From the winner of eight Hugo Awards and three Nebula Awards comes an entirely new novel of the Time Patrol--the far-future agency charged with responsibility for the stable continuity of human history, plus all the previous tales in the series available in one volume. Original.
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Poul Anderson remains one of science fictions most popular authors and for the first time, this volume gathers together all of the novelettes, and short stories in the Time Patrol series.
--This text refers to the
Mass Market Paperback
edition.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This collection of short stories has a major problem. All stories which feature travel into the past have this problem, and these, which have it to a very large degree, it being the core of the fictional world Anderson has built, have it in spades. That is, it doesn't deal very well with paradox. Sure, paradox is something that the characters worry a lot about, but in the end they mostly ignore it, and go ahead and create the "causal loops" that they worry so much about, and apparently get away with it every time, which is Quite Irritating.
Other than that, they're mostly "OK", but only "OK". There's only one story that particularly stands out as being very good ("The Sorrow of Odin the Goth"), and none that stand out as being very bad. At their best, these stories contain sympathetic, believable characters who struggle with internal conflicts between what they must do, what they want to do, and what is right; at their worst they are entirely predictable and would only serve as a brief diversion to read once and then forget, with all of the characters' casual breaking of the fundamental rules of their organisation forgiven. To his credit, Anderson generally portrays the cultures of the past sympathetically, with even Evil Conquistadores being shown to be people with motivations and not just thoughtless automatons that merely hack and slash and burn - they do evil because they think it's for a greater good, not just for kicks and greed.
Anderson wrote eleven stories set in this world, of which nine are collected here. A later edition with a slightly different name (Time Patrol, without the leading The) apparently includes one more story, so you may prefer to buy that instead. And there is one other book-length story (The Shield Of Time) published seperately. However, on the strength of this book, I have no particular desire to buy either of 'em.
Other than that, they're mostly "OK", but only "OK". There's only one story that particularly stands out as being very good ("The Sorrow of Odin the Goth"), and none that stand out as being very bad. At their best, these stories contain sympathetic, believable characters who struggle with internal conflicts between what they must do, what they want to do, and what is right; at their worst they are entirely predictable and would only serve as a brief diversion to read once and then forget, with all of the characters' casual breaking of the fundamental rules of their organisation forgiven. To his credit, Anderson generally portrays the cultures of the past sympathetically, with even Evil Conquistadores being shown to be people with motivations and not just thoughtless automatons that merely hack and slash and burn - they do evil because they think it's for a greater good, not just for kicks and greed.
Anderson wrote eleven stories set in this world, of which nine are collected here. A later edition with a slightly different name (Time Patrol, without the leading The) apparently includes one more story, so you may prefer to buy that instead. And there is one other book-length story (The Shield Of Time) published seperately. However, on the strength of this book, I have no particular desire to buy either of 'em.
1 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By JA Fairhurst
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This collection of tales were written over a period of over thirty years so you have to expect a certain degree of inconsistancy but this isn't actually all that noticeable. The most obvious effect of this long time line is the treatment of Poul's female characters - while no-one is as overtly sexist as Anderson's Trader van Rjin from his polesotechnic stories, the girls are rather noticeable by their absence and if present are generally to be found in office work rather than in frontline duties. Mostly written at short story or novella length, each story tells its tale neatly and straightforwardly. While Manse is mainly concerned about keeping the time line on track, the moral ambiguities of his actions are sometimes considered.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.2 out of 5 stars
14 reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
classic, timeless, and glorious...
16 May 2006
By Addison Phillips
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Together with DeCamp's LEST DARKNESS FALL or Silverbergs's UP THE LINE (and perhaps a few others), no other stories really capture the flavor of history, the paradox of time travel, or the genuine joy at being able to wander into the past as this book of stories.
Although the first few have the exact flavor of their era--1950's Astounding magazine--there is nothing really dated or obsolete about these eight stories. Each and every one is a delight, from the long agony of "Odin the Goth", who already knows the doom of those he loves, to the joy of catching time bandits in a beautifully realized ancient Tyre, Poul Anderson gives us stories of the sort that hooked me on science fiction all those years ago... and exactly what brings me back today.
The full set of time patrol stories at nearly 800 pages, this is the biggest bargain you'll find this year.
Although the first few have the exact flavor of their era--1950's Astounding magazine--there is nothing really dated or obsolete about these eight stories. Each and every one is a delight, from the long agony of "Odin the Goth", who already knows the doom of those he loves, to the joy of catching time bandits in a beautifully realized ancient Tyre, Poul Anderson gives us stories of the sort that hooked me on science fiction all those years ago... and exactly what brings me back today.
The full set of time patrol stories at nearly 800 pages, this is the biggest bargain you'll find this year.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Poul Anderson hits a homerun through the ages!
8 Jun 1999
By Ray Bailey
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
Anderson has provided the paradigm shift for all who wish to write about time. Causal loops and ethical delimmas conspire to provide an entertaining read as well as a well thought out philosophy of time travel. I hope this book comes back into print so I can purchase a copy for myself. I have check out the library copy twice so I can relive Manse Everard's adventures before reading "Shield of Time" which is the sequel. Now if I can just find the Time Patrol Office in this milieu.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
time travel will never be the same after this!
5 May 1999
By A Customer
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
Ever wondered what kind of complex moral issues the average time traveler can run up against? Read of Unattatched Manse Everard's travels and you'll soon find out! Why is it wrong for some travelers to get married?(hint, read the book) or to have children(hint 2,read the book). Its worse than opening a Pandora's box of morals and ethics! This book will give some teachers of Philosophy,some good issues to chew on, as well as their students! Don't get discouraged though! There's a lot of good that can be encouraged! And a lot of rules that can get bent too! Ever wonder how Danellians came up with some of these rules? Read the book and find out!
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4.2 out of 5 stars
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