Posting-Schedule: Change in Frequency
I have a book review of a vintage paperback this post. But before we go on to that, I want to let you know something about the posting frequency of A Far Out Fantastic Site. You may have already noticed me doing this, but I may have to post at random times of the week instead of on the usual Monday. Also, I may have to limit the posting to every other week instead of once a week which you may have also noticed I’ve already, more or less, been doing. The reason for these changes is because I need to give more time to my book of short stories, "Bad Apps".
I've been trying to put together “Bad Apps” for the last three to four years. I've put off its release for too long, and so I need to give more time to working on it. So, if you don't see a post here at the Fantastic Site on a Monday, it doesn't necessarily mean I forgot. Rather, it just means that I've been backed up with the book among other things, some that are not as writing-related but have to be done. So, keep checking back here for new posts. You can also check my Facebook page for updates.
Now let's get on to the book review. . .
Vintage Book Review: 'The Door Through Space', by Marion Zimmer Bradley
I had picked up a 1979 Ace paperback edition of Marion Zimmer Bradley's novel, "The Door Through Space", at one of the local libraries’ Friends of the Library book sale a while back. Although I hadn’t read anything by the author, I was familiar with her name as a fantasy writer but not as a science fiction one. It was only a little before Bradley wrote and published this novel in 1961 that fantasy fiction had been out of style, and this included science fiction fantasy as she indicates in her Author’s Note at the beginning of the book. So, "The Door Through Space" is an early return to space fantasy after a big wave of straight science fiction had hit.
Synopsis
In "The Door Through Space", Earth has colonised the planet Wolf as part of her galactic empire called the Terran Empire. However, it hasn’t colonised with violence or force but with compact. The compact allows the natives of Wolf to keep their customs and laws, but they are prohibited from bringing their violent conflicts onto the Earth sections of the planet. An Earth-descended secret service agent by the name of Race Cargill goes on a mission to rescue a little girl who has been kidnapped. He does this risking his life by traveling through the dangerous regions of the planet that the empire provides no protection from. Cargill must journey disguised as one of the natives in order to avoid being killed.
During his mission, Cargill discovers that a native by the name of Evarin has employed a scientist, known as the Toy Maker, to create miniature killer robots. These robots are disguised as children's toys and programmed to kill parents who play important roles in native Wolf society. The exploitation of these robots is part of Evarin's scheme for rebellion against the Terran Empire and the Wolf natives who are loyal to it.
Another part of the scheme is Evarin’s exploitation of a matter transmitter, a device that can teleport any material object to remote places. If Evarin’s rebellion succeeds, it will end the peace compact between Earth and Wolf. So, Cargill bands together with some of the native Wolf humans to get the secret to the matter transmitter.
The Novel’s Strengths
"Door Through Space" is well-developed in its storyline and contains plenty of good description that distinguishes the Earth culture from the Wolf culture. The characterization is, overall, fair. The protagonist is developed well in that his scarred face breaks the age-old trope of the "good looking"/abled hero versus the scarred/disabled villain. The story contains intense violence, although not graphic or exploitive, among plenty of other types of action.
Some Problems
I had few problems with this novel. The biggest was a sexist scene where Cargill tears the top of a dress off a female native. Although this scene is integrated with into the story, it may be disturbing to some. That’s ironic since a female author wrote the book. However, she may had put that scene in due to the male-dominated publisher expectations of the time. The plot itself can be hard to follow because it contains so many subplots although the author interconnects them good. However, the novel's strengths out-weigh the weaknesses.
The 1970 Ace Paperback Edition’s Cover
This 1979 Ace paperback edition of “Door Through Space” is bound by a cover that’s illustrated by Walter Velez. According to the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Velez would do the cover to the 1983 edition of Harlan Ellison's short story collection, "Shatterday", depicting the author getting attacked "by a phone that is turning into a snake." Although not as surreal, the front illustration to this edition of "Door Through Space" still depicts really well the main characters and, via the shrine to an amphibious god in the background, native Wolf culture.
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| The 1979 Ace paperback edition of Marion Zimmer Bradley's novel, “The Door Through Space”. Credit: Ace Books |
The Novel’s Timing
The timing of the novel's production helped get it published. As the author says in her Author's Note: “Now that sputniks clutter up the sky with new and unfamiliar moons, . . . I think there is a need and hunger for the wonder and color of the world way out.” Along with this, the counterculture movement would crave exploring new worlds of the mind through psychedelic drugs. With these new perspectives, pagan religions would become popular, in which Bradley herself had already been involved with since the late 1950s/early ‘60s.
All this would enable a return to the more fantastic fiction of the 1930s pulp era only in a new form fitting for the 1960s and '70s. So, a space fantasy like "Door Through Space" was more accepted by publishers. And it can be rightfully called space fantasy: it contains dwarves, religions that worship paganistic gods, and a medieval type culture. Plus, killer robots in the guise of toys adds to the imaginary setting.
Bradley's "The Door Through Space", in a sense, ushered in a return to fantastical science fiction. It also helped usher in a wave of straight fantasy fiction which would come in the latter part of the 1960s and continue thereafter. Her straight fantasy novel, the Arthurian "Mists of Avalon", would make Bradley’s name even bigger in the genre.
Newsletter
The latest issue of my free author's newsletter, "Night Creatures' Call”, is now out. Those of you who are subscribed to it, be sure to check your in-boxes if you haven't yet. Those who aren't subscribed to it can subscribe here. In “Night Creatures’ Call”, I talk in depth about my latest writing projects such as “Bad Apps” and give behind-the-scenes looks. In this latest issue, I also have a concept sketch of the new blog background that will be going up soon!
Be here Wednesday for another Insecure Writer’s Support Group blog hop! Have you read anything by Marion Zimmer Bradley?
Until next time. . .
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