The Avon/Equinox Rediscovery Series #20: Needle, by Hal Clement

The is page is now complete.  20 books including a novelette by Clement reviewed on this page, and three other stories by different authors.  See review of "Hot Planet", below, added August 9th/20.

NEEDLE  

 

Cover art by Mike Presley

Hal Clement's real name was Harry Clement Stubbs (1922-2003).  Aside from writing SF, he had degrees in Astronomy, Education, and Chemistry.  He taught high school chemistry for many years.  He wrote many novels and short stories, and is classified as a "hard" SF writer; that is, his works are based heavily on science.  He was born in Massachusetts, and served on a bomber in WW2.  He won a Hugo in 1996 for a story he had written in 1945 (Uncommon Sense).     

From 1950 comes this 207 page novel, originally intended as a juvenile.  It also appeared under the title "From Outer Space."  I don't like either title, and I certainly do not like the cover painting for the Avon/Equinox edition.  Yes, there is a good guy and a bad guy, but there is in virtually every story.  There is even a fistfight between two teenage boys.  But whatever this cover art is supposed to represent, I surely do not know.  Something about it actually turns me off from reading the book.

Two alien ships crash in the South Pacific, conveniently near a tiny, inhabited island.  The small, jelly-like aliens need host bodies.  One of the aliens is an escaped criminal, while the other is a policeman who is chasing him.  The good alien (Hunter) hooks up with Robert, a schoolboy in his mid-teens, and they team up to try and locate the criminal. 

The only female in this story is Bob's mother, and she plays a very minor role.  We know for a fact that girls don't like adventures, or science, and they especially don't like teen boys.  So might as well just keep girls out of the story altogether.  Other than this minor oversight, the author deals well with his characters, who are mostly a group of boys who hang out together and explore the island's coral areas.  At its heart, the story is a detective one, as Bob and Hunter try to eliminate people as to who is hosting the enemy.  They enlist the help of the island doctor, and so there are now three allies.

To me it was pretty amazing how easily Bob accepted the face that an alien was inside his body.  Same with the doctor.  Pretty enlightened people.  To his credit, the author does a very good job of making things somewhat believable.  What does amaze me about this story is how little actually happens.  I hesitate to use the word boring, as I did finish the book in less than 3 days.  But while it (mostly) held my interest, I wonder how many others would like it enough to finish it.  Certainly not a teenage boy.  Perhaps back in 1950, when attention spans were longer.  To me the parts I liked best were when the boys were out adventuring, or fixing their boat.  These parts ring true, and were fun to read (for a boy).

One thing that spoiled the story for me was reading the Hal Clement article in the SF Encyclopedia.  They actually give away the ending!!!  As a result, I knew all along who was hosting the bad alien.  I really hate when people do that, especially when it basically is all there is to keep someone reading.  Why did I finish reading it?  Because I'm a reviewer and I had to!  If you do wish to read the book, then skip the encyclopedia article, and probably most of the other reviews out there.  It's not a bad novel, just a bit on the dry side.  Hopefully the mystery will work for you if you don't know the ending. 
**1/2 stars.  Reviewed March 29th/18 

THROUGH THE EYE OF A NEEDLE 

 Cover art by H. G. Van Dongen.  There are no scuba tanks

in the story. 

From 1978 comes Clement's sequel to Needle, a story he wrote for younger readers back in 1950.  My paperback edition is 195 pages long.  Bob and the Hunter are just back from the States, after Bob completed his chemistry degree at company expense.  They return to the island of Ell (a very nice map is included in this edition, which would have been very handy for the original, too).  Things are going poorly to Bob, as, after eight years, his body is having a bad reaction to the presence of the alien being inside of him.

Most of the tension in the book comes from the two of them trying to make contact with Hunter's people, to see if they can help Bob back to health.  There are some minor subplots, with one of them involving a "joker" who is causing serious physical injuries to Bob, as well as to the doctor's teenage daughter.  In my opinion, these cruel jokes go way beyond what I am comfortable reading about in anything less than a horror/psycho crime novel.  Clement does a good job of introducing two young women into the story, both of them intelligent and independent.

However, as the island is so small, and since we have already spent a good deal of time there in the first book, it seems that much of the story is going over some of the same ground, only with older characters.  Still, it is an exciting read, and would appeal to later high school or early college aged readers.  If you have read the first book, then it would seem logical to read the second.  Unless it has been many years (and in 1978 it probably had been) since reading the original story, go ahead and read the sequel.  Much of the original story is briefly summarized here.  Hardly essential SF reading, but good for people just coming on to the scene.

*** stars.  Reviewed July 23rd/19

________________________________________________________________________________

 My author autographed hardcover edition.  Cover art by George Richard (Hal Clement!).  

Volume 1 of The Essential Hal Clement contains 3 novels:  Needle; Iceworld; and Close To Critical.  Iceworld and Close to Critical are new to me.  Needle was reprinted as Vol. 19 of the Avon/Equinox Series.

ICEWORLD 

An early hard cover edition.  Cover art by "Binkley." 

My more modern hard-cover version is 170 pages long.  The story dates from 1951, two years after Needle (which takes up 184 pages of this edition).  Aliens come to Earth in search of tobacco, but get more than they bargained for when contact is eventually made with humans.  

This is a very good story, and told mostly from the point of view of aliens that are trying to trade items with the unknown inhabitants of a very hostile planet, namely Earth.  Earth is hostile to them because their own world has temperatures in the neighbourhood of 500 degrees C.  When they arrive in our solar system they set up their headquarters on Mercury, a "cool" planet.  This gives us an entirely different perspective of Earth and its chemical basis.  Would we be surprised to find intelligent life on a planet with temperatures of 500 C?  You bet.  And so the aliens are shocked when they discover humans and their knowledge of astronomy and other science living on this "ice world."

The good ship Karella is hired by drug runners to bring the precious but highly addictive tobacco back to the home planet.  The narcotics police hire Ken (a hilarious name for a many-tentacled alien), a high school science teacher, to work undercover for them, ostensibly helping the drug runners to get their product.  Ken finds an ally on board, and the two men are able to push things about as far as they can be pushed before a disaster might strike.

While we meet no alien females, the human family has a mother (who is in the know but doesn't contribute much), and a young female pre-teen who helps out in many ways.  Otherwise, it's an all-boy show, though improved a bit over Needle.  The family has been secretly trading cigarettes for platinum for 20 years now, and dad has used the money to pay for a college education for his eldest son, and hopefully will continue the tradition with the others as they grow up.

