SF Reviews/ Unboxings: Stableford, Priest Technothriller, Barrington J Bayley Robert Silverberg

Рет қаралды 2,004

4 ай бұрын

#sciencefiction #bookcollecting #booktube #bookrecommendations #sf
Steve reviews Brian Stableford's most ambitious early work, an unusual Christopher Priest novel and unboxes a load of great hardcover SF from the UK's premiere dealers...just the usual in The Hideout, then...
Music: The Occupier (C)

Пікірлер: 52

@thomasp6034 4 ай бұрын

I always get a dopamine hit when those brown book-sized parcels arrive. One of life's little pleasures.

@erikpaterson1404 2 күн бұрын

it is a serious problem... i suffer from it meself

@paulcampbell6003 4 ай бұрын

*Score!* 🏆 Well done completing your Bayleys! 😁 I've got the paperback edition of the Silverberg. Currently reading Mary Gentle's _Golden Witchbreed/Ancient Light_ diptych then I have Stableford's fourth *_Hooded Swan_* novel lined up... 🤗

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

I have firsts of those Gentles, have not read them for many years. Someone else I want to revisit, plus I have a copy of 'Ash' I'm yet to read, but it's enormous.

@barrrie 4 ай бұрын

Brilliant. Saturday morning, looking for something good to watch and this turns up in my feed. Cheers!

@SciFiScavenger 4 ай бұрын

Some fancy looking books there Steve. You are a touch more discerning in your taste and in the condition you demand than I am! I had no idea CP wrote that kind of stuff incognito. 👍🛩

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Condition is very, very important to me. Before the internet, it was 'I've seen this book for the first time, I buy it instantly'. Priest wrote erotic novels for NEL - don't have any of those- and film tie ins as John Luther Novak and Colin Wedgelock. These have been common knowledge since the mid 80s, though initially he denied the former to me early in our relationship as it were. Lots of authors do/did pseudonymous hackwork to bring home the bacon. It's all part of the fun. One of my favourite writers, Donald E Westlake, who primarily wrote crime, used six names, one of them exclusively for his SF.

@themojocorpse1290 4 ай бұрын

Love the Barrington bayley the seed of evil and one of the few silverberg I’ve not got. Just recently acquired the zen gun ,the rod of light and the fall of chronopolis. Found the review of the harrier very interesting especially as I’m reading Christopher priest again at the moment . I can watch these videos again and again so informative cheers Steve.

@kulturkriget 4 ай бұрын

Silverberg edited a book that has gotten a lot of attention recently: Chains of the Sea. The reason is that Lue Elizondo mentioned some year back that the sf-story that he would recommend for understanding the UFO-phenomena was the novella in it with that same name. (Elizondo was running AATIP for USG researching the UFOs and left in protest when the problem wasn't taken seriously by the government. He was involved in the release of the Pentagon-videos of UFOs and made an interview for 60 minutes that gave the subject some attention. He recently held a SCIF-hearing with some senators which made quite an impression on some of them. He is very central in the disclosure-movement.) I suspect that the book has gone up in price a lot or is hard to get now, so maybe you could comment a bit about the story and in which other collections it can be found.

@TheRetroEngine 4 ай бұрын

Thank you! I never knew about Donald MacKenzie, and I thought I knew all of CP's pseudonyms, fascinating.

@erikpaterson1404 2 күн бұрын

There was a Donald MacKenzie (1908-1994), so be careful what you buy... however, you may enjoy the crime books of the Donald MacKenzie born in 1908..

@TheRetroEngine 2 күн бұрын

@@erikpaterson1404 thanks erik, will have a scout around, got most Priest novels and shorts including Interzone, now some more to look for and read!

@chrisnewman6047 4 ай бұрын

I just read “The Red Sorcerer” by Delphi Fabrice. It is a Fin de Siecle masterpiece translated by Mr. Stableford. Has anyone on the planet translated more works of the French Decadents and Occultists than Mr. Stableford? Not to mention proto-SF to boot. Look at his breadth of work with Snuggly and Black Coat Press alone and it is nothing short of staggering. His dedication in regards to translating French works that have fallen into obscurity is unmatched.

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Yes, I was constantly amazed by how much of that material he worked on. I was a big fan of people like Huysmans, Lautreamont and their poetic kin Baudelaire, Verlaine and Rimbaud as a youth. Dedalus always did great books and generally went unsung. Because of them I read obscure writers like Andreyev, the Russian decadent, whose work is about as black as it comes....

