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A. E. van Vogt
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The Weapon Shops of Isher Kindle Edition

by A. E. van Vogt (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 755 ratings
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With the publication, in the July 1941 issue of Astounding Science Fiction magazine, of the story Seesaw, van Vogt began unfolding the complex tale of the oppressive Empire of Isher and the mysterious Weapon Shops. This volume, The Weapon Shops of Isher, includes the first three parts of the saga and introduces perhaps the most famous political slogan of science fiction: The Right to Buy Weapons is the Right to Be Free. Born at the height of Nazi conquest, the Isher stories suggested that an oppressive government could never completely subjugate its own citizens if they were well armed. The audience appeal was immediate and has endured long beyond other stories of alien invasion, global conflict and post war nuclear angst.
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  1. Book 1 of 2
    Isher
  2. Print length
    144 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publication date
    November 19, 2013
  5. File size
    506 KB
  6. Page Flip
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  7. Word Wise
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  8. Enhanced typesetting
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00GSZU26S
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Agency Editions, Inc. (November 19, 2013)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 19, 2013
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 506 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 144 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 755 ratings

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A. E. van Vogt

A. E. van Vogt

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
755 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the story enjoyable and relevant even after 60 years. They describe the book as a great, fun read with interesting concepts. Readers praise the writing quality as brilliant and sophisticated. The pacing is described as credible and solid, even though some of the technology may be outdated.

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Story qualityReadabilityRelevanceWriting qualityPacing
31 customers mention "Story quality"31 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the story quality. They find it an interesting and enjoyable classic science fiction story with a relevant underlying theme even 60 years later. The plot has many layers and unfolds to engage readers more deeply. Readers praise it as a good visit to the past and a classic novel from the Golden Age of Sci-Fi.

"...The politics behind the story (it is, after all, a political story) are the product of post-war America, and I found van Vogt much easier to swallow..." Read more

"...It remains very good with a well developed plot. I strongly recommend it to you." Read more

"...It was interesting vintage science fiction but nothing that would send me back for more van Vogt stories." Read more

"...system are a bit dated and now known to be different I quite enjoyed the author’s story." Read more

25 customers mention "Readability"25 positive0 negative

Customers find the book interesting and enjoyable to read. They consider it one of the best science fiction novels from the Golden Age of Science Fiction, with good triumphing over evil.

"...I think this book is a classic, and is a great example of a science fiction novel that had its start as a series of shorter pulp stories...." Read more

"...the intervening 60 or so years pretty decently, and because it's so memorable, I'm raising my rating to a Very Good 4 stars out of 5...." Read more

"It has been decades since Last I read this book. It remains very good with a well developed plot. I strongly recommend it to you." Read more

"...passed for me to forget the details, because it was such a pleasure to read it again, as if it was new...." Read more

10 customers mention "Relevance"7 positive3 negative

Customers find the book relevant in today's world. They say it's an important masterwork that explains the founding principles of the U.S. with excellent concepts that are timeless. The book is a fascinating study of the principles and would be a good introduction to the author's work for someone new.

"...ideas behind this story, whether one agrees with them or not, are very important and they are articulated brilliantly." Read more

"...least convoluted of van Vogt's novels, and so would be a good introduction to his work for someone new to this author." Read more

"...originating during the 1940s (The Golden Age of Science Fiction), it's old and the world has changed drastically since then...." Read more

"Wanted to pass it on to my nephew and neice. Excellent concepts that are timeless. The weapons shops were there before the Jedi." Read more

7 customers mention "Writing quality"7 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the writing quality. They find it an easy read with sophisticated ideas and well-written metaphors.

"...tarnished now by the antiquated speculation, but van Vogt was a talented writer and the characters were well done...." Read more

"...one agrees with them or not, are very important and they are articulated brilliantly." Read more

"...Mr van Vogt's writing is timeless, still enjoyable, still credible. I recommend this book." Read more

"...Brilliant writing by a deserving master of the genre." Read more

6 customers mention "Pacing"6 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book's pacing and find it credible. They say the ideas are solid, even though the technology is outdated.

"...writing and some of the speculative technology is dated but the ideas are solid. This was published in 1951 and it shows...." Read more

"...Mr van Vogt's writing is timeless, still enjoyable, still credible. I recommend this book." Read more

"...It still holds up well after all this time...." Read more

"...Holds up fairly well for contemporary audiences..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Scott Hammond
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Classic
    Reviewed in the United States on January 27, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    I first read this work in my early teens. It had a huge impact on me all those decades ago, so when I discovered it available on the Kindle for such a low price, I couldn't resist.

    How does it hold up in 2016? There were some big ideas here for a teenager in the early 1970's. They're a little tarnished now by the antiquated speculation, but van Vogt was a talented writer and the characters were well done. The politics behind the story (it is, after all, a political story) are the product of post-war America, and I found van Vogt much easier to swallow in 2016 than Heinlein or even Ayn Rand. Van Vogt doesn't preach at the reader, he just presents the world he's invented and tells his story.

    I think this book is a classic, and is a great example of a science fiction novel that had its start as a series of shorter pulp stories. For me it was like seeing the old neighborhood again after a long time.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • illiandantic
    4.0 out of 5 stars Very Good Book from Long Ago
    Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    A.E. van Vogt's "The Weapon Shops of Isher" is a 1951 book he formed from three of his 1940s era short stories. So, you have to keep several things in mind about it. First, since its source stories were initially published in the magazines of the time, the prose tends to be a bit terse and abrupt. There's no subtlety in what it's trying to get across or in how it does it. Second, since it's a story originating during the 1940s (The Golden Age of Science Fiction), it's old and the world has changed drastically since then. The most obvious changes are probably the on-going World War II at the time the first two parts were published and the social roles of women during the time. With that in mind, van Vogt has done a pretty amazing job here. I first (and before this Kindle version, last) read this book darn near 40 years ago in my youth. Yet, as I re-read it today, I realized that I remembered almost everything about it. It made that much of an impression on me. If I were to rate the book solely by today's standards, I might say it was OK. But, because it seems to have weathered the intervening 60 or so years pretty decently, and because it's so memorable, I'm raising my rating to a Very Good 4 stars out of 5.

