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Islands of Space
(Arcot, Morey and Wade a.k.a. The Black Star #2)
by
'John Campbell’s book was written as a sequel to ‘The Black Star Passes… and believe me, it was a world-beater in those days.
‘Arcot, Wade, Morey and their computer, Fuller, put together a ship which will travel faster than light… they give us what may have been the first space-warp drive. The concept was simple; to make it plausible wasn’t – unless you were John Campbell.
‘ ...more
‘Arcot, Wade, Morey and their computer, Fuller, put together a ship which will travel faster than light… they give us what may have been the first space-warp drive. The concept was simple; to make it plausible wasn’t – unless you were John Campbell.
‘ ...more
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Stated First Edition on the copyright page. Original price of $2.50
This book is in the public domain as it was written in the 1950's I downloaded this book from Librivox to listen to on the beach while I was on vacation. This book written in a style that harkens to the golden age of sci-fi is a gem. Its narrative style is fluid and colorful. The characters though a product of their age are three dimensional and extremely likable. The storyline stretches believability but doesn't break it. So then as our travelers glide between the galaxies we are not left ques
...more
‘John Campbell’s book was written as a sequel to ‘The Black Star Passes… and believe me, it was a world-beater in those days.
‘Arcot, Wade, Morey and their computer, Fuller, put together a ship which will travel faster than light… they give us what may have been the first space-warp drive. The concept was simple; to make it plausible wasn’t – unless you were John Campbell.
‘With this out-of-space drive they hightail it among the stars. They locate the fugitive planets of the Black Star… find a fro ...more
‘Arcot, Wade, Morey and their computer, Fuller, put together a ship which will travel faster than light… they give us what may have been the first space-warp drive. The concept was simple; to make it plausible wasn’t – unless you were John Campbell.
‘With this out-of-space drive they hightail it among the stars. They locate the fugitive planets of the Black Star… find a fro ...more
Not a bad little story this, another one that lent itself to good visuals whilst reading and would also make a good movie or tv show.
The book itself is a piece of history, always a favorite of my childhood, when I fell in love with the idea of a starship being developed by independent scientists working for an industrial company, who tok off across the galaxy for wild adventures without involving the government or the military. Still a fine idea, that. Okay, in 2018 there's a lot "not quite kosher" with this book (for a start, our mores are far removed from those of Campbell's day!) but if you read Islands as a product of its
...more
I took a chance on this one, even though I absolutely hated
The Black Star Passes
. I wouldn't go so far as to call this book good, but it's imminently more readable than the first book in the series. The heroes, rich as hell from their inventions, whip up a faster-than-light ship and decide to go exploring. They cross galaxies, encounter a dead civilization, get trapped in the gravity well of a neutron star, and have fun violating the Prime Directive by taking charge in a war between to riva
...more
Suffers from some of the same issues in The Black Star Passes with being overly technical and lacking in characterization, but this sequel is definitely a step up in terms of the story. Overall it contains more excitement and was worth the listen.
Read on LibriVox (free audio books in the public domain).
One of the great pleasures of reading Astounding/Analog magazine back in the day was John W. Campbell's editorials. He'd come up with the germ of an idea for a story that was simultaneously scientific and tantalizing. The mission, back then, was to focus minds on the stars, on the future, on something other than these damned world wars people kept fighting.
Islands of Space is a perfect example of that kind of writing. It's full of little ideas and suppositions that make you wonder "what if...?" ...more
Islands of Space is a perfect example of that kind of writing. It's full of little ideas and suppositions that make you wonder "what if...?" ...more
Incredibly prescient. A wonderful read.
Just think about it. Here's a guy, John Campbell, writing about intergalactic travel in 1929! This is the time when we were just beginning to understand the size and true composition of the universe. These are the days of Edwin Hubble. This was WAY before Fred Hoyle tried to put down the now-accepted theory of the origin of the universe by calling it "The Big Bang."
Yet even back then, Campbell had assimilated what was known of the universe in his day and wo ...more
Just think about it. Here's a guy, John Campbell, writing about intergalactic travel in 1929! This is the time when we were just beginning to understand the size and true composition of the universe. These are the days of Edwin Hubble. This was WAY before Fred Hoyle tried to put down the now-accepted theory of the origin of the universe by calling it "The Big Bang."
Yet even back then, Campbell had assimilated what was known of the universe in his day and wo ...more
Space exploration has never been so boring.
As longtime editor of Analog Science Fiction and Fact John W. Campbell was generally recognised as the most influential figure in sci-fi. I had never read any of his own stuff before, but having now done so I can certainly see the truth of this.
Cardboard cutouts in place of characters, dull scientific exposition instead of dialogue, flakey pseudoscientific twaddle about telepathy shoehorned into the narrative to no good effect - he was clearly only adv ...more
As longtime editor of Analog Science Fiction and Fact John W. Campbell was generally recognised as the most influential figure in sci-fi. I had never read any of his own stuff before, but having now done so I can certainly see the truth of this.
Cardboard cutouts in place of characters, dull scientific exposition instead of dialogue, flakey pseudoscientific twaddle about telepathy shoehorned into the narrative to no good effect - he was clearly only adv ...more
You really have to remember the era this was written in. It shows off the prejudices of that time so well. No female characters at all, even the alien race they encounter seems to have no females in positions of authority. The main characters are so heroic & flawless they'd almost be considered fan service these days.
Written almost a decade before Star Trek's Prime Directive their first act on landing on an earth-like planet in another solar system is to kill everything in a mountain lake so the ...more
Written almost a decade before Star Trek's Prime Directive their first act on landing on an earth-like planet in another solar system is to kill everything in a mountain lake so the ...more
This book was slightly bizarre in a few ways.
First of all, there was predictions of amazing faster than light travel, but the characters were taking photographs of galaxy with films, and carrying books. The characters themselves were these enlightened geniuses (who seem to be single handedly responsible for a number of world changing inventions), who decided to kill any possible organisms in a lake before having a swim, just in case they caught something. I think it's interesting how much this ...more
First of all, there was predictions of amazing faster than light travel, but the characters were taking photographs of galaxy with films, and carrying books. The characters themselves were these enlightened geniuses (who seem to be single handedly responsible for a number of world changing inventions), who decided to kill any possible organisms in a lake before having a swim, just in case they caught something. I think it's interesting how much this ...more
is evidently an early classic of the science fiction genre. It chronicles the adventures of a clutch of hapless friends who sojourn across the universe. Campbell demonstrates a keen interest in science, paying tribute to some the best theories of his day, as well as relying on some well trod stereotypes. His characters are a little naive though adding to the inherent sense of suspended disbelief.
Wild
Sep 05, 2011
Parrot5150
added it
Great sequel to "The Black Star Passes"
...more
Islands Of Space by John W. Campbell (2000)
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John Wood Campbell, Jr. was an influential figure in American science fiction. As editor of Astounding Science Fiction (later called Analog Science Fiction and Fact), from late 1937 until his death, he is generally credited with shaping the so-called Golden Age of Science Fiction.
Isaac Asimov called Campbell "the most powerful force in science fiction ever, and for the first ten years of his edito ...more
Isaac Asimov called Campbell "the most powerful force in science fiction ever, and for the first ten years of his edito ...more
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