RIDING THE TORCH

by Norman Spinrad ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 1984

The only previous book appearance of this frail, overheated 1974 novella was as a paperback doublet (with Fritz Leiber's Destiny Times Three) in 1978. With Earth destroyed, the remnants of humanity search space for a new home; but, after a millenium, no habitable planet has turned up. (The ships are fusion powered, the fusion products becoming raw materials to build new ships as needed.) Then the fleet's scout ships' pilots take egotistical dramatist Jofe D'mahl into space for a lesson in ""voidsucking."" He returns changed, aware of space's awesome immensity and emptiness; the pilots have also revealed that there are no habitable planets anywhere--they've known for years, but couldn't bring themselves to disappoint the still-hopeful fleet. So D'mahl whips up a visionary drama explaining that humanity's destiny is to stay in space and travel forever. Obnoxious characters, thin ideas, large patches of livid purple prose: an unappealing and implausible little parable.

Pub Date: June 1, 1984

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Bluejay--dist. by St. Martin's

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1984

Categories: FICTION