    The two novels in A.E. van Vogt's "Isher" series are:

    1. The Weapon Shops of Isher
    2. The Weapon Makers (Isher)
    21 people found this helpful
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  • DrPat
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Right to Buy Weapons
    Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    "When a people lose the courage to resist encroachment on their rights, then they can't be saved by an outside force. Our belief is that people always have the kind of government they want." and "People always have the kind of government they want. When they want change, they must change it."

    The first Ace Double paperback I bought with my own earnings as a youngster was this one by A.E. Van Vogt. I did not remember what was on the flip side of the tête-bêche book; I had to look it up. (It was Murray Leinster's Gateway to Elsewhere. Leinster's opus is apparently only available as the Ace Double, used, now.) But when I noticed the Van Vogt novel was available on Kindle, I got it and read it again in one gulp.

    This was the story I remembered, with the poor hapless reporter swinging helplessly from past to future, the doppelganger of the rebellious son making it big in the stock market (because he had transported himself several months into the past, and had records of the market's performance), and the weapon shops themselves.

    For a child of the fifties, the motto of the weapon shops, THE RIGHT TO BUY WEAPONS IS THE RIGHT TO BE FREE, resonated. And today, the position of the weapon shops in opposition to government--whether tyrannical or benevolent--and their capability to provide each individual with the means to resist aggression, accords well with my own mostly-libertarian philosophy.

    Van Vogt's science was radical for the time, and not very well explained by the novel, but his political stance was obvious. His weapons were defensive technology only: they could not be used to murder, but could be used to kill an aggressor. They could also benefit the criminal in evading arrest, and not just because Isher was a culture where the laws and police were organized to suit the rulers more than the citizens.

    Van Vogt foresaw a time where majority rule would be so powerful that the opposed individual (however moral or immoral) would have no recourse against it, without the Weapon Shops. Yes, he said, guns can be used in support of crime, even configured not to be used in aggression. And that's all right, when laws can be used in support of aggression against the individual who is opposed to the majority.

    Because the right to buy weapons is the right to be free.
    24 people found this helpful
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  • Patrick J. Cahill
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Weapon Shops of Isher
    Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    It has been decades since Last I read this book. It remains very good with a well developed plot. I strongly recommend it to you.
    One person found this helpful
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  • R. Bowman
    3.0 out of 5 stars It Expains Isher Sporting Goods in the Repairman Jack books...
    Reviewed in the United States on August 27, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    I purchased this because of the reference in Wilson's Repairman Jack series. It was interesting vintage science fiction but nothing that would send me back for more van Vogt stories.
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  • J Marshall Moss
    4.0 out of 5 stars The Weapon Shops of Isher
    Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    I have recently reread this after many years and while the writing style and technical knowledge of the planet’s in this our solar system are a bit dated and now known to be different I quite enjoyed the author’s story.
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  • Thomas F Gross
    5.0 out of 5 stars This book is older than I am...and I am old
    Reviewed in the United States on January 27, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    If you like the old classics, you will like this. If you think you might like them...you will like this. If you know you won't like the old stuff, but want to know what it is that you hate...read this. You'll like it.
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  • Jonas
    5.0 out of 5 stars An insightful take on government, the right of arms, and human nature.
    Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    The "good guys" aren't perfect, the "bad guys" aren't pure evil. The writing and some of the speculative technology is dated but the ideas are solid. This was published in 1951 and it shows. At the same time it glimpses from decades ago the current state of affairs, and possible futures beyond today.
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • ASwann
    5.0 out of 5 stars Second Amendment in Spades!
    Reviewed in Canada on December 14, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    Classic tale of space-time with an interesting execution of the Right to Bear Arms. I loved this book as a teenager and still do as a senior!
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  • Marcos Aurelio Guedes de Oliveira
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Weapon Shop of Isher
    Reviewed in Brazil on January 19, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    jjj jjj jjj jhiuh h sedas safer tafa afda afaf af saf ssvs fsam - na língua falada em Isher.
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  • Caparico
    5.0 out of 5 stars Chef d'oeuvre
    Reviewed in France on December 28, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    Indémodable ! Van Vogt au sommet de son art. Une oeuvre d'anticipation politique, scientifique, psychologique difficile à égaler aujourd'hui encore.
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  • Massimo
    5.0 out of 5 stars Bellissimo! Una pietra miliare della fantascienza di ogni tempo.
    Reviewed in Italy on April 6, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Bellissimo! Una pietra miliare della fantascienza di ogni tempo. Lo consiglio per tutti gli amanti del genere e per che i debuttanti. La versione originale in inglese è molto utile anche per lo studio della lingua.
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  • ThorNogson
    5.0 out of 5 stars A glorious edition of a Sci Fi classic
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 26, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    This, and its companion book, the Weapon Makers, were my first introduction to Sci-Fi and are a glorious example of the genre. They are one of a very few series of books I keep on re-reading. I was very pleased to see that they had been issued on Kindle and having downloaded them, I was glad to find they are a true reflection of the original books (although the covers are a bit basic)and relieved to see the full series issued (unlike Asimov's Foundation series where only the last book is available on Kindle - why?). A worthy read and the Kindle version is good. Now lets have the Wizard of Linn and Null A series released on Kindle please.
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