Clement is disliked by some because of so much science in his stories.  However, an old-school high school science background in chemistry and physics will easily overcome any obstacles to understanding what Clement has done, in making us view Earth through new eyes.  Besides, if you really don't know much about science, shouldn't you be watching Star Wars instead of reading intelligent SF novels?  A very good read.

*** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed May 24th/18

CLOSE TO CRITICAL 

Cover of the original appearance of the novel, from 1958.

I love this cover by Paul Lehr to the early Ballantine edition.  

The version I read is contained in the hardcover edition of Vol 1: The Essential Hal Clement.  My edition is autographed!  It is 141 pages, and around 40,000 words, pretty standard for a novel from 1958.  Clement is often criticized for being more interested in the science of his subject rather than the people.  I'm not certain how much character development readers of Astounding and others wanted.  However, there is plenty enough to go around here.  Most readers were more interested in a good story, and they certainly got one this time.

Two children, a female human of 12 years, and a monstrous sized alien male of 7 years, are accidentally launched from an orbiting science station onto a planet's surface that has been studied for many years.  The children are the son and daughter of diplomats, meeting on the orbiting explorer ship and learning about the research being carried out when the accident occurs.  The surface of the planet is not suitable for humans, but for now the children are safe inside the bathysphere, once it has landed.  They have atmosphere to breathe, food, water, and bunks.  The only problem is that the ship does not have fuel on board for a lift-off.  The ship was being prepared when it was accidentally launched from the mother ship.

Meanwhile on the planet's surface, a robot controlled by the humans on board the orbiter has being incubating, hatching, and bringing up a small group of natives (pictured nicely on the Astounding cover, above).  They have learned to speak English, and come to know "Fagin," the robot, as their father figure.  The young natives have been given mundane human names like Jim and Jane, even though it cannot be determined which ones are male and which female.  A second group of natives, the mother tribe, is significantly behind the technical development of the natives being brought up by the humans, through their robot.  There is friction, and violence, between the two groups.

A third plot develops on board the orbiter, as the alien diplomat considers humans the stupidest beings in the galaxy, based on their apparently useless methods of trying to rescue the two children.  But the humans have a plan, though it takes a very long time to develop and be put into action.  This constantly infuriates the alien diplomat, and the humans must try to keep his anger in check.  He is enormous and physically dangerous, but even worse, he threatens to end the pact of friendship and trade between Earth and his planet.  So a lot of pressure is brought to bear on the project leaders, who had expected a brief visit from two diplomats and ended up with considerably worse.

Meanwhile, the children are fine, and prove to be very resilient, reliable, and efficient at relaying information as to their whereabouts.  The young girl, Easy Rich (yup!), seems to hold the entire rescue project together with her intelligence and strength of character.  She keeps the young male alien on board with her happy and engaged, and they become good friends.  They end up stranded together for a very long time.

I loved the whole story, and especially the descriptions of the alien planet.  Poor Easy weighs nearly 300 pounds for the duration of the story.  The younger alien isn't bothered as much due to his physical characteristics, which can deal much more easily with such a force (4 Gs).  The planet is 3x the diameter of Earth, and has almost no wind.  It has long days and nights compared to Earth, and at night a strange rain falls, which must be avoided by the natives (see the excellent Ballantine cover, above).  It has smaller animals, vegetation, oceans, rivers, and even a volcano.  Most interesting is the location of the mother ship, which is 2 light seconds away, thus affecting communications with a short delay each time a message is sent.  Clement has done wonders with his few pages of story!  I loved his characters, especially the alien father trying to look out for his son, stuck on a ship with what he considers to be total moronic human nincompoops.  But Clement reserves a very special ending involving the diplomat and brainy human helpers, brought on by the children's idea of how to be rescued.  It is one of the better endings to any book I have ever read, and will change forever how the diplomat views his planet's relations with humans.

This is a very wonderful book.  The character of Easy (Elissa) returns as an adult in a future Clement adventure.  I can't wait to meet her again! (see Star Light, below).
**** stars.  Reviewed July 6th/18 

MUSIC OF MANY SPHERES  

 Cover art by George Richard (Hal Clement) 

Volume 2 of the NESFA Press Clement series contains 17 stories by the author.  This is also a 4 page introduction by Ben Bova.

Cover art by William Timmins.

Cold Front is from 1946, and is 40 pages long.  It is the story of two Earth men trying to hustle up some heavy equipment sales with an alien race on a planet orbiting R Corona, a red giant star, before the Federation gets there and introduces the required red tape.  They deal with intelligent people at an isolated weather station.  This is a very good story, not dated at all, and the 40 pages flew past.  It's almost long enough to be a novelette.  One of the better first contact stories I have read.

*** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed August 16th/18

Proof is from 1942, and is 16 pages long.  The author postulates on what life might be like if it could be found inside a star!  Pretty interesting speculating for 1942.  This was Clement's first published SF story.
*** stars.  Reviewed August 16th/18

Cover art by George Schelling, illustrating "Raindrop."

Raindrop is from 1965, and is 40 pages long.  Hal Clement writes his stories as if they really did happen, or are happening, as we read.  I know this sounds obvious; after all, don't all writers do this? To some extent, though usually in SF writing there is a certain suspension of disbelief required.  This is not needed for much of Clement's writing; we are simply told what happened, and without a ton of emotional involvement.  No matter how far-fetched the concept, basic science appears to explain it.  This unique story tells of an artificial satellite where humans are experimenting with food growing techniques.  Raindrop is a water-based sphere, quite massive, and microscopic organisms are being grown and watched.  The whole setup is quite ingenious, and enough of a story on its own without the human drama that accompanies it.  Quite enjoyable, and very different.
*** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed August 17th/18

Longline is from 1976, and is 28 pages long.  This story is along a similar theme as his earlier "Proof" (see above).  Intelligent beings that can travel faster than light and penetrate to the core of stars, are gradually observed by an Earth ship, and vice-versa.  Certainly the most original of the first contact stories I have ever read.  A great basis for a SF film.
**** stars.  Reviewed August 17th/18

Planet For Plunder, aka Planetfall

Planetfall is from 1957, and is 42 pages long.  Yet another first contact story, this one involves an alien landing on Earth and trying to warn the people of an impending doom.  I found this one a bit on the long side, and it took me three attempts to finish it.  Viewed from an alien perspective (a Hal Clement trademark speciality), a lot of time is spent trying to figure out exactly what Earth life is like, and whether or not it is intelligent enough to save itself.  Despite the length, this is a pretty good story, albeit it is heavy on the science.  To any life form capable of visiting us, we are rather primitive in our development (technologically and physically).
*** stars.  reviewed August 18th/18

Sun Spot is from 1960, and is 20 pages long.  Imagine an inbound comet about to approach close to the sun, circle behind it, and come back out again, missing much of its dirt and ice.  Now imagine a human science expedition deep inside an ice cave in that comet, going along for the ride to do some serious solar research.  What could go wrong?  This is one of the more creative SF stories I have ever read.  What a great idea for a story!  Recommended reading.
**** stars.  Reviewed August 19th/18

The Mechanic is from 1966, and is 28 pages long.  A small science ship is on patrol to check on the health of some "whales" when it encounters disaster.  An interesting story that reminds me of how Iain M. Banks' Culture civilization might have gradually evolved, at least medically and genetically.
*** stars.  Reviewed August 20th/18

Attitude was the cover story for Sept. 1943. 

Attitude is from 1943, and is 50 pages long.  This novelette describes the ordeal of a human crew kidnapped by aliens, brought to a planet's surface, and studied.  Hal Clement's first encounters are always completely different from any others I have ever read, and this one maintains the tradition.  This is a very clever and very readable story.  Recommended.
*** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed August 20th/18

Halo is from 1952, and is 16 pages long.  Earth is unknowingly saved from being eaten by the asteroid belt!  Another highly original and unusual tale of aliens, this time almost encountering humans.
*** stars.  Reviewed August 20/18

Impediment is from 1942, and is 40 pages long.  Yet another very long short story bordering on a novelette, and yes, it deals with a first contact!  Aliens land on earth in search of arsenic, which they require for their weapons.  It is the job of Talker, a large moth, to convince Kirk, a young human, to help them obtain the substance.  Once again we go through an interesting language lesson in order for communication to happen.  And this time the human is not very willing to help out the suffering aliens, who must soon escape Earth's much heavier gravitational pull.  I like Clement's stories because they are seldom violent, and he always avoids cliches.  The movie "Alien" is what most people think will happen during initial contact, along with many SF writers.  It doesn't always have to be that way.  Remember "Close Encounters?"
*** stars.  Reviewed August 21st/18.

Technical Error is from 1944, and is 25 pages long.  An Earth ship crashes on an asteroid, leaving its 7-man crew stranded.  They soon discover an abandoned alien ship that has also landed.  If only they could figure out how it works.  A different sort of first contact, as the men try and figure out a ship that appears similar to their old one, but different enough to confound them at nearly every turn.  Still, they have some success!  A fun read, and like most of Clement's fiction, it is not that dated at all.
*** 1/2 stars.  reviewed August 21st/18

Bulge is from 1968, and is 32 pages long.  This is the first story I have read where the hero is an 81 year old sleep-loving Shakespeare fan who outwits four young criminals who try and steal valuable minerals from the asteroid he is maintaining, and ends with an anti-climax.  It will probably be the last such story, too.  Unfortunate, as this one is pretty good!
***1/2 stars.  Reviewed August 21st/18

Probability Zero: Avenue Of Escape is from 1942, and is 2 pages long.  Wherein a sergeant proves to his men, using mathematics, that machine guns are useless weapons in an army.  Pretty funny!  Written during WW 2.
** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed August 21st/18

Status Symbol is from 1987, and is 36 pages long.  A retired man enjoys exploring planets and asteroids, and making contact with aliens.  He flies around in his little ship.  He encounters a remarkable AI and is able to make contact.  Things become alarming very quickly, however, when his life is threatened by the intelligent machine.  Can he outwit the thing and save himself?  This is the 1st of 4 stories that conclude this volume that feature the same character.  Laird Cunningham is the retiree out adventuring for fun.
*** 1/2stars.  Reviewed August 22nd/18

The Logical Life is from 1974, and is 18 pages long.  Laird Cunningham explores an ocean with a native on a strange, sunless planet, with the Great Nebula of Orion for backdrop in the sky.  They are in a small boat, and in search of the source of the planet's food.  Like all of Clement's stories, this one is unusual in the SF genre and very readable.
**** stars.  Reviewed August 22nd/18

Stuck With It is from 1976, and is 32 pages long.  Laird Cunningham befriends a salt-water dwelling worm-like native on his exploration of different planets and cultures.  The story opens with a major dam collapse, and the Earth man is injured.  From here we get to know two of the creatures, and then we visit their city.  Some of Clement's ideas are so off the wall and fascinating that I am becoming quite staggered by his imagination.
*** stars.  Reviewed August 22nd/18

Uncommon Sense is from 1945, and is 13 pages long. Laird Cunningham gets himself into trouble when two men he has hired to assist him in his explorations plan on stealing his ship and leaving him stranded on a planet with a very hostile environment.  His natural curiosity regarding local flora and fauna assists him in getting control of the situation back into his hands.  This won the author a Hugo award.
*** stars.  Reviewed August 22nd/18

THE PLANET MESKLIN STORIES 

 Cover art by Richard McKenna, depicting the planet Mesklin.  In the foreground is the innermost moon Toorey, where the main base of human explorers is positioned. 

Volume 3 of the Essential Hal Clement contains all of the stories about the planet Mesklin, which include two novels and 3 shorter stories.  There are also some short essays, including an introduction.  I am reading the book in two parts; first time around I will read the first novel and two of the stories, then conclude with the final novel and short story (in about two months time).

MISSION OF GRAVITY 

First installment, April 1953.  Cover art

by H.R. Van Dogen.

http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?57391

First published in Astounding in serial form in 1953, this is one of the great works of classic SF!  My version is 184 pages long, and is from the year 2000, and includes a short introduction by David Langford.  In this story we are well introduced to the physical weirdness of the planet Mesklin, as well as its native inhabitants.  The Mesklinites that humans have contacted for help are 15-inch long caterpillars, but with some unique abilities.  For one thing they have learned to speak English!  For another, they are sailors upon the methane seas of their planet.  They live at the north pole, where gravity is 800 times that of Earth.  The only place humans can dwell for a time is near the equator (the rim, as it is called), which has a gravity of 3 Gs.  Here a man by the name of Lackland has befriended the captain of a sailing ship by the name of Barlennan, whom he frequently refers to as Barle.

The problems the humans are having has to do with a scientific probe sent to the south pole.  The ship was supposed to return with important data, but failed to lift off.  Since humans cannot exist in such high gravity, they are able to convince the crew of the good ship Bree to head down there and retrieve their invaluable scientific data.  And so the main part of the story is the incredible journey the ship must make from the equator to the south pole.

