Imperial Stars (Stars at War, Vol 1) [Mass Market Paperback]

Jerry Pournelle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1986

Arthur Clarke said it first: if mankind is to survive, then fro all but a very brief part of our history the word "ship" will mean "space ship." We will spread through space. We will build a colony on the Moon: if we had a government of courage and imagination we would have that in time to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Columbu's voyages of discovery. As it is, it will take a bit longer; but we will go back to the Moon. We will settle other moons, and asteroids and the planets; and we will go to the stars. Where mankind goes, government goes. It is no idle thing, then, to think about what forms of government we will take to the stars. We in this enlightened age think we know; but do we? We are, after all, no smarter than our ancestors. We know more, but that's quite a different thing - and we have forgotten much that we had best relearn before we pay for what they knew and we don't.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Baen (December 1, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671656031
• ISBN-13: 978-0671656034
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 3.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,389,023 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I write science fact and fiction. Themes range from trivial amusements to how to save the world. In 1980 I predicted that by the year 2000 anyone in Western Civilization would be able to get the answer to any question that can be answered; that happened a bit faster than I thought it would. My column in BYTE is the longest running column in the computer industry.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Politics, philosophy and a few exploding spaceships., June 2, 2005

By 

Michael Z. Williamson (Greenwood, IN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Imperial Stars (Stars at War, Vol 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

I'd only disagree with the previous reviewer on one point--Dr Pournelle has degrees in engineering, psychology AND political science. He's served as a presidential space policy advisor, worked in the aerospace industry, for NASA, as deputy mayor of LA, as editor for BYTE Magazine and as an artillery officer. Some of his treatises are required reading at the US military academies.

Yet in works like this, Dr Pournelle makes his points in an interesting and entertaining fashion. His introductions, comments and essays are not dry, but very readable. They're clear but in depth. I've learned a great amount from Dr Pournelle, and continue to do so on his site, with its in depth analysis of environmental, space, energy and political issues. What can you say about the man who invented blogging back before the net, when BBSes were the only computer medium?

The tone of this series is dark, but with an optimistic edge. The tales can be cautionary, inspiring and just plain fun. Most have a military flavor, with imagery sharp and bright. Then there's the occasional Kipling thrown in, that shows how the same problems persist in each society, from frontier to republic to empire.

There are some forgotten gems and classic works in this anthology. If you're serious about human development, the military or science fiction, you should have this and the others in the series on your bookshelf, and re-read them every few months.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not at all what one would expect, August 13, 2001

By 

Jason Gonella "philosopher" (Lancaster, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Imperial Stars (Stars at War, Vol 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

I have seldom enjoyed a work as much as I have this one. This book, while presented from the format of Science Fiction, is actually an analysis of what the government of the future would be like, because where Man goes, so goes Government.

In this first book, he spends most of his time trying to settle the question of war and empire, showing how he believes that each of these would be inevitable in the future.

Interspersed through the many science fiction short stories are essays and analyses. One could call it basic Sociology or Political Science, except that he would consider it an insult to compare him to the Social Sciences, another topic he blasts in his book, coming from both an Engineering background and a Science Fiction background.

What makes this book most valuable is one short essay buried near the rear about the Pournelle Political Science Chart, in an essay about how the Social Sciences are not Scientific. The analysis of government beliefs on a rather unique two dimensional matrix (and no, it is not the Nolan chart) is quite a startling and innovative new idea, worth the price of the book alone.

All this is in the first book alone. There is now way I could rate this lower that 5 stars.