So love how you have the flair of a college lecturer when you speak passionately about SF, but also you haven't been ground down in the academic system so it's still all from the heart. 😀
You are the master! - you can drink coffee, eat biscuits, wear any shirt and I will hang on all your words (even if I have to wait between sips - lol). Your channel is second to none - by far the best SF channel on youtube! (I don't mean to fawn but I have been searching for the soul in popular culture and you seem to be the last bastion of it in contemporary society especially on social media - like the crumbling paperbacks with the awe inspiring imaginative cover art of the 60s and 70s (and the celestial seasoning art work of the 80s lol) - there was magic there fading away - waiting for a new life).
Many thanks, you're very kind, it's great to have you on board. I feel like an unheralded prophet crying in the wilderness much of the time, but I think I do have some stuff of value to share- I hope so, anyway.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal I'm glad you took in this stowaway from the USA. Your words keep me going as I am out in the wilderness trying to rub two sticks together.
I am thrilled to see you give Bob Shaw the respect and appreciation he deserves. It is tragically rare to meet someone who has even heard the name let alone read the books. I have read every single book published, this is all due to my Dad's childhood influence as he loved the man. He told me that in one of the first books he read Shaw excoriated a newspaper editor, the way his personality was described and maligned made him shout out loud "I know that editor! I'm absolutely certain it is that bastard from the Belfast Telegraph!" (I think he's from The Shadow of Heaven). He looked into it, first realising Bob Shaw was Northern Irish then later confirming he had written for the Belfast Telegraph. My Dad also had a BT column, I think that editor hated my Dad almost as much as Da hated him. I remember 30+ years ago my dad raving to me about slow glass, he absolutely adored the concept. So much so that he would regularly bring it up even decades later. I ended up doing a physics degree and read a ground breaking paper where they used metamaterials to slow light transmission to the point it was almost frozen. I can still remember phoning my Dad to tell him they've actually done it! Though it isn't quite slow glass, the metamaterial is designed for a specific coherent frequency not broadband light, still cool though. We had all of his books in Norn Iron, they became increasingly difficult to source. I helped complete his collection via birthday/fathers day presents, several very expensive hardbacks of his weaker novels just because it was all I could find. Just like you described, after his death my Da wanted to save a single novel as unread since there would never be another, he'd always have one more to read. Unfortunately since the 90's, the book my Da says he has never read changes every few years so I'm certain he has read them all. But I don't have the heart to tell him. Who Goes Here is the single funniest book I've ever read, it is the only time a novel has left me in such hysterical laughter that I actually began to panic from lack of air, which I found funny and triggered more laughing and panic hahahaha. Like you I found Warren Peace disappointing but it did have a very high bar to meet, though the concept of a variable speed of light making modern electronics impracticable was fascinating. Similarly "Load of Old Bosh: Serious Scientific Talks" is pure joy, we kept it in the toilet. You can flick anywhere and laugh. Shaw being much older than me meant that most of the sci-fi convention in jokes went right over my head, yet even understanding a fraction was enough for uncontrollable giggles, my Da could appreciate it properly. It did leave me terribly sad that I never got to experience a serious scientific talk in person. On a final note, he signed your copy of The Ragged Astronauts quite obviously using a ballpoint pen. Blasphemy! They had no metal, even brakka wood can't replace a steel ball bearing, even fountain pens would be a struggle.
Yes, he's obscure these days. He's been a passion of mine since the late 70s- totally agree re 'Who Goes Here?'- for me it beat Harry Harrison's 'Stainless Steel Rat' books by a country mile, being more Sheckleyesque. It would be great to see reissues, but reportedly his beneficiaries are asking an unrealistic sum...shame!
@@outlawbookselleroriginal did you attend any of his Serious Scientific Talks? I wholeheartedly recommend Load of Old Bosh, I wanted a copy of my own after I moved to England but it was impossible to find back then. I was very tempted to manually scan my Da's copy but never got round to it.
This is the thing. Shaw could write, while I think Hamilton just keeps typing (this was a comparison a journalist made between LeGuin and Rowling). I don't meant o be mean to PH, who I've met once and was a pertfectly sound guy, but I feel his massive books have been a bad influence on standards in contemporary SF, personally. I look forward to you reading more Shaw, Matt, the best is yet to come as I said before. Be good to yourself, ace!
Tomorrow Lies in Ambush is his best collection, I think. One of the best in it, though among its shortest, is called Element of Chance which almost feels like something by Jack Vance. It's both beautiful and horrifying. I find it interesting how he uses the term Skording in multiple works, including that one.
After watching this video again, and noticing the significance of Bob Shaw's use of optics in his stories and novels, I remembered something Christopher Priest wrote in his obituary of Shaw: "After a serious eye infection Bob developed a morbid fear of blindness which lasted for the rest of his life. He became afraid of the dark and told me he always slept with a light on." This made me think that his focus on optics could have originated in this phobia of blindness. After all Night Walk has a blinded protagonist. Speculation on my part, but interesting.
Yes, that's a very good point, I did read this obit but never made the obvious connection. One of Bob's novels is dedicated to Chris, can't think which one though off the top of my head.
Great overview of Bob Shaw. Lots in there I haven't read, but will now track down. First read Other Days Other Eyes when I was a teenager, after seeing an adaptation of Light of Other Days in a Marvel comic (I think!). I got a letter from Bob once, when I was a member of the BSFA and he lived just up the road from me, Warrington way. He'd spotted my address in the BSFA new members list and invited me along to their monthly beer and SF chat in a local pub. Sadly I never got there, as I headed off to Oz for five years soon after. But always appreciated him writing me the letter. Your overview brought back good memories. Rob
Great video. Shaw has been one of my favorite SF writers for decades. I began reading him in the 80s when I was still in junior high in Los Angeles. I could never understand why he wasn't a household name. There was an earthiness to his writing that many SF writers were lacking. No matter how outrageous the plot you could still identify with his characters. A consistently brilliant writer. I didn't learn of his passing till the early 2000s. I just knew he hadn't put out a book in a while. I was sad to discover why. Bob deserves a large audience and deep respect. Thanks for making this video.