Mesklin's gravity poses many strange situations and puzzles.  The polar diameter is around 20,000 miles, while the equator stretches for 48,000 miles.  The planet spins so fast that a full day lasts only 18 minutes, from sunrise to next sunrise.  At the poles objects fall faster than the eye can see, at about 1 mile per second.  A fall of six inches will kill a Mesklinite, so they are deathly afraid of heights, or of having anything above them, such as a roof that may instantly collapse.

Clement has invented a fascinating world, then gone on to create an intelligent life form on it, then added in some human interactions to stir the pot.  Portable radios with TV screens provide the main means of contact between them, as the humans guide the fearless crew towards the space ship.  Sinbad never had a voyage so strange or adventure-filled, and we are along for the very fun ride!  Too much fun to miss, and highly recommended reading.  I can't wait for the next story!

**** stars.  Reviewed October 14th/18

Under is from the year 2000, and is 47 pages long.  It is a direct sequel to Gravity, written especially for the publication of this volume!  All of our favourite characters are back, though Lackland has been wisely replaced by a female linguist, one who catches on to the Mesklin language even quicker than her recovering male counterpart.  The action takes place at the south pole rocket, as an attempt is made to burn off the unused rocket fuel that was supposed to launch the ship back into space.  The fuel burning goes beyond prediction, however, and soon a major ground-shaking and rock fall occur, endangering the crew of the Bree.  Captain Barlennan and three crew members are aloft in a hot air balloon at the time, and end up landing in a slow-flowing river.  They are carried underground, much to their chagrin, and a rescue attempt begins.

We learn more about Mesklin and its weird geography and geology, and we learn more about the crew of the good ship Bree.  However, I found the story somewhat lacking in character and emotional depth, something that critics of Clement often harp upon, but something that hasn't really bothered me until now.  The fear of the crew, and the worry of the humans regarding their scientific equipment seem to be played down to a cool level that does not suit the circumstances.
** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed October 15/18


Lecture Demonstration is from 1973, and its 14 pages include a short introduction by the author.  Considerable time has elapsed since the last adventure, as schools have now been set up near the Mesklin equator, and humans are beginning to teach science to the natives.  This story details a field trip that turns into a mini-disaster, as a tractor with students on the roof falls through the surface into a cave.  A neat little adventure story, but my comments for Under hold true here as well.  Everyone is just so calm and cool when things happen, and the teacher is able to figure out a way to save the day.  We know that is a perfect way to react when in extreme danger, but how many of us can actually do it?
** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed October 15/18 

STAR LIGHT 

 Original publication.  Cover art by Kelly Freas.  

From 1970 comes this final Mesklin story, and the version I read is 190 pages long.  First serialized in Analog, Clement made changes when the Ballantine version was published, and this is the version presented here in the NESFA Press Vol. 3 of The Essential Hal Clement.  The story does not take place on Mesklin, but rather a planet that those inhabitants are more capable of exploring than humans, because of the stronger gravity.  The planet Dhrawn has posed a fantastic puzzle for humans.  Up till now they knew of only two types of planets:  small, rocky types like Earth, Mars, etc., and gas giants like Jupiter.  But Dhrawn seems to be a third type.  Is it a burned out star, a star that never ignited, or some type of unknown planet?  It will take years to find out, and the Mesklinites have volunteered for the job.

Barlennan is back, and so is a female character from an unconnected Clement novel.  Easy Rich, who we first met in Close to Critical, is back as an adult married mom.  Not surprisngly she is a linguist, and has a good rapport with a few of the Mesklinites.  Her young son and husband also play important roles in the drama.  Much like in Mission of Gravity, the Mesklinites are working for the humans, but learning a lot about science and engineering as they go along.  They are travelling in unique ground craft, designed and built especially for this icy planet.  They run into trouble as the ice begins to melt.

While the drama of their difficulties makes for good reading, the book feels much like the real thing; that is, as if someone were really exploring a new and very unfamiliar planet, with the humans in a stationary orbit above, keeping a close eye on things.  There are no aliens, just a hostile environment that poses puzzlement and difficulty at every turn.  If you want a good planetary romance or action adventure story, look elsewhere.  But if you want a marvellously realistic glimpse at what it might be like to learn about another world, then keep turning pages on this great story.  By the end you will feel as if you have been there with Commander Dondrager and his crew, and experienced some truly alien phenonmenon.  Such a great film version could be imagined!

*** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed Nov. 18th/18

Whirligig World is from 1953, and is 16 pages, including a 1999 addenda.  It is a fun essay written by the author explaining how and why he chose the planet Mesklin, and some of the science he based his information on.  It should be read either before or after Mission of Gravity.  Alas, as of late 2018 there are no known planets orbiting either star in the 61 Cygni system.  Unrated, as it is an essay rather than a story.

NATIVES OF SPACE 

 

Cover art by Dean Ellis, with an ode to Chesley Bonestell. 

Three novelettes from the 1940s make up this 1965 anthology.  The cover title is not taken from any of the stories, but is a general one covering all three.  Two of the stories have already been read and reviewed, so this was a quick read for me of the one story.

Assumption Unjustified is from 1946, and is 56 pages long.  It is a typical Clement story; original, fun to read, and non-violent, in the sense of aliens versus humans.  Two aliens are on their honeymoon, and on their way to a lovely planet.  They have to make a stopover on Earth, however, as the male of the species (an 8-foot long snake with triangular wing-like appendages) needs a small amount of human blood.  He must go about getting it without harming the human host, and without anyone seeing him.  There is considerable humour, as the newlyweds have the latest edition of the space travellers' handbook, but they soon discover that the small section dealing with Earth is hopelessly dated.

They land outside a small town Earth that relies on quarrying, and soon have their first victim, which they need to first test the blood and then convert the alien's blood to accept it.  Then they must go after a second victim, drawing blood in a larger quantity for actual use.  The victims are two schoolboy brothers, one around ten and the other twelve or thirteen.  Of course the aliens do not recognize the fact that the humans are children at first, and are horrified later to learn the truth.  At the climax of the story the little brother sees the male alien, thus ruining their undercover capabilities.  The end of the story, as the aliens are hoofing it back into space, is when we find out what the unjustified assumption of the title really is.

A great little story of early contact.  I am more convinced than ever that there are aliens out there, and here on Earth, too.  At least for short stays.

***1/2 stars.  Reviewed February 28th/19

Technical Error:  See review under Music of Many Spheres (Vol. 2 of the NESFA series), above. 

