner epic, with visceral details and mind-blowing plot points. He manages to tie together telepathic alien spores, the political and physical challenges of building a space battle station, the discovery of Newtonian mechanics, homesteading, divorce, high altitude dog fights, and the fleeting will to live -- all quite convincingly. All the more enjoyable since this is basically a brisk plot that's pretty much just about 2 alien invasions. Good stuff!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 30, 2017
Review no segundo volume.
April 7, 2019
Interesting and unseen turn to interplanetary flight in wooden ! spaceships
June 7, 2022
3.5 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews
Summary
Having crossed between planets in air balloons, the new inhabitants of Overland are settled. But then comes a declaration of war from the survivors of their exodus from Land - a war that must be fought in the zone between planets. To say nothing of what awaits on distant Farland.
Review
With the series history now better established in my mind, I entered confidently into The Wooden Spaceships, and found I liked it more than previously. The first two thirds is a solid, not terribly surprising extrapolation of the previous book, bringing the characters back to the strange, gravity-free crossing point between the worlds.
Happily, this book feels less rushed. While it continues to rely heavily on different-universe physics (e.g., no turbulence at the crossing where the planets’ atmospheres brush), and on nifty gadgets (wooden spaceships), its relatively simple plot allows more scope to explore its characters dreams and motivations. I can’t say that protagonist Toller Maraquine comes across as particularly deep, he does show more humanity and more subtlety than in the previous book.
While the first sections of the book are fun, the remaining third, dealing with Farland, comes out of nowhere, and feels broadly like a novella stuck onto the preceding sections to pad out the book. It’s interesting, but all a bit random, and not closely connected to the rest of the book. It feels very much like Shaw intended to end the series here, and yet there is another sequel. Why he didn’t reserve Farland for its own book – a much more logical approach – is not clear.
Leaving aside Toller Maraquine’s modest development, this is best read as a short novel plus a related novella. If you enjoyed the first book, though, you’ll enjoy this one (these two) more.
Summary
Having crossed between planets in air balloons, the new inhabitants of Overland are settled. But then comes a declaration of war from the survivors of their exodus from Land - a war that must be fought in the zone between planets. To say nothing of what awaits on distant Farland.
Review
With the series history now better established in my mind, I entered confidently into The Wooden Spaceships, and found I liked it more than previously. The first two thirds is a solid, not terribly surprising extrapolation of the previous book, bringing the characters back to the strange, gravity-free crossing point between the worlds.
Happily, this book feels less rushed. While it continues to rely heavily on different-universe physics (e.g., no turbulence at the crossing where the planets’ atmospheres brush), and on nifty gadgets (wooden spaceships), its relatively simple plot allows more scope to explore its characters dreams and motivations. I can’t say that protagonist Toller Maraquine comes across as particularly deep, he does show more humanity and more subtlety than in the previous book.
While the first sections of the book are fun, the remaining third, dealing with Farland, comes out of nowhere, and feels broadly like a novella stuck onto the preceding sections to pad out the book. It’s interesting, but all a bit random, and not closely connected to the rest of the book. It feels very much like Shaw intended to end the series here, and yet there is another sequel. Why he didn’t reserve Farland for its own book – a much more logical approach – is not clear.
Leaving aside Toller Maraquine’s modest development, this is best read as a short novel plus a related novella. If you enjoyed the first book, though, you’ll enjoy this one (these two) more.
July 20, 2016
Bob Shaw continues his fictional speculation of life on a binary planet system: Land and Overland. The Wooden Spaceships follows two characters, Toller Maraquine, who is dealing with an existential crisis of purpose, and Barton Drumme, who stumbles upon a strange and uncanny place on their new home of Overland. The trajectories of the two characters eventually meet and catalyse an epic, though misguided, attempt to cross the gulf of space in a spaceship made of wood.
The binary pairing of Land and Overland offers a gentle stroll from ground level to a place outside the gravitational pull of the planets, which invites the reader to speculate on what humans might have attempted and achieved had we not needed such massive rockets to overcome Earth's gravitational pull.
Detailed, speculative and exciting classic sci-fi.
The binary pairing of Land and Overland offers a gentle stroll from ground level to a place outside the gravitational pull of the planets, which invites the reader to speculate on what humans might have attempted and achieved had we not needed such massive rockets to overcome Earth's gravitational pull.
Detailed, speculative and exciting classic sci-fi.
March 17, 2017
Let's put it clear: the actual rating for this book should have been at least 4 stars and a half. Two stories converging towards an amazing finale, an epic battle in space that leaves you breathless, a breathtaking reckless journey to an alien world, the following... well, well, well, let's not spoil it.
This is a true 'must read', really better that its predecessor. Very well written and wonderfully describing all the scientific gaps a civilization has to fill in in order to travel safely into space.
Well, wow, I'm really looking forward to read the third part of this 'Land and Overland' cycle.
This is a true 'must read', really better that its predecessor. Very well written and wonderfully describing all the scientific gaps a civilization has to fill in in order to travel safely into space.
Well, wow, I'm really looking forward to read the third part of this 'Land and Overland' cycle.
August 30, 2015
I love Bob Shaw's books. This one was my first of his that I read.
September 14, 2012
I started this and just could not finish it, not good read at all.
Read
May 7, 2015series book PT2
September 15, 2011
I really liked the weightless combat parts.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews