compiled The Technic Civilization Saga, Baen Books' seven-volume omnibus collection of Poul Anderson's major future history series, the History of Technic Civilization;
introduced each volume;
wrote a fictional introduction to one story, "Sargasso of Lost Starships."
The fictional introduction begins:
"Many scholarly works of varying lengths have been written on both the history and the literature of the early years of the Terran Empire, and the majority completely ignore the piece which follows. The few who do mention it mostly do so only in passing, describing it as 'obvious fiction,' or even scorn it as a hoax. The eminent Donvar Ayeghen once hastily changed the subject when the present document was brought up in an interview."
-Michael Karageorge, INTRODUCTION IN Poul Anderson, Rise Of The Terran Empire (Riverdale, NY, 2011), pp. 363-365 AT p. 363.
Karageorge wrote at a time when Anglic had become an ancient language. Translating (very freely) from Karageorge's post-Anglic into modern English gives us something like this:
"Many volumes have collected parts of Poul Anderson's Technic History but the following piece has never been collected since its original magazine publication. The story is perhaps inconsistent with the rest of the Technic History. Donvar Ayeghen is the fictional author of the introduction to the previous installment of the series, "The Star Plunderer," so let's have a joke at his expense here!"
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
Yet again, I am INDIGNANT about the ghastly covers some hater of Poul Anderson selected for volumes IV, V, and VI of Baen Books collecting of Anderson's Technic Civilization stories! What reader would want to be seen in public with books having such lurid, semi-pornographic covers? They make Dominic Flandry look like a goon whose only interest was in surrounding himself with naked bimbos!
I have noticed that while "The Star Plunderer" was republished fairly often and early, it was not until Baen Books pub. RISE OF THE TERRAN EMPIRE that "Sargasso of Lost Starships" was at last republished. I can see why Poul Anderson may have had some hesitations about bringing back "Sargasso": because it would be very difficult to fit it into the Technic series.
I would amend your "free translation" of what "Michael Karageorge" said and suggest Donvar Ayeghen was the editor, not author, of the possibly fictionalized memoirs of Admiral Reeves.
Sean
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