Book Thoughts: The Thurb Revolution, by Alexei Panshin
P. Korda
ALEXEI PANSHIN
1968
159 pp (PB)
This is the second book in the Anthony Villiers series, which is
oft-praised, but seldom found in stores. A spontaneous stop at a random
used book store during a recent road trip turned up this book, as well as
its sequel, _Mask World_. This fortunate event must be karmic compensation
for suffering through _Bored of the Rings_ last month.
Anthony Villiers, Lord Charteris, is a noble in the interstellar Nashuite
Empire, who, "by profession, [is] good company." He's the sort of guy
who's competent at many things-- woodcraft, weaponry, bowling-- but who
mainly gets through life with the help of his impeccable manners and
incredible social skills.
What he does in this book can be summed up thus: "Villiers goes camping
with his friends Fred and Torve. He reads some nice books about animals,
they sing songs around the campfire, and at the end, somebody tries to kill
him, although not very effectively."
All of that is to say that, although Villiers is the main character, not
much happens to him. He's more the type of person who things happen
around. What happens _around_ Villiers in this novel is: a yagoot[1] sets
out to bring artistic enlightenment to his censored, dull society, Fred (a
noble of significantly higher rank than Villiers and a confirmed bachelor)
meets a nice girl, intelligent life is discovered and a controversial
scientific theory is confirmed, a vacation resort is built, a newly-minted
deity finds a follower, and an assassination is foiled. All these plot
elements interweave and entangle, with Villiers' innocuous camp-making
activities at the center.
But what raises the book above the level of "fairly amusing diversion" is
the narrative voice. It's absolutely marvellous, practically a character
in its own right. Throughout the book, there are asides and non-sequiturs
on a myriad of topics, including the excellence of gawkish young women,
the joys of a pleasant lunch break, the nature of art and criticism
thereof, what makes a good government official, the relationship between a
writer and his works. Here are some choice quotes:
"Night is irregular. What is not done in the daytime becomes possible
at night: murder and sex and thought."
On the personality of the Tanner Trust's chief censor: "He had the
supressed passions of a bank clerk, of which belligerence was one and
conservatism was another."
"'Yes,' said the plonk. 'I'm God. And what is more, I will NOT wink at
a single sip of wine or an occasional lustful gaze. I set a higher
standard than that. And I'm not altogether sure I approve of
homosexuality, so mind your step.'" (What makes this bit especially
humorous is that a "plonk" is a small, pink cloud which is essentially
harmless.)
Assuming the other two books in the series are anywhere near as good as
_The Thurb Revolution_, it is a great shame that they are out of print.
With all the reprints of classic SF coming out these days, I find it hard
to believe that nobody is interested in reprinting the Villiers books.
Maybe Panshin's holding out for more money than anybody's willing to pay,
or something.
A final note: it seems to me that this book would be ideal for reading
aloud, if you're into that sort of thing.
[1] The Nashuite Empire's version of Bertie Wooster's ilk.
--
Pam Korda
kor2 @ midway.uchicago.edu
jtingle
news:DZQU7.107$s4....@news.uchicago.edu...
> THE THURB REVOLUTION
> ALEXEI PANSHIN
> 1968
> 159 pp (PB)
>
> This is the second book in the Anthony Villiers series, which is
> oft-praised, but seldom found in stores. A spontaneous stop at a random
> used book store during a recent road trip turned up this book, as well as
> its sequel, _Mask World_. This fortunate event must be karmic compensation
> for suffering through _Bored of the Rings_ last month.
Sigh! I read the first two Villers novels on the old 'Nancy Hanks' on the
way to Savannah. I've re-read all 3 of the books since, and never get tired
of them. IMO, Panshin should be horsewhipped for letting the chance to
write such tales get away from him, and making his subsequent career on
trivialities. AFAIK, 'The Universal Pantograph' was never and will never be
written. I like to think Villers and Torve are out there somewhere,
adventuring in their own time, and it's only we who missed the bus.
Sadly,
Jack Tingle
P. Korda
P. Korda <ko...@midway.uchicago.edu> wrote:
>THE THURB REVOLUTION
>ALEXEI PANSHIN
>1968
>159 pp (PB)
>
>This is the second book in the Anthony Villiers series, which is
>oft-praised, but seldom found in stores. A spontaneous stop at a random
>used book store during a recent road trip turned up this book, as well as
>its sequel, _Mask World_. This fortunate event must be karmic compensation
Sigh.
_Masque World_, I mean.
-pam