Customer Reviews

Tribesmen of Gor

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4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I read the Gor series as a boy in the 70's and early 80's. IMHO the series is most appealing to teenage boys. I recently pulled "Assassins of Gor" off the shelf one night while bored, and re-read it. I was shocked that there was no real sex, and only a handful of pages of philosophy and psychology that I had to skip over. The book was really excellent, although in a straight forward, uncomplicated sort of way. These are escapist novels, richly detailed, which immerse you in an exotic world, not real thinkers. My enduring memories were of the later books in the series, which were almost unreadable because whole chapters were devoted to philosophy and psychology.

I am not offended by the idea that it is natural and enjoyable for women to be submissive to men. Although I recognize it as wish fulfillment fantasy, still I consider it harmless, especially in such an obviously fictitious setting. I even found it mildly interesting the first time it was mentioned. It is the umpteenth repetition that I find boring. I just turn those pages, skipping ahead to the next action sequence. Speaking of wish fulfillment, I wish someone would edit the series, and re-publish it without these parts. Maybe Eric Flint could do it? He likes to edit, according to his afterword to "1633" and he's good at it. Of course, if you take the sex out of Gor you get Barsoom, and that story has already been written.

I looked on Amazon to see if there was anything new going on with the series, and there was. It is being reprinted, starting at the beginning, and at least 2 new books seem to be published, or at least in the works. I was disappointed though that Amazon didn't have the whole series listed under one easy to find heading. I guess there are, after all, millions of books and only so many Amazon employees. So I'm listing the series, in order, along with some brief info. Some of these books I haven't read, as noted.

1.) Tarnsman of Gor - 1966. Earthman, Tarl Cabot, goes to another planet, hidden on the opposite side of our sun, and becomes a master swordsman and Warrior. This is the book that is most like "Princess of Mars" by Edgar Rice Burroughs, which I highly recommend. Note - the 1966 copyright is held by John Lange, the author's real name.

2.) Outlaw... - 1967. Tarl Cabot returns to Gor, to find he's been outlawed.

3.) Priest-Kings... - 1968. Tarl Cabot goes to lair of Priest-Kings to clear his name.

4.) Nomads... - 1969. Tarl Cabot goes to Southern Plains, and meets Mongol type nomads.

5.) Assassin... - 1970. Tarl Cabot returns to Ar, greatest city-state on Gor. Note - this is the first copy I have by Del Rey books, and it has cover art by Boris. I may not like reading about the Gorean philosophy on sexual roles for men and women, but I can't get enough of Boris' artwork depicting it.

6.) Raiders... - 1971. Tarl Cabot goes to Port Kar, pirate capitol of scum and villainy, and learns the meaning of shame. More Boris art on the cover of the Del Rey edition.

7.) Captive... - 1972. A new character, Elinor Brinton, is captured on Earth and becomes a slave girl on Gor. The first time this is done, it may be slightly creative and a little interesting, but it is a radical departure from the earlier books and I consider it to be the beginning of the end. At least Tarl Cabot has a few pages at the end, to tie this book into the rest of the series. This is also the last book published by Ballantine books, which I think is significant in the content and direction of the rest of the series.

8.) Hunters... - 1974. Tarl Cabot goes to the Northern Forest and meets amazon type women. This seems to be the first time there was a break in John Norman's writing, undoubtedly related to his switch to Daw books as a publisher.

9.) Marauders... - 1975. Tarl Cabot goes to the land of the Norsemen and meets Viking type Marauders.

10.) Tribesmen... - 1976. Tarl Cabot goes to the Tahari desert.

11.) Slave Girl... - 1977. Earth girl Judy Thornton enslaved on Gor. Again. No Tarl Cabot at all.

12.) Beasts... - 1978. Tarl Cabot goes to the Arctic ice pack and meets Eskimo type people.

13.) Explorers... - 1979. Tarl Cabot goes to the equatorial rain forests.

14.) Fighting Slave... - 1980. Earthman Jason Marshall is enslaved and forced to fight in a pit on Gor.

15.) Rogue... - 1981. Jason Marshall wanders free on Gor.

16.) Guardsman... - 1981. Jason Marshall earns a homeland.

17.) Savages... - 1982. Tarl Cabot goes to the great plains and meets American Indian type savages. Note - If you like this, John Norman also wrote "Ghost Dance" in 1970, a similar type story about real American Indians. I'm impressed that he kept the writing schedule he did on the Gor novels, and still wrote other books on the side. He also wrote "Time Slave" in 1975.

18.) Blood Brothers... - 1982. Savages and Blood Brothers are a two-part set. Just recently read this conclusion to Savages. Brings closure to Ubar of the Skies.

19.) Kajira... - unread. Another Slave girl story.

20.) Players... - 1984. Tarl Cabot joins the Carnival. Cos goes to war with Ar.

21.) Mercenaries... - 1985. Tarl Cabot returns to Ar again to try to save it.

22.) Dancer... - unread. Another Slave Girl novel? This is where I stopped even looking in the bookstore.

23.) Vagabonds... - unread.

24.) Magicians... - 1988, unread.

25.) Witness... - 2002, unread. I read on amazon that this is a story about Marlenus with amnesia, told by a slave girl.

26.) Prize... - unread. This is not yet published.

