The Ice Schooner [Paperback]

Michael Moorcock (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1987

First serialized in the British magazine SF Impulse (1966/67), then published in book form in the U.K. by Sphere in 1969, and later that year in the U.S. by Berkley (Paperbacks). A revised edition was published in 1977 (hardcover by Harper & Row, paperback by Sphere [U.K.] and Dell [U.S.]). The text was further revised in 1985.

Product Details

• Paperback: 207 pages
• Publisher: Berkley (May 1, 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425097064
• ISBN-13: 978-0425097069
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,260,727 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born in London in 1939, Michael Moorcock now lives in Texas. A prolific and award-winning writer with more than eighty works of fiction and non-fiction to his name, he is the creator of Elric, Jerry Cornelius and Colonel Pyat, amongst many other memorable characters.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Notice, March 31, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Ice Schooner (Paperback)

Don't fret that this book is out of print. Actually, it is included in the omnibus entitled Sailing to Utopia, currently available from White Wolf. This is a very dark and forbidding novel set in a post-apocalyptic future, dealing with man's tendancy toward fatalism. I personally prefer more lighthearted fare, which is why I rated this book so low. If you enjoy dark fantasy, this is a good bet.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great story set in a unique setting, December 23, 2008

By 

Kurt A. Johnson (North-Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Ice Schooner (Paperback)

When Captain Konrad Arflame rescues an old man on the ice, he little realizes that it will begin him on a journey to where he never thought he would go. The Earth is wrapped in a shell ice, and life is only given to those hard enough and tough enough to hold it. So, when the old man provides Arflame with an ice-schooner to captain, and a mission to find the fabled lost city of New York, he embraces it as a chance to redeem himself and strengthen his slowly eroding faith. But, along the way, Captain Arflame finds out more than he likes about himself and his world...much more.

I must say that I really enjoyed this book. The author, a giant in the sci-fi genre, did a great job of creating a very interesting setting, and then peopling it with very interesting characters. I liked the ice-ships with their ski-like runners, the fierce land whales, and the underground/under-ice cities. And, I thought found the characters to all be quite interesting.

So, if you are interested in a great story set in a unique setting, then I highly recommend Ice Schooner by Michael Moorcock. It's well worth your reading time.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Old-fashioned boys' adventure but a bit more "noir", December 22, 2007

By 

Shi-Hsia Hwa (Madison, WI, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Ice Schooner (Paperback)

So far the only things I've read from Moorcock are this and a short story from him which I don't remember the title of that was collected in The Space Opera Renaissance anthology. So I don't know if this is typical of Moorcock, but both characters were such big savage macho men that it was almost funny. Even though this novel was written in the 1960s it has a really archaic sound to it.

Nevertheless, Moorcock's world-building and plot are very imaginative and enjoyable. I Read this while helping a professor do field research in the jungle; being under conditions of privation enhanced my imagination of Konrad Arflane and co. sailing across the icy wasteland of post-apocalyptic Earth.

Also, a geeky reference: in this universe, like in Frank Herbert's Dune universe, whales that have fur exist.