Impediment:  See review under Music of Many Spheres (Vol. 2 of the NESFA series), above.  

CYCLE OF FIRE 

Cover art uncredited. 

From 1957 comes this 185 page SF novel by one of the greats.  I have come to trust the name Hal Clement, and I enjoy his writing now very much.  His novels are very different from those of other writers, and easy to recognize.  For one thing, there is virtually no violence of being vs. being.  For another, his works are always based on whatever science was considered up-to-date when he wrote.  If the planet where the story takes place has two suns, the reader can be assured that the system will work much like it might if it really existed.  Same thing with his aliens--they are suitably adapted for their environment, even if they can learn to speak English.

This story is actually aimed at intelligent high school boys (?) who are knowledgeable, curious, and into the sciences.  The human hero of the story is a 16-year old male cadet, out exploring with a team when he is left for dead on the alien planet.  The planet circles a binary star in the Pleiades cluster, and is called Abyormen.  But before we meet the human boy, we meet Dar Lang Ahn, a native of the planet who has just crashed his glider upon volcanic rocks.  He is making his way back to his people on foot, carrying a pack of very important books.  The books represent what he has learned in his life, and will become valuable additions to the library if he makes it back home.

Nils Kruger, the Earth boy, and he soon join forces and make the journey together.  Nils was left for dead by the crew of the Alphard, and he strongly suspects that he will be living out the rest of his days on this planet.  The two become friends, making their way back across the lava fields, jungles, and oceans of the hostile planet, and sharing adventures together that can only be described as alien but believable.

Clement keeps the reader engaged by telling us little by little about the native people (two kinds; the average 4-foot tall ones like Dar, and the 8-foot tall ones they call Teachers), and about the planet itself.  Dar knows exactly when he is to die, and is surprised when Kruger reveals that he does not know his time of death.  The mystery deepens as Dar's time comes closer and closer, and Clement is able to build suspense without the world ending, without a war, and without treachery and trickery.  We learn as we are entertained, and this is what makes Clement such a different and wonderful writer.  I will be sad when I have come to the last of his books.  This one is highly recommended.

**** stars.  Reviewed January 22nd/19 

PLANET FOR PLUNDER  

 The retitled, expanded version of Planetfall (see above). 

Cover by Alex Schomburg.

First published in the Feb. 1957 issue of Satellite Magazine, Sam Merwin added 10,000 words to make it novel size.  I reviewed the original novella in August 2018.  Look under Vol. 2 of the Hal Clement hardcover publications, above.  It includes an image of the original magazine, too.  I haven't gone back to see exactly what Sam Merwin added to the story, but I had trouble with the original one, and no trouble reading this version.  So perhaps he explains things a bit better that Clement did originally.  An alien lands on Earth and attempts to warn humans of an impending disaster on the planet.  The alien is so alien (often a Hal Clement trademark) that communication is very difficult, and only proceeds to a rudimentary stage before the alien gives up and departs.

 

Image one included with the Armchair Fiction edition.

 

Image 2.  Both images uncredited.

One of the things I like about Clement's writing is that it makes us think about ourselves in ways we would never have undertaken.  What would aliens make of us, especially if they were so vastly different?  Reading such a story is a good way to find out.  Sometimes things can become a little dry, but it's usually worth it to read on and discover who we are, and of what we are made.  

Three humans witness an incoming UFO, and set out to locate its landing site.  There are two scientists and a college football player, trying to make up a lost credit by helping his professor with some research out in the wilds of Montana.  Their initial attempts to discover what is going on are met with frustration and very bad weather.  But they persevere, and are eventually joined by a rather open-minded general.  Most of the aliens we meet in Clement's writing are benign, though initially Earth was invaded by rogue miners in the present story.  The alien currently on Earth trying to warn them of danger is sort of a conservation officer.

The ending is pretty unique, with the alien leaving in frustration, convinced that Earth is doomed.  And it is, but not for a while yet.  Perhaps not the best novel to read first by the author, but it does represent a lot of his main ideas.  Enjoyable, as usual.

*** stars.  Reviewed April 23rd/20

MEN OF THE MORNING STAR  

In the same volume as Planet For Plunder, above.

Cover art by Alex Schomburg. 

First published in Imaginative Tales, March 1958, this 76 page novella concerns some shady mining operations using the oceans of Venus.  There are three species concerned: humans, who are the exploiters, the Silvani, Venusians who in turn exploit their lower classes, and the almost mythical Grelvi, people who live far out at sea and whom no one has seen for a very long time.  George Kerrick, a worker for the mining company, gets himself embroiled in intrigue and revolution.

This is a decent adventure yarn, and can be read quickly and easily.  Will George save the downtrodden, uproot the evil greedy humans and Venusians, and get the beautiful girl?  You had best read the story to find all that out for yourself.

** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed April 24th/20

THE LUNAR LICHEN  

 Cover artist uncredited. 

This 60 page novella is from 1960, and is the B side of an Armchair Fiction double novel.  I'd never heard of it, so I ordered the volume.  It is classic Hal Clement, as 10 astronauts explore the Moon as one of them goes psychotic.  Tense and reads like a detective novel, complete with a car chase!  For a less breathless lunar exploration story, read his Dust Rag, from 1956.  Good stuff, and recommended.  The story was written three years after Sputnik, and 9 years before the first manned lunar landing.  Originally published with one inside illustration, included here.

*** stars.  Reviewed October 24th/19

THE TIME TRAP 

Cover artist uncredited, but it is by

Frank R. Paul. 

  This is the A side of a double novel published by Armchair Ficiton.  It is from 1938, and is 132 pages long.  It was originally published in Marvel Science Tales, and two inside illustrations are included in the reprinting (and here).  I've also included the original pulp cover for comparison.

Original cover from November 1938. 

Kuttner was heavily influenced by A. Merritt, and became one of the mainstay writers of early pulp SF.  This he-man fantasy adventure story is from 1938, and is 132 pages long.  Kent Mason finds himself transported back in time, where he has more consecutive death-defying adventures than any other man in fiction.  The novel is a breathless trip through time, hunting down bad guy Greddar Klon and bad girl Nirvor.  He is given full-time help by Erech, an ancient Summerian warrior, Alasa, the maiden who has a hard time staying clothed, and Murdach, a man from the far future.