My pleasure, glad you enjoyed it. Shaw was the very best of that rare species- a Hard SF writer with a command of characterisation and voice that are the marks of a good novelist per se, so often lacking in HSF. He could easily have had a career outside the genre, but we are lucky he concentrated on SF and he is unique in my experience. Even someone like Greg Benford doesn't come close to him for me. He proved at his best that it was possible to be both literary and technical. Shame more writers don't aim high enough at combining both, right?
Hey Stephen, "Medusa's Children Guy" here as I think I will now be known... Fun video and I can't wait to buy more Shaw when I find him in the wild. Might be a while since I'm from America - I've stopped letting myself buy most things online, as things pile up, which I don't have to explain to you - but to set the record straight, I did think that Medusa's Children was good! And I see what you mean about striking harder on a reread. This does lead me to a question: when you call a book minor, is that due to lesser quality or popularity? I've interpreted it as the latter and quite like the term but wonder if I'm getting it right. Great stuff as always!
When I say 'Minor', I usually mean critically- and I'm usually referring to the critical consensus on a work, sometimes my own feeling -if I have a different view to the consensus, I'll say if I agree or not. Thanks Conrad.
The first Shaw I read was Nightwalk and I loved it, and it turns out I have read most of his work. I haven't read The Two Timers but I do have a signed paperback copy in the same edition you showed that I found in the bargain bin of a local charity shop. Unfortunately, it had 10p scrawled on the cover in permanent marker! It's nice to get an overview of his canon. Thanks.
Fascinating as always. I am curious to hear what you make of 'One Million Tomorrows' when you read it - it was an early SF I read around the age of 16 and I can't remember anything about it except I thought it was very good. Seeing the cover definitely gave me a nostalgia rush. As an aside, I love the slower pace of videos like this - so much of youtube I find punishing with an almost zero tolerance of silence or pauses. Long live slow chatting.
Superb! I picked up a bunch of Bob Shaw paperbacks recently after watching your videos. I did (sort of/not really) meet him once at the University SF society I was part of in the early 90's. But as his visit really wasn't announced and I hadn't known he was going to be there, there was no chance to read any of his books beforehand, and as a result I was too embarrassed to talk to him, despite him being a nice guy. I've been meaning to read his books and feeling slightly guilty about it for thirty years plus! Fantastic timing for me on the vid as I just finished my first Bob Shaw this morning, although I appreciate Who Goes Here isn't representative. First third was great, filled with loads of great and terrible jokes (which I also loved), then it sort of slid into being a more standard SF book. I enjoyed the sympathetic meet-up near the end of the book. Anyway, more Bob Shaw is on the TBR pile, so thanks, Steve!
Shaw has been on my TBR pile for some time, so I might have to bump his works up. I have most of the books you mentioned. Again a marvelous exposition of a underappreciated SF author.
I've got several of his books, had them for years. An excellent writer. I think that his invention of "slow glass" for his "other days, other eyes" is one of the most overlooked hard SF concepts ever.
Absolutely. How often to SF writers come up with something this multi-facetted and original? If you write Hard SF, this to me is the standard to aim for.
I read that short story...years ago, funny I remember the story but I forgot the title and the author...goes to show you, a good writer sticks to memory.
Thank you for this insight into Bob Shaw's work, it sounds like this author deserves wider recognition. I haven't read any of his books yet but I recently picked up copies of Night Walk and Who Goes Here.
He was a legend and very well known in the UK in his lifetime. EVERYONE interested in Hard SF must read Shaw and unlike most writers of that variety, his literary ability set him above his peers- his closest US equivalent is Gregory Benford, I'd say, but SHaw was sui generis.
Im watching this again. Always something new to pick up the second time around. I wish 'they' would reprint his works. I love his writing. His shorts are amazing, filled with humor, suspense, and all good things.
I met Bob and and his wife Sadie about 1979. Really lovely people! The Orbitsville books are fun and interesting. My particular favorite standalone novel is Nightwalk.
Unfortunately Other days,other eyes was never translated into my language but book of his short stories was one of the first sci-fi I've ever read. Still remember where exactly I bought it. Oh man, that place looks so different now! Memory truly is The light of other days. The rugged astronauts was translated though so I might get my hands on that one.
I read Orbitsville and Orbitsville Departure back when the latter was released by DAW Books here in the states (found a copy of the former in a used book store about the same time). I haven't read them since but I recall enjoying them both. I know I had a paperback copy of Medusa's Children, but I don't think I ever read it and I don't think I have it anymore but I'm going to remedy that. Outside of those I don't think I've explored much of Shaw's work. I did just order a copy of Ship of Strangers. Being a Van Vogt fan, it sounds like it might be fun.
Thanks for another informative video. To my shame I have never read any of his novels so I decided to rectify that very recently with Orbitsville. What a wonderful book - it felt to me like a marriage of hard sf and space opera, two genres I do not particularly enjoy. But the hard stuff here was well explained, unlike Ringworld and Fountains of Paradise, and the pulpy feel of the story was as gripping as it was well written. It is the best book I've read since I finally got round to Stars My Destination a couple of years back. Luckily I have 6-7 Shaw novels on my shelf so looking forward to exploring some more.
Glad you enjoyed it, though I have to say I feel it's one of his weakest books- that may be just my taste- but Shaw is almost always entertaining and often outstanding. Do let me know how you get on with his other works.
This video encouraged the purchase of a number of Shaw books that I'm looking forward to reading. I read 'Orbitsville' years ago which I really enjoyed. I also got halfway through 'Dagger of the Mind' which I was enjoying until I unfortunately left it on a train. I never found another copy to finish it.
Ifollowed your advice and ordered Night Walk. Its brilliant so far. The pace, the ideas and writing. Am going to delve further as i didnt know this author. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and enthusiasm Steve.
Great video. Ramsey Campbell was good friends with Shaw and he said that Shaw once told him that he'd rather not write at all, I wonder when this was and how long he felt that way? There's some clips of Shaw talking on Prisoners Of Gravity tv show on this site.
I think that was later on. Bob did like a drink and I suspect this may have been a factor. His recognition and reward was very up and down, he should have been lauded much more for his mid 70s work.
Hi! The TH-cam Algorithm loaded one of your recent videos into my recommendations, last week, and I am so glad it did! I’ve been a science fiction reader for most of my life, which will total 73 years in about a week! 🎉 I first read Bob Shaw’s stuff in the “slow glass” era, but I haven’t read him at all, recently. So now I have a copy of The Ragged Astronauts, and I’ll give you some feedback after I read it! All the best!