@chocolatemonk 4 ай бұрын

That Thunderbolt looks sharp! A-10 is one of my favorite aircraft. Seed of Evil looks mint. Godspeed with your "Final Library" may it never end

@rickkearn7100 4 ай бұрын

Good gosh, Stephen, it is so easy to be left far behind by the amazing pace of your prolific output! There aren't enough hours in the day nor days in the week. (Reminded of the Beatles "Eight Days A Week"). Regardless, I am very impressed by your unique landscape vignettes which you inject into your posts, and the visual subject matter you choose. I find these to be rich accouterments to the real meat of your episodes, but much apart from it at the same time. I think "Unique" is the operative word. Loved the unboxing, nothing finer. Extremely interested in the new Silverberg collection of short stories. I'm going to look that one up, being an avid Silverberg fan. Although you played (but in a very small way) the apologist for Chris Priest's early writing that included some "erotic" novels, I am steadfast in my belief that any artist has the inalienable right to create whatever he/she damned well please in order to survive and/or prosper. Thanks for showing your Stableford books, it reminds me to seek out more of his works for my own library, especially "The Sociology Of Science Fiction", which I never knew existed. I heard that he passed away very recently. I read his "The Fenris Device" this past autumn, having not read it since the late 1970's and my thirst was "quenched" as a result. As usual, OB, I've just enjoyed yet another in the seemingly unending stream of quality content episodes on your channel! Intellectual life here, is good. Cheers.

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Thanks Rick. Don't let my comrade Matt- fine man that he is- put you off reading 'The Philosopher's Stone' by Colin Wilson. Matt did say he read about Wilson in his review and that can be fatal, since taking shots at CW was a popular sport in British literary establishment circles, most for class reasons (they didn't like the fact that CW was an autodidact who hadn't been to University). It may surprise you.

@rickkearn7100 4 ай бұрын

Thank you Stephen! @@outlawbookselleroriginal

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

@@rickkearn7100 Thank you as ever, too, Rick! If you give it a go, let me know how you get along 🙂

@KCreading-Writing 4 ай бұрын

Steve, I kept thinking Man in a Cage sounded like Rogue Moon. It's very much a different book, but the core idea of the fearless man tasked with a job that drives all others insane is what drew me to Rogue Moon (Budrys' Who? remains my favorite.) Based on this video, I will pursue Man in a Cage. Thanks again for the great content.

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Yeah, as I said in the video, it does have an affinity with 'Rogue Moon' in many ways, but is also quite different. It is more ambitious artistically, but not essentially as successful, but it shows Stableford reaching forward in his career at a time whene he was otherwise producing routine yet superb genre-defined works. It's a frustrating book at times, but worthy of close reading.

@iantoo3503 4 ай бұрын

Hi Steve, thanks again for another great video. It was great to see Brian Stableford get some of the love you promised and a great surprise for it to be Man in a Cage. I remember it being difficult to interpret and in my review, I liken it to Shadrach in the Furnace, so I can confirm the Silverberg vibe. Talking of Uncle Bob, my heart skipped a beat when I saw your copy of Unfamiliar Territory and I ran to my shelf to check I had it. I remember it as one of the books which really cemented my admiration for his writing. The only Gollancz yellow jacket I have is of The Conglomeroid Cocktail Party and I have to admit, as much as I like a nice Jim Burns cover, those yellow jackets do have presence. Thanks again. Looking forward to more. :)

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Yes, it is like 'Shadrach', you're spot on, I knew there was something Silverbergian I'd missed!

@user-mb9ll9wy6g 4 ай бұрын

I'm sure if you've read Irvine Welsh's The Acid House, you'll remember a certain story, Snuff. (Moral: Careful what you wish for re: final collections & being a completist!)

@user-mb9ll9wy6g 4 ай бұрын

Hey Steve, great again.

@joelstainer65 4 ай бұрын

Just finished Planet of Exile and quite enjoyed it. Indoctrinaire is on my bedside table and ready to go also. Looking forward to it! Some of those hardcovers are in wonderful condition. I've been quite picky with my main collection books as well typically unless it's something I never see and may not find any time soon.

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

That's the way to collect, I feel. 'Indoctrinaire' will lift you off the ground and mess with your head!

@richardtoogood9817 4 ай бұрын

Well, that Donald MacKenzie revelation was news to me. All the more so as there was a Canadian crime writer of that name active in the 60s and 70s. Curious that no one picked up on that at the time. The Lost Continent is good fun. Notable of course for the early screen appearance of Bowie protege and future jazz great Dana Gillespie. Of whom nothing but the best of things can ever be said.

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Yes, the crime guy was culty, but quite well known, I thought. Dana looks super-cute in this- of course- though on the commentary the film historian quotes her going on about how big her bust was, which she rather exaggerated I thought. Being a Bowie fan, I know her work of course. She was in 'People The World Forgot' too, of course- caught the end of it the other day, funnily enough, terrible film of a favourite Burroughs of mine.

