Wash Post article

Kevin J. Maroney · 12 Apr 2002, 03:16 · from urth-v0204.mbox · original

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From: "Kevin J. Maroney" <kjm at panix.com>
Subject: Re: (urth) Wash Post article
Date: Thu, 11 Apr 2002 23:16:34 -0400
Message-ID: <urth-v0204-591 at digest.urth.net>
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At 12:41 AM 4/11/02, Nick wrote:
>5HC is
>perforce the best one-volume introduction to Wolfe's
>SF oeuvre.

I agree with this, and have been using it as such for the last 15 years. It=20
is neither Wolfe's best nor worst, nor his "most typical" (is there such a=20
thing for Wolfe?), but if someone reads and enjoys _Fifth Head_, that=20
person is likely to enjoy other Wolfe, and if not, they are unlikely to=20
enjoy other Wolfe much more. When _Fifth Head_ was out of print, I made it=20
a point to buy Ace copies whenever I saw them, to pass on to people who=20
hadn't jumped into Wolfe yet.

>BUT: in the context of the
>whole Urth/Whorl series, there is too much resonance
>with 5HC to be ignored.

Numbering _Fifth Head_ as part of "the Briah cycle", as you did in your=20
article, is misleading and, frankly, wrong. There is no plot, character, or=20
setting connection between _Fifth Head_ and the various _Sun_ novels, and=20
calling it such sets up expectations in a new reader which I feel will not=20
be met. Does it resonate with the other novels? Yes, but so does "Seven=20
American Nights"; that doesn't make "Seven American Nights" part of "the=20
Briah cycle".

--
Kevin J.  Maroney | kjm at panix.com | Games are my entire waking life

--=20

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