'Ragged' is about the last of the good ones, but there are two fairly workaday sequels. There's no doubt his 80s output didn't come near what he did in the 1970s, but he's still worth reading as much of as you can manage, great to have you here, thanks for your comment.
I love Bob Shaw, and have (and read) 21 of his books (American, so a mix of Ace and DAW and Dell and a few others). And this video points made me realize that I never read the third Orbitsville book, so I need to get a copy of that and read it. A more modern writer that gives me similar feels is John Barnes.
Totally agree with you, although I might choose a slightly different selection of books as his best, Bob was a fine writer and a beautiful man, he made time for everyone who wished to talk with him.
I think his work is so varied in content I can understand anyone having different faves- as I said, I'm quite fond of 'Medusa's Children' while most find it minor. I think If I'd read it around the same time as my first Shaw's I'd be quite passionate about it...
Great to see a video about Shaw. I first read a library copy of Other Days, Other Eyes in the 90s after reading about its slow glass concept somewhere. Over the next few years I picked up some of his books second-hand, as they were much more plentiful in shops then. In recent years I've seen fewer of his books in the wild. Other Days, Other Eyes and A Wreath of Stars would be perfect candidates for the SF Masterworks line, especially because A Wreath of Stars was in Gollancz's earlier 1980s Classic SF series, most of which have been reprinted as Masterworks. Hopefully any disagreements between the estate and the publisher can be worked out. I have a paperback of Terminal Velocity and my understanding is that it's the same text as Vertigo, but with the short story "Dark Icarus" (later retitled "A Little Night Flying") added as a prologue.
Hope you like it Mark, do let me know. There are lots of other videos here on this channel which will expose you to the less well known but brilliant SF and related literature the average channel presenter will never have encountered- so do watch the backlist. Good to have you on board!
@@outlawbookselleroriginal I loved Other Days Other Eyes. Thanks so much for recommending it. Extra fascinating because of todays hyper CCTV'd (if that can be a verb!) World. Beautiful and profound prose. Will definitely be reading more.
I am on a reading project this year to read several books on the theme of immortality. Thanks for bringing One Million Tomorrows to my attention as I wasn't aware of this one! Just ordered a copy.
This was so great, a thorough introduction that should make anyone interested in reading Bob Shaw. I read The Palace of Eternity based on Matt's recommendation, definitely will check out more of Shaw's works in the future!
Brilliant. And speaking of glam, I immediately missed the scarf, which I thought was a given. 😆 So I perused my bookcases and the only Shaws I could find were "Medusa's Children" and the "Cosmic Kaleidoscope" collection. I also found "Light of Other Days" in two different anthologies. Good enough places to start, I suppose (never read him). Cheers.
I have various scarves, which will return and have popped up in the past many times on the channel! As I say, some regard 'Medsua' as a minor book, so start with "Light...".
Another fine video and introduction, thank you! Very much looking forward to reading some Bob Shaw; I’ve bought the first two books you mentioned for my kindle 😊
Enjoyed this video as I have not read Bob Shaw although I do own half a dozen of his books, you did make me smile and hanker after coffee and biscuits!
I've never read Shaw, but I was familiar with the concept of Slow Glass due to it being used in the black and white Marvel magazine Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction in the seventies. If I remember correctly it was used in framing sequences. Did you ever read it Stephen, and if so what did you think of the magazine?
Yes, Marvel adapted "The Light of Other Days" (which was part of 'Other Days, Other Eyes') into comic form- that was my introduction to Shaw, loved it.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Yes, Unknown Worlds was one of the best of the Marvel B&W line of magazines, i think. I still have vivid memories of reading it while on a rainy family holiday in Porthcawl as a child. (I'm a valleys boy too!) I've managed to pick up a whole run of them again over the last couple of years, all except issue one which seems to be really hard to get in the UK.
@@roberthill2199 - I used to holiday in Porthcawl too and Barry (as you'd expect!). My mother still lives nearby. I would like to see that issue again, it's been a very long time...
Sorry to bump an old post! Of course in 1966 the "Light Of Other Days" short story was considered great. I first read it at 12/13, a strong effect. About the same as "Desertion" by Clifford Simak. Vintage SF just posted a video, in which he shows a first edition of Bob Shaw's "Ship Of Strangers" with a tribute to A E Van Vogt and his efforts. I am looking for a copy of it now. I find it in the UK and Canada, a few in the US, or brand new from Amazon. I wonder if most editions will have the Van Vogt reference. I will contact the sellers!
I read 'Ship' many years ago, but after I'd read 'Space Beagle', which was unusual as I'd read tons of Shaw before I'd ever read Van Vogt. I can't recall if any edition of 'Ship' mentions the Vogt tribute concept- though I don't have a Uk first hardcover, but when it was published these things were rarely mentioned- Shaw probably just mentioned it in an interview, or critics merely just noticed the similarities immediately.
@outlawbookselleroriginal I had never heard of it before, either! But Vintage SF is in Canada, maybe just that edition? Van Vogt was from Canada. van Vogt, according to US sources, was officially changed to Van Vogt. The magazine spelling was Van Vogt by the late 1960s. I just looked at my 1962 edition of "The Violent Man," still van Vogt then. He published all of his best work as van Vogt, I agree! v or V - Vogt's 1970 introduction to "The World of Null-A" edition [required to understand the novel] is Copyrighted in 1970 to Van Vogt, but the cover says van Vogt! I don't know... At 20 seconds in, Vintage SF shows his Shaw early edition paperback with this: "To A E van Vogt, pioneer of many trails" I have contacted several book sellers in the UK and Canada, and asked if their first editions [hardcover and paperback] have this dedication. Waiting on replies! th-cam.com/video/n_mFUS6CK1g/w-d-xo.html
@outlawbookselleroriginal I received an email this AM. JMC Books in Nova Scotia sent me a photo of his 1978 (I guess Canadian) Hardbound edition in fine condition with the van Vogt dedication. Order complete.
Hi Steve . Thanks for the info on Shaw, i have a couple , but would try , try and try to locate more. Not easy . I commented earlier but my comments seems to have vanish .
