Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Forgotten Classic That Should Be Remembered, June 14, 2004
"Slan" is A. E. van Vogt's first novel. It was published in book form in 1946 by Arkham House, but the story originally appeared in the pages of Astounding Magazine in 1940. It was a highly rated classic of Science Fiction for more than 25 years after it originally appeared, but today it is often forgotten along with many of the early classics. In 1949 it was tied for 4th on the Arkham Survey of 'Basic SF Titles'. It ranked 2nd on the Astounding/Analog All-Time Poll in 1952, 5th, in 1956, and 3rd in 1966.
It is the story of a mutant race of humanity (Slan) who are stronger, smarter, and are telepathic. In the story we are told that the name Slan is derived from Samuel Lann who is purported to be the creator of the race. At the start, the Slan are hunted by humanity to be destroyed, and through the course of events we learn the history of the race, as well as the truth behind the crimes of which they are accused.
The story is told through the eyes of two of the Slan. The first is Jommy Cross who is nine years old when the story commences, and who is becomes isolated from any other Slan when his mother is captured. The second Slan is Kathleen Layton, who is a prisoner of the government and being held for observation.
This is an excellent book, which holds up well 60+ years later. It is fast paced, and definitely worth reading.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The Good and Bad, July 27, 2000
I'm giving this one 3 stars. This book was very difficult to quantify, but I'll try to give you my reasoning...First of all, the book is excellent when you consider the backdrop. World War II was in swing, Hitler was rounding up the masses, Americans would be doing the same to the Japanese. Jim Crow Laws were still in effect. I've always admired pulp scifi for being able to get a positive message out to the average joe with preconceptions, who wouldn't otherwise consider the point without the techno-babble disguise that speculative fiction offers. Slan has a great premise on racial reckoning, on doomsday, on judging by appearances. That being said, on to the actual execution of these ideas... The book was written as a serial and it's obvious. While there is nothing wrong with serials, cohesive plots are harder to maintain and it shows. Every chapter ends with a sudden spectacle. Details are not fleshed out enough and are often ambiguous or contradictory. My example for this lies in the case of the tendrilless slans. Jommy makes the highly important discovery of their existence, and everyone he talks to about them show no incredulence for this dicovery. When he meets them, they actually refer to themselves as 'tendrilless slan' - the name Jommy gives them. All this makes for an easy plot to follow over several issues, but makes it seem a bit confusing and harder to accept when combined as a whole unit. Some of the language is confusing. I will not refer to outdated technology because I do not feel this is a valid criticism - nor do I refer to the two references I found that were blatantly sexual by TODAY's idiom. These things of course should be taken in stride and considered in context of when they were written. The one example I'll cite that made me stop and reread the page a couple of times occurs when Jommy is dodging a mine (as in BOOM!) only in the next paragraph to spot a mine (as in digging for ore) to land his ship near. There were a few instances similar to this. I know that some of these can be justified by the fast pace of a serialized story, and I wish that I had read Slan as it was written and not in this form. Recommended to those who are interested in scifi as a vehicle for social/ethical criticism.
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18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Remember it was writen in the 40's., May 31, 2000
Slan is a great exemple of practically a perfect simple-plot , one-hero , sci-fi story.Now , before you're clicking "not helpfull" , you have to understand that you are used to a writing style that has taken over the sci-fi scene in the 40's and 50's. A style led by John w.Campbell , and writers like Asimov , Clarck and Heinlin. Those people decided for you what sci-fi should be. Generally , they were right , most of the writers at that time had lower standards for sci-fi stories. But not Van Vogt. Allthough his style is'nt compatible with "Campbellian" standards , his writing has a different magic. Enormous scope , fantastic imagination , and very special lead charecters , are only part of something that I cannot put into words , and flows free in his works. You should not judge "Slan" by today's standards , instead , give it a chance and enjoy the magic of the early style science fiction.
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