Monday, 9 February 2026

On Another Beach

"They landed on the beach."


This broad beach comprises white dunes separating salty grass from roaring, tumbling surf. Damp air blows. Sand grits as Jorun sits. Sun sets at sea, a huge gold disc. Wet wind rumples hair. Jorun feels the intricacy of a conch and hears "the sea" in it. Rolling waves boom and spout.

"The Terrans called [the waves] the horses of God. A thin cloud in the west was turning rose and gold." (p. 261)

For more horses in the sea, see also:


1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Kaor, Paul!

Anderson was never content to give his readers a merely curt, terse, Hemingwayesque prose. He wanted to give them some color, depth, and pathos (when called for).

Many 19th century writers, on into the early 20th century, were too florid and verbose, but the style of writing associated with Hemingway could also be overdone. In SF the works of Asimov gives us examples of how the kind of flat, plain, colorless writing I associate with Hemingway could be boring.

Ad astra! Sean