@@outlawbookselleroriginal My insight, as I've read Light of Other Days: it deals with very similar optical concepts about being able to see things from the past. I think it's Clarke's only good Collaboratory novel, and I did quite like it. Pretty good characters for him and one helluva changed world.
@@conradledebuhr1765 I've never been drawn to Clarke's collabs -they instantly seemed done only for commercial reasons (I was just musing on what other Clarke I need to buy, not much now), but I will check this one out, thank you.
I always enjoy "Weekend Breakfast with the Outlaw Bookseller." I get a lot out of these author specific deep dives, especially with thumbnail descriptions of the books that I see listed online. Last night I was just looking over some Bob Shaw wondering which one or two to get, to try, and then... This! For example, you make the ragged astronauts sound so much more interesting than anything I came across online. (Which reminds me, do you know anything about these 19th C French SF/pulps translated/ adapted by Blaylock?)
@@outlawbookselleroriginal They're from Black Coat Press and the web address is exactly what you'd guess. French books, mostly from the turn of the 19th to the 20th C, some stretching into the Pulp Age, with new (or first time) translations by Blaylock (and others) like: City of Glass - Alphonse Brown, Mysteryville - Jules Lermina, The Secret of Zippelius - Jules Lermina, The People of the Pole - Charles Derennes; They have quite an expansive catalogue on the website. I just stumbled across some at a Library store & thought they were just print on demand public domain stuff, but they claim that they are new translations, carefully labored over and given flash new covers, I know very little about the great SF traditions of other countries outside of the Anglo Diaspora. Fun fact: One of their printing sites is near Moid. Anyhow, wondering if you've heard of them , or have any skinny on their sources. Or have I given you another video deep dive topic? . . .
Would “BDO” (Big Dumb Object) be an unfair and silly modern term/acronym, in the same way “sci-fi” and “quadrilogy” are? To me it diminishes great (and clearly not dumb) works like ‘Rendezvous with Rama’ and ‘Eon’ and essentially lumps them into an internet acronym to sit alongside films like ‘Armageddon’.
You have a point, but I use BDO as a term as it's been long used in SF criticism by serious critics at the top of their field (critics who would similarly refuse 'Sci-fi' and 'Quadrilogy'. BDO is used to a degree to imply a certain hollowness of narrative and conception around the trope of the "mysterious" alien artefact that is so often explored but uniluminated in SF narrative, so it is a critical term and yes, obviously intended to diminish the basic idea in some contexts - though you'll find many of the same critics would praise -for example - Greg Bear. Also, unlike 'Sci-Fi' and 'Quadrilogy', it's a usage largely confined to SF professionals- so I guess you could critique it as being part of a 'gatekeeper nomenclature', but it does have authority and experience on its side.
I have just finished reading Dawn by Octavia Butler, and I'm wondering is it worth carrying with the trilogy? It's well written, interesting story etc, but it does feel like a typical sci-fi piece of Feminist propaganda of its time. Is it worth the read...so many books, so little time etc.
Well, my feelings on SF series vary very little - good SF doesn't usually need three volumes to make its point. Unless you have very strong feelings about the Identity Politics aspects, I'd say skip it- and if it feels typical now, don't feel guilty, move on to a great singleton instead, Id' say.
Yes, it's a shame. Shaw is not in print due to the beneficiaries of his estate wanting more money for the rights than Gollancz are willing to pay, reportedly, which only robs generations of new SF readers of great work to experience. Similar situation holds with Barrington J Baylet, sadly.
I can’t believe I am discovering new writers in my 50s. Just finished “the palace of eternity” and was blown away.
So love how you have the flair of a college lecturer when you speak passionately about SF, but also you haven't been ground down in the academic system so it's still all from the heart. 😀
Sure is!
You are the master! - you can drink coffee, eat biscuits, wear any shirt and I will hang on all your words (even if I have to wait between sips - lol). Your channel is second to none - by far the best SF channel on youtube! (I don't mean to fawn but I have been searching for the soul in popular culture and you seem to be the last bastion of it in contemporary society especially on social media - like the crumbling paperbacks with the awe inspiring imaginative cover art of the 60s and 70s (and the celestial seasoning art work of the 80s lol) - there was magic there fading away - waiting for a new life).
Many thanks, you're very kind, it's great to have you on board. I feel like an unheralded prophet crying in the wilderness much of the time, but I think I do have some stuff of value to share- I hope so, anyway.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal I'm glad you took in this stowaway from the USA. Your words keep me going as I am out in the wilderness trying to rub two sticks together.
I am thrilled to see you give Bob Shaw the respect and appreciation he deserves. It is tragically rare to meet someone who has even heard the name let alone read the books.
I have read every single book published, this is all due to my Dad's childhood influence as he loved the man. He told me that in one of the first books he read Shaw excoriated a newspaper editor, the way his personality was described and maligned made him shout out loud "I know that editor! I'm absolutely certain it is that bastard from the Belfast Telegraph!" (I think he's from The Shadow of Heaven). He looked into it, first realising Bob Shaw was Northern Irish then later confirming he had written for the Belfast Telegraph. My Dad also had a BT column, I think that editor hated my Dad almost as much as Da hated him.
I remember 30+ years ago my dad raving to me about slow glass, he absolutely adored the concept. So much so that he would regularly bring it up even decades later. I ended up doing a physics degree and read a ground breaking paper where they used metamaterials to slow light transmission to the point it was almost frozen. I can still remember phoning my Dad to tell him they've actually done it! Though it isn't quite slow glass, the metamaterial is designed for a specific coherent frequency not broadband light, still cool though.
We had all of his books in Norn Iron, they became increasingly difficult to source. I helped complete his collection via birthday/fathers day presents, several very expensive hardbacks of his weaker novels just because it was all I could find. Just like you described, after his death my Da wanted to save a single novel as unread since there would never be another, he'd always have one more to read. Unfortunately since the 90's, the book my Da says he has never read changes every few years so I'm certain he has read them all. But I don't have the heart to tell him.
Who Goes Here is the single funniest book I've ever read, it is the only time a novel has left me in such hysterical laughter that I actually began to panic from lack of air, which I found funny and triggered more laughing and panic hahahaha. Like you I found Warren Peace disappointing but it did have a very high bar to meet, though the concept of a variable speed of light making modern electronics impracticable was fascinating.
