Customer Reviews

Tales of the Flying Mountains

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Taking his cue from Chaucer, sci-fi veteran Poul Anderson features a group of related short stories tied together by an intermittent frame story to create a unified, if modest, book. The frame story is this: on a vast spaceship en route to colonize a planet in another star system, the civic leaders have gathered to discuss the question of how to educate the children of their ragtag crew. These children will have no memory of Earth, no knowledge of life outside their vessel, and no experience of any social order other than that present on the ship. As the debate transpires, the various leading citizens display their own biases, and recount stories that support (or refute) various intellectual positions that are espoused: stories that are drawn from their own personal experiences on Earth's colonies in the asteroid belt, the so-called Flying Mountains. Some of these tales show men selfishly pursuing wealth and desire as in "The Rogue" and "Ramble with a Gamblin' Man", but others feature characters who altruistically risk their lives to save their fellows as in "Que Donn'rez Vous". Still others, like "Sunjammer" and "Recruiting Nation" hinge on people who are simply doing their jobs. As the tales progress, they tell the story of how mankind ceased to be bound to its single planet, but took possession of the entire solar system.

The whole debate about human values notwithstanding, these are essentially hard science 'puzzle' stories, where the reader is challenged to find a way out of a difficult situation given the limited resources available. Many such stories were written during sci-fi's pulp era, and these are fairly representative of the type, but it can't be denied that Anderson telegraphs the solution to many of them far too quickly. In short, they're really too simple to engage most adult readers. Sound scientific principles are an important part of such stories, and in this regard Anderson does well, explaining what needs to be explained, while leavening each story with enough action and adventure to keep the reader's interest. Character development is only hinted at, largely due to the work's structure, but the characters are at least par for this type of story. Women fare better in these tales than in many examples of the type, holding positions of responsibility, even, in a genre where women are too often ignored altogether.

This book can safely be recommended to boys and girls in their early-to-middle teens who have modest experience with science fiction. There's no sexual content to speak of, but plenty of action, lots of realistic space adventure, and some not-too-difficult science to breeze through. It's certainly easy enough reading and fairly fast-paced, and the philosophical discussion really isn't all that deep, so a good time can be had by all. However, any adult readers who are used to dealing with serious moral issues, or expect radical new ideas, or hope to meet unforgettable characters, etc., needn't bother.