Tuesday 16 July 2024

Falkayn's Earlier Adventures

Poul Anderson's Technic History has seventeen volumes if it includes The Saturn Game and other stories (suggested). In this reading order, Volume II, The Trouble Twisters, presents David Falkayn in action on Ivanhoe, at Beta Crucis and on Ikrananka whereas Volume III, Satan's World, refers to his activities at Beta Crucis, on Ikranaka and on Merseia. We must wait until Volume VII, The Earth Book Of Stormgate, to be shown Falkayn on Merseia, where this story, "Day of Burning," is presented on a "now it can be told" basis.

In The Technic Civilization Saga, which comprises seven omnibus collections presenting this entire future history series in chronological order of fictional events, Volume I, The Van Rijn Method, shows Falkayn on Ivanhoe and at Beta Crucis whereas Volume II, David Falkayn: Star Trader shows him on Ikranaka and on Merseia, then incorporates Satan's World. At last everything is in the correct order although I have got confused a couple of times trying to summarize all this accurately.

Similarly, the seventeen-volume series passes directly from Satan's World to Volume IV, Mirkheim, whereas the intermediate story, "Lodestar," about the discovery of Mirkheim is first collected in the Earth Book, again on a "now it can be told" basis. In the Saga, Volume II ends with "Lodestar" and Volume III, Rise Of The Terran Empire, opens with Mirkheim.

Read the seventeen-volume version, then reread the series in the Saga.

3 comments:

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

I have all the Technic stories, but in a jumbled up way! Many of them in hard covers pub. before the Baen Books edition, THE EARTH BOOK OF STORMGATE, a few paperbacks, some in NESFA Press collections, and one--"Outpost of Empire," in the original magazine version.

Very much a hodgepod!

Ad astra! Sean

paulshackley2017@gmail.com said...

Sean,

I think that each of us ought to have the SAGA and, as far as we can, the collections and novels in their original order. My EARTH BOOK is now almost dust but I value it and TRADER... as pre-SAGA collections.

Paul.

Sean M. Brooks said...

Kaor, Paul!

A good idea, esp. if a reader is still new to Anderson's works. And I do have copies of two volumes of the SAGA: RISE OF THE TERRAN EMPIRE and FLANDRY'S LEGACY.

I can only suggest getting a good hardback copy of THE EARTH BOOK, even if it's more expensive than a paperback.

Ad astra! Sean