Similarly "Load of Old Bosh: Serious Scientific Talks" is pure joy, we kept it in the toilet. You can flick anywhere and laugh. Shaw being much older than me meant that most of the sci-fi convention in jokes went right over my head, yet even understanding a fraction was enough for uncontrollable giggles, my Da could appreciate it properly. It did leave me terribly sad that I never got to experience a serious scientific talk in person.
On a final note, he signed your copy of The Ragged Astronauts quite obviously using a ballpoint pen. Blasphemy! They had no metal, even brakka wood can't replace a steel ball bearing, even fountain pens would be a struggle.
Yes, he's obscure these days. He's been a passion of mine since the late 70s- totally agree re 'Who Goes Here?'- for me it beat Harry Harrison's 'Stainless Steel Rat' books by a country mile, being more Sheckleyesque. It would be great to see reissues, but reportedly his beneficiaries are asking an unrealistic sum...shame!
@@outlawbookselleroriginal did you attend any of his Serious Scientific Talks? I wholeheartedly recommend Load of Old Bosh, I wanted a copy of my own after I moved to England but it was impossible to find back then. I was very tempted to manually scan my Da's copy but never got round to it.
@@beardedchimp I remember the one at the Worldcon in 87...
The Hamilton dig resonated. I was mentally comparing Pandora's Star to Palace of Eternity for all one thousand pages.
This is the thing. Shaw could write, while I think Hamilton just keeps typing (this was a comparison a journalist made between LeGuin and Rowling). I don't meant o be mean to PH, who I've met once and was a pertfectly sound guy, but I feel his massive books have been a bad influence on standards in contemporary SF, personally. I look forward to you reading more Shaw, Matt, the best is yet to come as I said before. Be good to yourself, ace!
Tomorrow Lies in Ambush is his best collection, I think. One of the best in it, though among its shortest, is called Element of Chance which almost feels like something by Jack Vance. It's both beautiful and horrifying. I find it interesting how he uses the term Skording in multiple works, including that one.
One of the few Shaws I haven't read- it's waiting for the mood!
After watching this video again, and noticing the significance of Bob Shaw's use of optics in his stories and novels, I remembered something Christopher Priest wrote in his obituary of Shaw:
"After a serious eye infection Bob developed a morbid fear of blindness which lasted for the rest of his life. He became afraid of the dark and told me he always slept with a light on."
This made me think that his focus on optics could have originated in this phobia of blindness. After all Night Walk has a blinded protagonist. Speculation on my part, but interesting.
Yes, that's a very good point, I did read this obit but never made the obvious connection. One of Bob's novels is dedicated to Chris, can't think which one though off the top of my head.
Great overview of Bob Shaw. Lots in there I haven't read, but will now track down. First read Other Days Other Eyes when I was a teenager, after seeing an adaptation of Light of Other Days in a Marvel comic (I think!). I got a letter from Bob once, when I was a member of the BSFA and he lived just up the road from me, Warrington way. He'd spotted my address in the BSFA new members list and invited me along to their monthly beer and SF chat in a local pub. Sadly I never got there, as I headed off to Oz for five years soon after. But always appreciated him writing me the letter. Your overview brought back good memories. Rob
Yep, 'Light' was adapted in a Marvel comic, that's how I discovered Shaw too.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal I'm about six months older than you, so quite a lot of your 'gateway' SF has also been mine.
Great video. Shaw has been one of my favorite SF writers for decades. I began reading him in the 80s when I was still in junior high in Los Angeles. I could never understand why he wasn't a household name. There was an earthiness to his writing that many SF writers were lacking. No matter how outrageous the plot you could still identify with his characters. A consistently brilliant writer. I didn't learn of his passing till the early 2000s. I just knew he hadn't put out a book in a while. I was sad to discover why. Bob deserves a large audience and deep respect. Thanks for making this video.
My pleasure, glad you enjoyed it. Shaw was the very best of that rare species- a Hard SF writer with a command of characterisation and voice that are the marks of a good novelist per se, so often lacking in HSF. He could easily have had a career outside the genre, but we are lucky he concentrated on SF and he is unique in my experience. Even someone like Greg Benford doesn't come close to him for me. He proved at his best that it was possible to be both literary and technical. Shame more writers don't aim high enough at combining both, right?
Another excellent video, many thanks for these pearls of wisdom!
Many thanks! More to come like this and do check the backlist, tons of similar material here!
Excellent again. I read Ground Zero Man quite a few years ago now and I will have to get more of Bob Shaw.
Ah, Bob Shaw, author of "Light of Other Days" (1966). One of my all time favorite short stories.
Simply gorgeous work, right?
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Right!
Hey Stephen, "Medusa's Children Guy" here as I think I will now be known... Fun video and I can't wait to buy more Shaw when I find him in the wild. Might be a while since I'm from America - I've stopped letting myself buy most things online, as things pile up, which I don't have to explain to you - but to set the record straight, I did think that Medusa's Children was good! And I see what you mean about striking harder on a reread. This does lead me to a question: when you call a book minor, is that due to lesser quality or popularity? I've interpreted it as the latter and quite like the term but wonder if I'm getting it right. Great stuff as always!
When I say 'Minor', I usually mean critically- and I'm usually referring to the critical consensus on a work, sometimes my own feeling -if I have a different view to the consensus, I'll say if I agree or not. Thanks Conrad.
The first Shaw I read was Nightwalk and I loved it, and it turns out I have read most of his work. I haven't read The Two Timers but I do have a signed paperback copy in the same edition you showed that I found in the bargain bin of a local charity shop. Unfortunately, it had 10p scrawled on the cover in permanent marker!
It's nice to get an overview of his canon. Thanks.
I hopped on to ebay and ordered a copy of Orbitsville before the end of the video so interesting you made it sound.
I recall reading a couple of the slow glass stories, don't think I've even heard of any of the others. Will keep a lookout.
Fascinating as always. I am curious to hear what you make of 'One Million Tomorrows' when you read it - it was an early SF I read around the age of 16 and I can't remember anything about it except I thought it was very good. Seeing the cover definitely gave me a nostalgia rush. As an aside, I love the slower pace of videos like this - so much of youtube I find punishing with an almost zero tolerance of silence or pauses. Long live slow chatting.
I think my pace depends on how tired or wired I am! I do tend to the wired, sometimes, sadly. I am trying to slow it down and keep it smoother.