As a young reader these were my favourite kind of adventures, though the ones I read were usually by E. R. Burroughs.  Discovering Merritt and Clark Ashton Smith, as well as Robert E. Howard, helped me stay in adventures like this one for a long time.  And I still enjoy reading stuff like this, occasionally, if it's good enough.  This is my favourite kind of such adventures, travelling about in time with a small crew of friends, encountering danger at every turn, and barely escaping doom and destruction at the last possible moment.  Junk food writing, but who doesn't eat junk food once in a while?

 One of two inside illustrations contained in the Armchair Fiction edition.

 A half-page illustration included with the Armchair Fiction edition.

This one does not spare the nudity (mostly female) and violence, torture, and truly graphic descriptions of same.  The cover painting depicts one of the most horrific ways of dying by torture that I have ever encountered.  The ultimate death of big-headed Greddar Klon (also depicted on the cover) was also gruesome, if somewhat hilarious.  They certainly don't write them like this any more.  While that is not necessarily a bad thing, try to imagine a planet without junk food.  It's a very odd book to pair with Hal Clement.

*** stars.  Reviewed October 25th/19 

HOT PLANET 

 I read the Kindle edition.  Cover art uncredited. 

From 1963 comes this 36 page novelette about scientists landing on and exploring the planet Mercury.  First published in Galaxy Magazine in August of 1963, it recently became available on Kindle.  It's very short, though typical in many ways of Clement's style.  Earthmen versus their environment, rather than fighting aliens or themselves.  Very little was known about Mercury in 1963, so Hal's imagination is let loose.  I'm not sure why this story was included in the hardcover collections, but I'm glad I found it.  It is the last thing by Clement I had to read.

 First appearance of Clement's story.  Cover art by John Pederson, Jr.

*** stars.  Reviewed August 9th/20

SPACE LASH  

 Cover art by Podwil.  

Published in 1969 as a reprint and renaming of Small changes, this 206 page volume contains 9 short stories from the 1940s, 1950s and early 1960s.  Five of the stories have already been read and reviewed (see Music of Many Spheres, above).

Dust Rag is from 1956, and is 20 pages long.  Two astronauts are away from the ship exploring the surface of the moon.  They venture into Plato crater, and make a discovery that nearly kills them.  Cool heads and scientific knowledge and logic save the day.  One curious thing--Clement claims that they are near the south magnetic field of the moon, when in fact they are near the north zone.  Lunar maps are often flipped N to S, because in telescopes that is how the moon appears.  A strange error to make.

*** stars.  Reviewed April 18th/19

Sun Spot is from 1960.  See Music of Many Spheres, above. 

Uncommon Sense is from 1945.  See Music of Many Spheres, above.

"Trojan Fall" is from 1944, and is 15 pages long.  A criminal attempts to escape in a small star ship.  To elude capture he tries to hide in an orbit around a binary star system.  His lack of scientific knowledge leads to his ultimate downfall.  A weird little story, perhaps suggesting that criminals would be better off with general science degrees.

** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed April 18th.

Fireproof is from 1949, and is 16 pages long.  This is similar to Trojan Fall, in that a bad guy who does not know his science very well comes to a bad end.

** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed April 19th/19

Halo is from 1952.  See Music of Many Spheres, above.

The Foundling Stars is from 1966, and is 15 pages long.  A vastly scaled science experiment in space comes to a bad end, and no one really knows why.  A confusing ending, but it can be figured out if read a few times.

*** stars.  Reviewed April 19th/19

Raindrop is from 1965.  See Music of Many Spheres, above.

The Mechanic is from 1966.  See Music of Many Spheres, above.

THE GREEN WORLD  

 Cover artist uncredited.  It was also shown on the cover of IF,

May 1963.  It has nothing to do with Clement's novella. 

From 1963 comes this typical Hal Clement story, a novella of 69 pages.  Four scientists and a profession guide are off to explore an uplift mountain on a strange and rather hostile world.  They are looking for fossils, but an archaeologist is along with them, just in case.  Clement is well known for his love of taking us to strange worlds and having a good look round.  Two paleontologists and a geologist are the main thrust of this expedition.  They find fossils, along with something they had not bargained on.  Clement is also known for his glib and somewhat humorous endings, and this story is no exception.

This is a taut, no nonsense story.  It opens at a zoo, where the explorers can see first hand what they might be dealing with once they are out amidst the alien landscape.  Not a bad idea.  Then we are off via helicopter to the deep interior.  Once camp has been set up, the research begins.  Most of the story is watching and learning how this is done, but we are soon drawn in to another aspect of the story; one of the deadliest creatures on the planet has been tracking them, and has now arrived at their camp area.  From here on in it's just a matter of wondering what is going to happen.  We know something will.  And it does.  Great storytelling.

*** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed March 9th/20

THE MOON IS HELL

 Cover art by Hannes Bok.

From 1950 comes this thoughtful and well-planned novel of 146 pages.  However, an otherwise very readable and excellent story is severely undermined by its totally ridiculous premise--a lunar expedition of 13 men spend two years on the lunar dark side, with no way of communicating with Earth.  Really?  Who planned this brilliant idea?  I have a better idea--let's try things first on the lunar near side, and keep in touch.  Then perhaps build some communication towers, so that when an expedition to the lunar far side does happen, they will be able to talk with scientists on Earth.  Written before satellites, the author could not be expected to know that an orbiting communications satellite would solve the problem.

But the author needed something to work out his theories, and went with this juvenile idea.  There are other good alternatives he could have used, such as landing on the near side and having things go wrong.  Who would fund an expedition to the Moon that would be purposely out of touch with Earth for 2 years?  Seriously!?  Who would go on it?  I know it's supposed to be fiction, but come on.  A story needs a plausible premise, and this one is sorely lacking.  The worst part is that the original party can't get home on their own--they need to use every part of their spaceship to set up a lunar base.  They are totally dependent on a planet with which they cannot communicate.

The story is told through the diary of Dr. Duncan, 2nd in command of the expedition.  All of them are scientists, except the bad guy, who is an amateur astronomer and adventurer/explorer.  When the rescue ship comes, after 23 months, it crashes, leaving the original party stranded.  It was supposed to stay a month, then return with the party.  Now, of course, Earth doesn't even know that the rescue ship has failed.  More great planning!  And they won't know for another month or more.  And then, at that point, they don't know if anyone is alive, or even if they should build and send a 2nd rescue ship.  My eyes rolled a lot during this novel.