I'm reading the books, in order, for the first time. #7, Slave Girl of Gor, was unbelievably bad and marked the downturn for me. Since then, #'s 8 and 9 were ok, but they (and this one) have a common negative trait, detailed below. #7 was a 1-star book, I rate 8, 9 and this one, 10, as 3 stars. I like the world he has created, but in general Norman is not a good writer. He had a good idea and in the first 6 novels (and in 8, 9, and 10) he fleshed out that idea and this world of Gor. But, the guy has a fixation and can't seem to get enough of telling us again, and again, and again, in painful soliloquies, how females are naturally submissives and males natural dominants. If he kept on this theme, in the context of a story, I would have no problems with that. But he literally stops the stories, MANY MANY MANY times to wax on about a female coming to grips with the fact she's a natural submissive. I mean GET OVER IT ALREADY and tell the darn story!

*From previous reviews on #8 & #9*
One of the things I am discovering is that Norman just can not convey a story without s-p-e-l-l-i-n-g what he's trying to say out bluntly and repetitively, and repetitively, and repetitively (yeah, like that). I appreciate, with enthusiasm, stories of domination and submission, but geez Norman, just pull out a baseball bat and hit me up side the head why don't you? Because I'm not sure I'm getting your message. Was it something about females naturally submitting to men and males naturally being dominant? The long soliloquies that he includes and REPETITIVELY are excruciating! I find myself constantly flipping past page after page after page where he drones on and on and on and on about females learning their place. Just tell the damn story already!

I WANT to like this story and to get into this world. He's got a wonderful setup and he did a good job in the first 6 novels. But if this continues much longer I'm going to have to pole and have myself impaled.

I realize this stuff was written a long time ago, and what's done has been done - but I am crossing my fingers and hoping it gets better.

UPDATE: My hope is running out.

As I said in a previous review this book is Norman's masterpiece. I've read the book thrice and all I can say is--Wow! I can't stress enough how imaginative Norman was in extending the scope and size of his world of Gor. For instance, Tor had been alluded to in Assassins of Gor, but the actual description and size of the city and the Tahari Desert had yet to be described. The geography of the Tahari was so richly detailed that Norman could have based several more adventure stories there had he so chosen.

Tarl Cabot's amazing willpower to survive the march to Klima was absolutely phenomenal. One could only be in awe of his manhood. His determination to live is absolutely astounding! Even when offered the chance of a quick death by Ibn Saran, Tarl declines, determined to have his revenge on the perfidious slave-girl Vella! He was indomitable!

But before he could force her to submit to him he had to undergo the fury of a woman scorned. The way Norman describes her joy at seeing Cabot condemned to the penal colony at Klima perfectly describes a woman who is enjoying seeing the man she once loved suffer a fate worse than death. Then later on she sexually taunts him by throwing her perfumed camisk out her window for him to "get his last scent of a woman." Ouch! That hurts even just reading it. It would be like Claudia Schiffer or Tyra Banks throwing their lingerie at a man condemned to spend the rest of his life in a maximum security prison. Vella was basically saying: "Don't you wish you were getting this [Her]; too bad, you'll never have any [Sex] for the rest of your life." Oh how women can be so vindictive! But Tarl proved her wrong by taking the camisk and wrapping it around his arm. It's scent provided him the incentive he needed to endure the march. In my opinion it was that and her treachery that added to his willpower to survive both the march to and the arduous journey from the pits Klima in order that she might be in his power again.

The Tahari is an arid desert in Gor's southeastern region. Modeled after the Sahara and Kalahari Deserts of Earth, it is this region where Cabot must journey to discover the dreaded steel tower. Whilst on the journey, he will encounter assassins, a Salt Merchant and the deadly Ibn Saran and his terrible cronies--including the beautiful and deadly swordswoman named Tarna. Somehow Tarl triumphs against these great odds and even gains several allies.

I highly recommend this book. It is better than Marauders of Gor and has the action and adventure of Hunters of Gor. You will not be disappointed.

One more thing. Masquerade Books (Now Defunct) printed their Book #10 title as Tribesman of Gor (Singular). The DAW Books printed their copies as Tribesmen of Gor (Plural). Why this was done I do not know; either way, both books have the exact same text. I know this for a fact because I own both copies.

A. Nathaniel Wallace, Jr.

I enjoyed this installment of the series. Tarl is once again employed in the service of Priest-Kings. He meets up with Vella, A.K.A. Miss Elizabeth Cardwell of New York, in a harsh desert environment.

The Kur are up to no good and Tarl is out to find out what they are up to. He finds an ally named Hassan and their journey includes the typical Tarl Cabot adventure but if you are a fan of the series you will find this book enjoyable.

I recommend it to those who are fans of John Norman and Counter-Earth.

Not the best written book in the series, but enjoyable from an adventure standpoint. There is also much more direct interaction with a member of the Kurii, and we find that they too, have differences of opinions on what is to be done with Gor - the world they yearn to conquer or destroy. This is one of Norman's grittiest novels, where one can truly feel the desperation of the situation through his writing. It is especially the case in the portion of the novel involving his march to Klima.

The frienship that Tarl forms in this book with Hassan the bandit is not quite as strong as in some of the others (Nomads and Marauders, for example), but overall it works quite well.

If unregenerat male chauvinism is your dish this fare has a soupcon of militarism plus a dash of puerile fascism, so dig right in
and keep the rollaids handy
Norman is obviously so concerned with the philosophy an practice of mastering women that the story gets short shrift
no great loss sinc our "hero", Tarl Cabot runs his own "Mein Kampf out only until he gets to sit above the salt
Steak it aint, more mutton than mignon you have been warned