Superb! I picked up a bunch of Bob Shaw paperbacks recently after watching your videos. I did (sort of/not really) meet him once at the University SF society I was part of in the early 90's. But as his visit really wasn't announced and I hadn't known he was going to be there, there was no chance to read any of his books beforehand, and as a result I was too embarrassed to talk to him, despite him being a nice guy. I've been meaning to read his books and feeling slightly guilty about it for thirty years plus! Fantastic timing for me on the vid as I just finished my first Bob Shaw this morning, although I appreciate Who Goes Here isn't representative. First third was great, filled with loads of great and terrible jokes (which I also loved), then it sort of slid into being a more standard SF book. I enjoyed the sympathetic meet-up near the end of the book. Anyway, more Bob Shaw is on the TBR pile, so thanks, Steve!
Shaw has been on my TBR pile for some time, so I might have to bump his works up. I have most of the books you mentioned. Again a marvelous exposition of a underappreciated SF author.
You'll love him, Daniel.
I've got several of his books, had them for years.
An excellent writer.
I think that his invention of "slow glass" for his "other days, other eyes" is one of the most overlooked hard SF concepts ever.
Absolutely. How often to SF writers come up with something this multi-facetted and original? If you write Hard SF, this to me is the standard to aim for.
I read that short story...years ago, funny I remember the story but I forgot the title and the author...goes to show you, a good writer sticks to memory.
Thank you for this insight into Bob Shaw's work, it sounds like this author deserves wider recognition. I haven't read any of his books yet but I recently picked up copies of Night Walk and Who Goes Here.
He was a legend and very well known in the UK in his lifetime. EVERYONE interested in Hard SF must read Shaw and unlike most writers of that variety, his literary ability set him above his peers- his closest US equivalent is Gregory Benford, I'd say, but SHaw was sui generis.
Im watching this again. Always something new to pick up the second time around.
I wish 'they' would reprint his works. I love his writing. His shorts are amazing, filled with humor, suspense, and all good things.
I met Bob and and his wife Sadie about 1979. Really lovely people! The Orbitsville books are fun and interesting. My particular favorite standalone novel is Nightwalk.
Yep, I like 'Nightwalk', great fun. yes, he was a lovely guy. Thanks for your comments.
Unfortunately Other days,other eyes was never translated into my language but book of his short stories was one of the first sci-fi I've ever read. Still remember where exactly I bought it. Oh man, that place looks so different now! Memory truly is The light of other days. The rugged astronauts was translated though so I might get my hands on that one.
I read Orbitsville and Orbitsville Departure back when the latter was released by DAW Books here in the states (found a copy of the former in a used book store about the same time). I haven't read them since but I recall enjoying them both. I know I had a paperback copy of Medusa's Children, but I don't think I ever read it and I don't think I have it anymore but I'm going to remedy that. Outside of those I don't think I've explored much of Shaw's work. I did just order a copy of Ship of Strangers. Being a Van Vogt fan, it sounds like it might be fun.
Thanks for the video! Wasn’t familiar with him, but you convinced me to order a copy of Other Days Other Eyes and A Wreath of Stars :)
Wise decision!
Thanks for another informative video. To my shame I have never read any of his novels so I decided to rectify that very recently with Orbitsville. What a wonderful book - it felt to me like a marriage of hard sf and space opera, two genres I do not particularly enjoy. But the hard stuff here was well explained, unlike Ringworld and Fountains of Paradise, and the pulpy feel of the story was as gripping as it was well written. It is the best book I've read since I finally got round to Stars My Destination a couple of years back. Luckily I have 6-7 Shaw novels on my shelf so looking forward to exploring some more.
Glad you enjoyed it, though I have to say I feel it's one of his weakest books- that may be just my taste- but Shaw is almost always entertaining and often outstanding. Do let me know how you get on with his other works.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Will do Stephen. If that's one of his less major novels then I'm looking forward to that.
This video encouraged the purchase of a number of Shaw books that I'm looking forward to reading. I read 'Orbitsville' years ago which I really enjoyed. I also got halfway through 'Dagger of the Mind' which I was enjoying until I unfortunately left it on a train. I never found another copy to finish it.
'Dagger' is out there. As I said, i think the realist aspects of it are far better than the speculative elements. Hope you find one again.
Ifollowed your advice and ordered Night Walk. Its brilliant so far. The pace, the ideas and writing. Am going to delve further as i didnt know this author. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and enthusiasm Steve.
I've been a fan since I dug the NEL paperback of Night Walk out of a Woolworths remainder bin in the early 70s. Loved the Slow Glass stuff too.
Great video. Ramsey Campbell was good friends with Shaw and he said that Shaw once told him that he'd rather not write at all, I wonder when this was and how long he felt that way? There's some clips of Shaw talking on Prisoners Of Gravity tv show on this site.
I think that was later on. Bob did like a drink and I suspect this may have been a factor. His recognition and reward was very up and down, he should have been lauded much more for his mid 70s work.
Hi! The TH-cam Algorithm loaded one of your recent videos into my recommendations, last week, and I am so glad it did! I’ve been a science fiction reader for most of my life, which will total 73 years in about a week! 🎉 I first read Bob Shaw’s stuff in the “slow glass” era, but I haven’t read him at all, recently. So now I have a copy of The Ragged Astronauts, and I’ll give you some feedback after I read it! All the best!
'Ragged' is about the last of the good ones, but there are two fairly workaday sequels. There's no doubt his 80s output didn't come near what he did in the 1970s, but he's still worth reading as much of as you can manage, great to have you here, thanks for your comment.
I love Bob Shaw, and have (and read) 21 of his books (American, so a mix of Ace and DAW and Dell and a few others). And this video points made me realize that I never read the third Orbitsville book, so I need to get a copy of that and read it. A more modern writer that gives me similar feels is John Barnes.
Yeah, Shaw is great. I have some Barnes that I've not read yet, actually.
Totally agree with you, although I might choose a slightly different selection of books as his best, Bob was a fine writer and a beautiful man, he made time for everyone who wished to talk with him.
I think his work is so varied in content I can understand anyone having different faves- as I said, I'm quite fond of 'Medusa's Children' while most find it minor. I think If I'd read it around the same time as my first Shaw's I'd be quite passionate about it...