But never fear: our intrepid stranded scientists have everything in hand, and soon new sources of food and power are being created by the great minds.  This part of the story is pretty good, as day by day the resources and power supply grows, and the men are able to leave their crowded dome and live underground.  The author does his best to use hard science to keep the men alive, and overall does a pretty decent job of it.  The book was the basis of First On Mars by Rex Gordon, and of course The Martian by Andy Weir, both of which are vastly superior books.  However, the diary gets quite boring after a time, as the men settle into an intense work routine that demands more and more power, and thus more and more mining.  It does get across the idea of time passing, but there is little insight into the humanness of it all, and how the men are doing psychologically.  We presume that since they are so busy working, they are doing alright.

Some good writing and wonderful ideas are otherwise spoiled by the overall premise, but I still found it to be a good read.  It is a tale that shows human ingenuity at its finest, overcoming nearly impossible odds, and with over half of the crew actually surviving (another point in the book's favour is that several men do die).

** 1/2 stars.  Reviewed March 11th/20

OCEAN ON TOP 

Cover art and inside art by Jack Gaughan. 

This novel first appeared in serial form in 1967 in Worlds of If.  It is 141 pages long.  Hal Clement is an intelligent and consistent writer of top notch SF.  At the beginning of this novel I thought he had reverted to some frustrating formula whereby the good guy would be captured by the bad guy, etc.  I should have trusted him more.  Even though (as mentioned elsewhere in this blog) I generally dislike underwater novels (and especially scenes in movies of same), this is a pretty decent and mystifying tale of a number of humans who have chosen, through several technological break throughs, to live their lives a mile or more beneath the Pacific Ocean.  At first I thought this was going to be another version of Kenneth Bulmer's City Under The Sea.  However, Clement's is less action-packed, and there are no aliens.  In fact, as is usual in Clement's stories, there is no bad guy.

If it sounds a bit far-fetched, it is.  But Clement makes his usual pitch for scientific explanations, though in this case we really are in the realm of SF.  Three above-water humans have gone missing recently, and a fourth man is sent in a diving bell to seek answers.  He finds the answers and much more than he had bargained for.  The first part of the book is an exciting cat and mouse game.  Eventually we are given explanations for what is happening and what has happened, as well as what needs to happen.

The above ocean population is 15 billion people, and energy rationing is strict and severe.  The community of humans living beneath the ocean has energy to spare and to waste, something that galls the humans investigating down below.  I really liked the nearly disastrous communication problems between the deep dwellers and the humans from above.  Though it is surmountable, it will take some time and doing.  The ending, though ambiguous, is suitable, as the story is obviously just beginning for some people, and will continue indefinitely.  It is also interesting to try and think where humans might survive, once we have completely trashed and ruined this planet.  It won't be anywhere in outer space.  Might it be in the ocean?  Unlikely, but more probable than Mars.  This is a good read, and recommended.  It marks the first completed story and review of my 4th year of the Avon/Equinox project.

*** stars.  Reviewed June 4th, 2019.

THE NITROGEN FIX 

 Cover art and interior illustrations by Janet Aulisio. 

From 1980 comes this easy-to-read 287 page novel about life on Earth after the oxygen has gone.  There are very few people remaining, and most of those live underground, using plants to manufacture food and oxygen.  Nothing else is left alive--no animals, fish, birds, etc.  Only humans.  And the Watchers.  Watchers are curious aliens that travel in comets.  The cover painting depicts one nicely.  They are harmless, unless poked too often with a stick.  And most people misunderstand them and their motives, which are merely to observe and learn.

Two of the aliens and a small family of Nomads are the main characters of the story.  This novel follows three years after Clement's sequel novel to Needle, called Through The Eye of A Needle.  I found that book pretty violent, with a level of pain and blood that displeased me.  This novel follows along in its footsteps, and once again I am astounded at how much violence goes on in this story.  All five main characters suffer horrible wounds, even 5-year old Danna.  Her little life is even threatened, along with other children.  I'm not okay with that, but perhaps you will be more forgiving.  I've never read any other story where a little girl walks upon purposely laid glass splinters (not placed there for her, though), then falls down in agony on those same splinters.

I was also quite astounded at a major science error on the part of the writer.  His knowledge of astronomy seems to be suddenly woefully lacking.  He keeps having a current comet rise exactly four hours after the moon.  This is virtually impossible, yet it happens over and over in the story.  Very mysterious how this got past anyone of Clement's calibre.

There are some interesting aspects to this story.  For example, how one might live without free oxygen in the air, and how it might affect your motion and lifestyle.  And how education might be carried on, and what would be taught.  There are still some books, schools, and teachers, but the Nomads want nothing to do with them.  The Nomad family and "Bones", the Watcher who accompanies them on their raft journey, are wonderful creations, and I wish we could have spent more time with them in less intense circumstances.  All the conflict in the story arises in from a group of violent juvenile delinquents, who want to return oxygen to the atmosphere.  They also believe that it was the aliens who caused the oxygen to disappear from the atmosphere, and so they are hostile to them. 

Frontispiece.  Don't ask me why the moon looks like this, full but in crescent mode.

Illustration to Chapter One.

Illustration to Chapter Six.  

There are inside black and white illustrations for every chapter (20), and a two-page frontispiece, all by the cover artist.  It is a good story, with many fascinating angles.  However, I am keeping the rating down a bit because of the violence.

*** stars.  Reviewed September 14th/19

STILL RIVER 

 Cover art by Don Dixon 

From 1987 comes this fun and intriguing 265 page SF novel by one of the greats.  Hal Clement has written some of most readable and entertaining books in this vast project I have undertaken.  This one rates highly as well, despite an opening that can be confusing enough to make some readers think twice about continuing.  Despite the somewhat clumsy opening, the book soon settles down to what this author does best--describing events on an alien world as it is explored by a group of people.

Five students are assigned a planet to explore, and have to try and find out why the atmosphere works the way it does.  One of the students is human, and the others are alien.  Since all five characters and their descriptions are introduced right away, it can make the opening chapters a bit thick.  Despite getting into any amount of trouble, the well-educated and highly trained students never panic, or let their emotions overtake their action.  This is a very refreshing factor when reading Clement.

Also, there are no alien monsters that lie in waiting for them, ready to tear them to shreds.  And there are no domineering militaristic planets waiting to wage a major war.  There is no bad guy, to ruin everyone's plans.  Instead what we have is my very favourite type of SF adventure--a group of scientific types are trying to thoroughly explore a strange world, and find out why it is the way it is.  Clement can really get a person excited about strange environments, and has a good knack in handling inter-personal relationships between different species.

