Hank Davis, compiler of Baen Books'
The Technic Civilization Saga, describes the passage signed by "Le Matelot" as the introduction to "Hiding Place," which was the first of the three Nicholas van Rijn stories collected as
Trader to the Stars. But it is not. Examining a copy of
Trader to the Stars, I judge that Le Matelot introduces the volume as a whole. Le Matelot is on p. 7, p. 8 is blank and "Hiding Place" begins on p. 9. The content of Le Matelot refers not to this first story but simply to the Polesotechnic League. Therefore, Le Matelot introduces the League period as such. In
Saga, Volume I,
The Van Rijn Method, Le Matelot should precede not "Hiding Place," the last story in this volume, but "Margin of Profit," the fourth story, which introduces both van Rijn and the League. "Le Matelot" is an ultimate statement of a new beginning and should appear as early as possible in
Saga, Volume I.
Works of fiction coexist in an imaginative space. The Technic History and Cities in Flight are alternative future histories. Van Rijn from the Technic History visits the Old Phoenix Inn. I am just about to return to Neil Gaiman's Inn of the Worlds' End. And that is all for this evening.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
I loved the CITIES IN FLIGHT books when I was a boy. Regretfully, that was not the case the last time I tried reading them, losing interest in the third volume. I fear tastes and interests can change as the years go by!
Ad astra! Sean
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