Great to see a video about Shaw. I first read a library copy of Other Days, Other Eyes in the 90s after reading about its slow glass concept somewhere. Over the next few years I picked up some of his books second-hand, as they were much more plentiful in shops then. In recent years I've seen fewer of his books in the wild. Other Days, Other Eyes and A Wreath of Stars would be perfect candidates for the SF Masterworks line, especially because A Wreath of Stars was in Gollancz's earlier 1980s Classic SF series, most of which have been reprinted as Masterworks. Hopefully any disagreements between the estate and the publisher can be worked out.
I have a paperback of Terminal Velocity and my understanding is that it's the same text as Vertigo, but with the short story "Dark Icarus" (later retitled "A Little Night Flying") added as a prologue.
Yes, I have that Gollancz Classic SF B format of 'Wreath', which I bought upon publication and forgot to pull out for this video (doh!).
Hey - posting as I start watching the video - but read him way-back from 'Light of other days' (short story) - 'Orbitsville' and others.
Fantastic. I hadn't heard of him either. Have just bought Other Days Other Eyes. Thank you.
Hope you like it Mark, do let me know. There are lots of other videos here on this channel which will expose you to the less well known but brilliant SF and related literature the average channel presenter will never have encountered- so do watch the backlist. Good to have you on board!
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Thanks so much, it's great to be here : )
@@outlawbookselleroriginal I loved Other Days Other Eyes. Thanks so much for recommending it. Extra fascinating because of todays hyper CCTV'd (if that can be a verb!) World. Beautiful and profound prose. Will definitely be reading more.
Can't wait to check out Shaw !
You must. Go with 'Other Days' and 'Wreath' first. They resonate.
I am on a reading project this year to read several books on the theme of immortality. Thanks for bringing One Million Tomorrows to my attention as I wasn't aware of this one! Just ordered a copy.
I got an education today. Thanks!
My pleasure. Plenty more here to put history and context around your SF reading.
This was so great, a thorough introduction that should make anyone interested in reading Bob Shaw. I read The Palace of Eternity based on Matt's recommendation, definitely will check out more of Shaw's works in the future!
Well, as I said to Matt, 'the best is yet to come'. Cheers!
Another great video! Being from Belfast I'm ashamed to say I know next to nothing about Shaw but once again the outlaw bookseller has sold me!
There needs to be a Shaw Blue Plaque in the city, I say!
Read about half a dozen Shaws but that was over 20 years ago. Inspired to pick up a couple - might have a look at Ship of Strangers.
Brilliant. And speaking of glam, I immediately missed the scarf, which I thought was a given. 😆 So I perused my bookcases and the only Shaws I could find were "Medusa's Children" and the "Cosmic Kaleidoscope" collection. I also found "Light of Other Days" in two different anthologies. Good enough places to start, I suppose (never read him). Cheers.
I have various scarves, which will return and have popped up in the past many times on the channel! As I say, some regard 'Medsua' as a minor book, so start with "Light...".
Another fine video and introduction, thank you! Very much looking forward to reading some Bob Shaw; I’ve bought the first two books you mentioned for my kindle 😊
Let me know how you get on!
Great Video Stephen,about a great neglected author.Should be read by every SF fan.
Great video. Bob Shaw is a new author to me. Thanks for the info!
Let me know how you get on with his work.
You sold me man. Gonna give him a try. Good vid.
Shaw is also very good with humor and comedy. I greatly enjoyed his late career novel Who Goes Here. The book has a sequel which I haven't read.
I love that book. 'Warren Peace', the sequel, is disappointing to say the least.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal That's a sad thing to hear. Who Goes Here is so funny and amusing.
Enjoyed this video as I have not read Bob Shaw although I do own half a dozen of his books, you did make me smile and hanker after coffee and biscuits!
You must give him a try, very few fans of SF of any kind dislike his work- he really was special.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal I fully intend to, trouble is I have around 500 books+ to read and I am not getting any younger!
@@paulallison6418 Much the same here!
Love these deep dives and recommendations 🙏
Plenty more to come, Felix, thanks for your appreciation!
Bob Shaw's books are so well-written. The books aren't action sci-fi, but hard sci-fi that do action really well.
Yes, he was a great writer.
Bob Shaw was awesome!!
I've never read Shaw, but I was familiar with the concept of Slow Glass due to it being used in the black and white Marvel magazine Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction in the seventies. If I remember correctly it was used in framing sequences. Did you ever read it Stephen, and if so what did you think of the magazine?
Yes, Marvel adapted "The Light of Other Days" (which was part of 'Other Days, Other Eyes') into comic form- that was my introduction to Shaw, loved it.
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Yes, Unknown Worlds was one of the best of the Marvel B&W line of magazines, i think. I still have vivid memories of reading it while on a rainy family holiday in Porthcawl as a child. (I'm a valleys boy too!) I've managed to pick up a whole run of them again over the last couple of years, all except issue one which seems to be really hard to get in the UK.
@@roberthill2199 - I used to holiday in Porthcawl too and Barry (as you'd expect!). My mother still lives nearby. I would like to see that issue again, it's been a very long time...
sedate shirt was fine, and i loved the funny biscuit bits XD
I gave those mofos a good chomping...
I enjoyed "The Palace of Eternity" as well.
People seem to love that one on Booktube: I enjoyed it, but I've read far better by Bob, I feel. Great writer either way!
@@outlawbookselleroriginal Enjoyed the music intro to this as well 😱
Sorry to bump an old post! Of course in 1966 the "Light Of Other Days" short story was considered great. I first read it at 12/13, a strong effect. About the same as "Desertion" by Clifford Simak.
Vintage SF just posted a video, in which he shows a first edition of Bob Shaw's "Ship Of Strangers" with a tribute to A E Van Vogt and his efforts.
I am looking for a copy of it now. I find it in the UK and Canada, a few in the US, or brand new from Amazon. I wonder if most editions will have the Van Vogt reference. I will contact the sellers!
I read 'Ship' many years ago, but after I'd read 'Space Beagle', which was unusual as I'd read tons of Shaw before I'd ever read Van Vogt. I can't recall if any edition of 'Ship' mentions the Vogt tribute concept- though I don't have a Uk first hardcover, but when it was published these things were rarely mentioned- Shaw probably just mentioned it in an interview, or critics merely just noticed the similarities immediately.