Still River is not only written for scientific types.  I have an astronomy background and some physics, but my major was Music.  This book will appeal highly to those of us who long for humans to visit other worlds, and to have them described to us in detail.  Photos of Jupiter's moon are appealing, but I would love to have a first hand report by a human being of what that world is really like.  Same with Mars.  While it might happen someday, in the meantime we have stories by Hal Clement to keep our appetites whetted.  This is an amazing and wonderful story, one that Hollywood would have no interest in.  Sadly.

**** stars.  Reviewed December 15th/19

FOSSIL:  ISAAC'S UNIVERSE 

 Wrap-around cover art by Romas, taken directly from a later chapter of the text. See also below.  

From 1993 comes this 288 page novel, Hal Clement's last major SF effort before he took a lengthy hiatus.  He borrows a theme from Asimov, but one needs to know nothing about that to enjoy this book.  Having said that, I did not really enjoy this book very much.  I did not find the planet very interesting, to begin with.  And there is Clement's usual overabundance of alien life forms to try and get familiar with, more of them in this story than any other.  I don't mind doing it if I'm about to read a series in which these creatures will be around for awhile, but to have seven different types of aliens in just one story is a bit much.  A nice intellectual effort for the author, perhaps, but tedious, confusing, and frustrating for the casual reader.  I don't want to have to read a book more than once to figure out what is going on.  In this story, we never really do find out what is going on.  There is a great mystery regarding true fossil finds and fakery, but it never really gets resolved.  Work continues, as if there should be another book.  And Clement's glib sudden endings can also become tiresome, and this one is more so than the final paragraph of his other novels.

 Preparatory cover painting for Fossil, by Romas.

I would be unhappy if a casual SF reader picked up this novel, drawn to it perhaps because of the Asimov word on the cover, having never read Hal Clement before.  Even after reading at least 13 other Hal Clement books, I still found myself unprepared for this one.  It is confusing, overdrawn on ideas, and not at all well developed.  Give it a miss, unless you are a hard core fan of Clement.  I wonder what Asimov would have thought of it as a published work.

**1/2 stars.  Reviewed January 31st/20

HALF-LIFE 

I read the Kindle edition.  

From 1999 comes this 271 page SF novel from an author whom I have come to greatly respect over the course of this project.  Along with a few misses have come some pretty big hits, and Clement scores well on this latest effort, written at the age of 77 years.  Clement puts the science into science fiction, and readers without any science background will doubtless feel somewhat stupid.  But those readers who took at least basic high school sciences should have no problem following the drift of the story, as a small group of very smart but seriously ill humans are sent to orbit Titan, largest moon of Saturn.

Why are they here?  Well, humans are faced with a critical problem.  Viruses and bacteria are rampaging virtually unchecked on Earth, and people's life spans have been greatly reduced.  In a race for the cure, a team of unwell scientists searches the atmosphere and surface of Titan for clues to life, in the hopes of being able to understand the chemical building blocks a bit better.  The story is another wonderful example of Clement's ability to take us to an alien world and show us what it is like.  No monsters, no sex, no human melodramas--just scientists working flat out, and a planet (moon) doing everything it can to confound them.

If you love the idea of exploring alien worlds and tackling mysteries beyond anyone's wildest dreams or comprehension, then Clement is a writer you need to check out.  For once there are no alien beings in the story, just alien substances and strange geophysical events.  Titan is easily the most interesting body in our solar system, next to Earth.  Clement's view of it is not only scientifically feasible, but is based on the latest science at the time.  Since 1999 the surface and atmosphere of Titan have become even more interesting, thanks to NASA's Cassini mission from 2006-2010.

Clement is an author I will return to after this project is complete.  His best works are among the best SF writing out there, and this is one of his best works.  If readers currently living through the Co-Vid 19 crisis think this is a really bad thing, then let's fervently hope that Clement's view of the future, with its rampant and unchecked viruses and bacteria, never comes true.
**** stars.  Reviewed June 4th/20 

NOISE 

 I read the Kindle edition.  

From 2003 comes Hal Clement's final novel.  At 260 pages, it is a wonderful swan song to one of the best SF writers who ever lifted a pen.  With more hits than misses, his legacy is assured among readers who want the most authentic experience possible from a writer of SF.  Clement's planets really do exist, and behave exactly the way he says they do.

He final planetary creation is Kainu, orbiting a binary star system of fairly faint red dwarf stars.  It has a near twin, Kaihapa, which is uninhabited.  Kainu is an ocean planet, with no continents.  However, there are floating cities that have been scientifically grown to support human life.  There are no aliens, but the planet itself, and the lifestyle of its inhabitants, is fascinating.  Settled eons ago by Polynesian people, the planet is visited by Mike Hoani, an historical linguist who wants to see how the traditional languages have evolved over time.  He speaks Maori as well as several other south Pacific dialects.

Mike, once landed and acclimatized to the 1/3 gravity and constant rocking motion of the city, becomes a crew member on a small catamaran that collects metals from the ocean and then trades them.  The planet has continual storms, and is always beset with very deep sub-ocean earthquakes.  Tsunamis are perpetual but mostly harmless.  However, the water world conveys noise from the storms and sub-ocean activity that special noise protection suits must be worn when in the water, at all times.  The only quiet place where armour need not be worn is in the small cabin of the boat.

And so Mike sets sail from the city of Muamoku, with female captain Wanaku, her first mate husband Keo, and a precocious 10 year old (she is 40 in Kainu years) female named 'Ao.  She also carries a very special talking doll with her, called 'Oloa.  The story never leaves this hardy crew, and we not only learn much about the ocean and atmosphere, but also we learn a lot about Polynesian customs and behaviour.  Though very little of planet-shattering import happens to the small crew, the journey they take brings us close to something so much SF literature overlooks, namely the everyday life of humans living on another planet.  No great battles with alien monsters, no enemy aircraft or submarines out to destroy them and take over the world, and no violence of any kind.  And yet it is a terrific story for those who seek experience beyond good versus evil.  

Clement has written a wonderful book, with many delights for readers.  One example is the education of both Mike, who is new to the planet and to this type of extended sea voyage, and to little 'Ao, who is not the daughter of the Captain and mate, but rather a child sent to sea by her own parents to become educated.  Wanaku and Keo's own child is back in the floating city, attending school there.  As I said earlier, we learn a lot about true Polynesian customs.

This is one of my favourite Hal Clement novels, and could be easily read again soon.  Highly recommended if you like going off the well beaten SF path.

**** stars.  Reviewed July 8th/20

Page completely proof read March 2nd, 2019.

Mapman Mike