@richardtoogood9817 4 ай бұрын

Speaking as someone who has always seen ERB as a literary pirate who 'homaged' his successful series from earlier authors, its never concerned me overmuch how faithul - or otherwise - the Connor/McClure films are to his books. I've always enjoyed them for what they are. And let's just say, when you're eleven and you first see Dana as a cave girl; well, the favourable impressions burrow pretty deep.

@MotiviqueStudio 4 ай бұрын

I finished Peace and Free. I felt the Forever War was a great 1 & 2/3rds books. Finishing The Road before I get back to sci fi. Cheers from Dallas.

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Not sure what you mean by '...was a great 1 & 2/3rds books'. 'The Road' is SF, of course.

@garryrickenbacker 4 ай бұрын

Love the badge.

@bondavid2010 4 ай бұрын

Recently finished and loved Soul of the Robot. Now reading Silverberg To Live Again and cant put it down. Did not love Earth Abides, however. Liked it but was ready for it to end halfway through. Thank you for your reviews!

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Yes, Bayley and Silverberg are sublime. Did you finish the Stewart, though? The real meat of it is toward the end- I agree it's a long buildup though, but the tragedy and acceptance of the coda is quite something.

@bondavid2010 4 ай бұрын

Yes the end of Earth Abides was good, agreed. Gave Hawksbill Station to a friend who now wants more Silverberg. I also ordered The Thing Itself, and the Bayley one Garments of C.

@chrisroyboat 4 ай бұрын

Great video!

@richardadcock5450 4 ай бұрын

I just love the depth of your videos

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Thanks. Please watch the backlist, you'll find a lot to digest here.

@angusmckeogh659 4 ай бұрын

I've purchased from Heartwood Books as well. They had a yellow jacket copy of Logan's Shipwreck on there months back for $50 and I took too long to pull the trigger and someone else bought it. Was it you by chance? 🤣 And as far as Man in a Cage, it appears you're holding the first and only hardcover printing, everything else seems to be either e-published or one paperback edition published in 2003 by E-Rights, which is possibly a former print on demand edition or self-published sort of thing.

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

No, I've owned my 'Shipwreck' for a very long time, couple of decades I'd say- and I was aware of it long before that. Heartwood have Gollancz file copies and I've bought quite a few from them and would like more, but postage to the Uk on top of the prices is prohibitive- but that's the nature of collecting hi grade books.

@StrayGator 4 ай бұрын

Harrier has had a sudden uptick in sales!

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

This is what happens.

@StrayGator 4 ай бұрын

You should review Sally Gunnell's autobiography next and see if the same happens.@@outlawbookselleroriginal

@thehound9638 4 ай бұрын

First comment! Good morning old friend. 👋

@paulscott9302 4 ай бұрын

Wait! Stephen! You've left your camera behind!

@bookdork 4 ай бұрын

I'm sorry I don't remember which video this pertains to so I hope you don't mind me popping it here. I think I remember you saying that you had a Jonathan Cape hardback with a toned (at the top) text block. I seem to remember you saying that meant it might have been a file copy. Am I remembering any of that correctly? The reason I ask is that I just found a Len Deighton book from Cape with a nice dark blue toned text block.

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

I have several Cape file copies of Ballard first editions, which are not just toned at the head of the text block, but also stamped on the endpapers by the publishers. Cape also routinely toned the heads of text blocks on stock that sat in the warehouse for years, to prevent age toning. One example of this from my colleciton is Kingsley Amis' 'The Alteration', which despite being published in the mid 1970s was still in print in hardcover in 1987- I ordered my copy at work from the publisher and it arrived new and unread, with a green-toned text block head.

@thehound9638 4 ай бұрын

Just about to start "Red Rising" by Pierce Brown, which I've never read before. I have the first five books. What's everyone else reading?

@leakybootpress9699 4 ай бұрын

I'm embarrassed now! I'll just put my Donald Trump mask on to cover my red face... there, that's better. I'm glad you found some books you wanted from ***** ********, Steve.

@sucker4thewitch 4 ай бұрын

As a mere neophyte, your videos are excellent guidance to what I may enjoy and buy. Thank you .

@outlawbookselleroriginal 4 ай бұрын

Thanks. This Stabelford work isn't as accomplished as the Malzberg and Silverberg books I cite, but it's interesting and ambitious. Watch my '100 Must Read Science Fiction Novels' playlist, my Top/Chart playlist and the 'Elements of SF' playlist and read my book if you can get it, that will give you a sound grounding in the genre.