@outlawbookselleroriginal I had never heard of it before, either!
But Vintage SF is in Canada, maybe just that edition? Van Vogt was from Canada. van Vogt, according to US sources, was officially changed to Van Vogt. The magazine spelling was Van Vogt by the late 1960s. I just looked at my 1962 edition of "The Violent Man," still van Vogt then. He published all of his best work as van Vogt, I agree! v or V - Vogt's 1970 introduction to "The World of Null-A" edition [required to understand the novel] is Copyrighted in 1970 to Van Vogt, but the cover says van Vogt! I don't know...
At 20 seconds in, Vintage SF shows his Shaw early edition paperback with this: "To A E van Vogt, pioneer of many trails"
I have contacted several book sellers in the UK and Canada, and asked if their first editions [hardcover and paperback] have this dedication. Waiting on replies!
th-cam.com/video/n_mFUS6CK1g/w-d-xo.html
@outlawbookselleroriginal I received an email this AM. JMC Books in Nova Scotia sent me a photo of his 1978 (I guess Canadian) Hardbound edition in fine condition with the van Vogt dedication. Order complete.
I think the title of "Who Hoes Here?" was obviously a nod to Campbell's Who Goes There?.
Yes, very much so.
Hi Steve . Thanks for the info on Shaw, i have a couple , but would try , try and try to locate more. Not easy . I commented earlier but my comments seems to have vanish .
That happens now and again here, I've no idea why, baffling!
read his shorts, they are amazing!
Tomorrow Lies in Ambush is a great Bob Shaw book of short stories. You should definitely read it.
I'm saving up my few unread Shaws for a rainy day when I need his magic.
Another author to keep a look out for. I have to ask what you think of Clarke and Baxter’s “ Light of Other Days “ which is dedicated to Shaw.
I haven't read it, so I really MUST check it out, thanks!
@@outlawbookselleroriginal My insight, as I've read Light of Other Days: it deals with very similar optical concepts about being able to see things from the past. I think it's Clarke's only good Collaboratory novel, and I did quite like it. Pretty good characters for him and one helluva changed world.
@@conradledebuhr1765 I've never been drawn to Clarke's collabs -they instantly seemed done only for commercial reasons (I was just musing on what other Clarke I need to buy, not much now), but I will check this one out, thank you.
Haha.. the Peace Machine sounds like Orwell's NewSpeak
I always enjoy "Weekend Breakfast with the Outlaw Bookseller."
I get a lot out of these author specific deep dives, especially with thumbnail descriptions of the books that I see listed online. Last night I was just looking over some Bob Shaw wondering which one or two to get, to try, and then... This! For example, you make the ragged astronauts sound so much more interesting than anything I came across online. (Which reminds me, do you know anything about these 19th C French SF/pulps translated/ adapted by Blaylock?)
Van you be more specific re the Blaylock? Titles please?
@@outlawbookselleroriginal They're from Black Coat Press and the web address is exactly what you'd guess. French books, mostly from the turn of the 19th to the 20th C, some stretching into the Pulp Age, with new (or first time) translations by Blaylock (and others) like:
City of Glass - Alphonse Brown,
Mysteryville - Jules Lermina,
The Secret of Zippelius - Jules Lermina,
The People of the Pole - Charles Derennes;
They have quite an expansive catalogue on the website. I just stumbled across some at a Library store & thought they were just print on demand public domain stuff, but they claim that they are new translations, carefully labored over and given flash new covers, I know very little about the great SF traditions of other countries outside of the Anglo Diaspora.
Fun fact: One of their printing sites is near Moid.
Anyhow, wondering if you've heard of them , or have any skinny on their sources.
Or have I given you another video deep dive topic? . . .
@@waltera13 I'll admit these are new to me, thanks for that...Derennes is a name I recall, though.
Great video.👌👍
Many thanks!
The used prices for spindled & mutilated Bob Shaw have gone up, I've noticed that as well.
I love donkeys and Dostoyevsky ❤
Both loveable in their gruff, vulnerable ways.
Would “BDO” (Big Dumb Object) be an unfair and silly modern term/acronym, in the same way “sci-fi” and “quadrilogy” are? To me it diminishes great (and clearly not dumb) works like ‘Rendezvous with Rama’ and ‘Eon’ and essentially lumps them into an internet acronym to sit alongside films like ‘Armageddon’.
You have a point, but I use BDO as a term as it's been long used in SF criticism by serious critics at the top of their field (critics who would similarly refuse 'Sci-fi' and 'Quadrilogy'. BDO is used to a degree to imply a certain hollowness of narrative and conception around the trope of the "mysterious" alien artefact that is so often explored but uniluminated in SF narrative, so it is a critical term and yes, obviously intended to diminish the basic idea in some contexts - though you'll find many of the same critics would praise -for example - Greg Bear. Also, unlike 'Sci-Fi' and 'Quadrilogy', it's a usage largely confined to SF professionals- so I guess you could critique it as being part of a 'gatekeeper nomenclature', but it does have authority and experience on its side.
Time for coffee 😂
Always....
I have just finished reading Dawn by Octavia Butler, and I'm wondering is it worth carrying with the trilogy?
It's well written, interesting story etc, but it does feel like a typical sci-fi piece of Feminist propaganda of its time.
Is it worth the read...so many books, so little time etc.
Well, my feelings on SF series vary very little - good SF doesn't usually need three volumes to make its point. Unless you have very strong feelings about the Identity Politics aspects, I'd say skip it- and if it feels typical now, don't feel guilty, move on to a great singleton instead, Id' say.
Thanks, I'm just trying to ease my guilt about dropping a series.....but I have started on Solaris and its excellent! 😀 🚀 👩🚀 💧 👻
@@markkavanagh7377 -Go with the Lem, he's far more important, I'd say. If you enjoy it, tackle 'Fiasco' next.
Will do, thanks for the recommendation. 📚 📖
Bob Shaw and James White are two very sadly neglected authors from Northern Ireland.
Yes, it's a shame. Shaw is not in print due to the beneficiaries of his estate wanting more money for the rights than Gollancz are willing to pay, reportedly, which only robs generations of new SF readers of great work to experience. Similar situation holds with Barrington J Baylet, sadly.
Hi hallo madran