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Inspiration, v. 4, issue 1, April 1946
Page 13
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INSPIRATION 13 The July 1934 issue of WONDER is one of the best single issues ever to be published. There was, for instance, Manning's "Voice of Atlantis", one of the best of the popular Stranger Club series. There is also the start of Binder's near-classic "Enslaved Brains". And there is one genuine classic by a new writer. This latter is Weinbaum's first, and in the opinion of many, his greatest story, "A Martian Odyssey". The Odyssey represents Weinbaum at his best, and Weinbaum at his best was practically unbeatable. There have been sharp disagreements about the exact stature of Weinbaum among s-f writers, most people placing him near the top. True, Weinbaum was a good all-around author as later stories proved, but his real genius is recognized in stories nobody else has duplicated. Weinbaum's plots were good, but there have been better; his human characters could stand improvement; but in the field of extra-terrestial life there has been noone who could write with the charm and realism of Stanley G. Weinbaum. August has the Fedor-Hasse sequel, "The Return of Tyme". In September we find a pair of unusual stories which are of merit, Manning's "The Living Galaxy" and J. B. Harris' "The Man from Beyond". October's best is Binder's "The Thieves from Isot", which is plenty good. In November we have the Weinbaum Odyssey sequel "Valley of Dreams", a story which is almost up to hits predecessor, and we have the start of Binder's great "Dawn to Dusk". In December, I liked Palmer's "The Time Tragedy" best. Nothing very outstanding to open 1935, but in the February issue there is Binder's "The Robot Aliens". March is better, because of the start of "In Caverns Below", a Coblentz satire which I greatly enjoyed. There was also the fairly unusual "The Eternal Cycle" by Hamilton. April draws another blank, and may is marred by "The Waltz of Death", one of the worst stories I've read. In June 1935 the price of WONDER went down to 15[[cent symbol]] again, but the stories improved. Best was another Manning Stranger Club story, "Seeds from Space." In July we have the start of "The Green Man of Graypec" by Pragnell -- almost straight adventure, but not bad. August is an improvement, if only because of the humorous Weinbaum, "The Words of If." This was the first of the van Manderpootz stories, a series I liked, altho many didn't. In September we have another Weinbaum "The Ideal", but the top story in the issue is Bartel's "One Hundred Generations." Liked Phillips "Martian Gesture" in October. By this time WONDER was almost through, and at the end of 1935 went bi-monthly again. A couple of very short shorts feature the December issue so far as quality goes. One is Connell's "Dreams End" and the other is "Red Moon" by Sterling. 1936 saw only two WONDERS. In February, Weinbaum's "The Point of View" stands out, and Burkholder's "The Mad World" is unusual and interesting. At least WONDER wasn't afraid to continue experimenting. Best story in the April 1936, the last, issue of WONDER is Gardner's "The World of Singing Crystals." Wonder was probably mourned by fans more than any other s-f mag had ever been, and its passing was a severe blow to the field. During the 7 years of its publication, WONDER had presented far more than its share of great and near-great stories. It had introduced quite a few of the best writers in the field, and above all it wasn't afraid of stories with originality. It was probably this latter featur , together with the interest shown to fans, that mostly accounted for its immense popularity. The magazine was good, and from its start in 1930 until about the end of 1933 it had been the unquestioned leader in the field. Still, many fans have enshrined it with a halo which it doesn't quite deserve. Many of its best stories appeared during the time when many of us were first reading science-fiction, and stories which we read then often appear better in retrospect than they really were.
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INSPIRATION 13 The July 1934 issue of WONDER is one of the best single issues ever to be published. There was, for instance, Manning's "Voice of Atlantis", one of the best of the popular Stranger Club series. There is also the start of Binder's near-classic "Enslaved Brains". And there is one genuine classic by a new writer. This latter is Weinbaum's first, and in the opinion of many, his greatest story, "A Martian Odyssey". The Odyssey represents Weinbaum at his best, and Weinbaum at his best was practically unbeatable. There have been sharp disagreements about the exact stature of Weinbaum among s-f writers, most people placing him near the top. True, Weinbaum was a good all-around author as later stories proved, but his real genius is recognized in stories nobody else has duplicated. Weinbaum's plots were good, but there have been better; his human characters could stand improvement; but in the field of extra-terrestial life there has been noone who could write with the charm and realism of Stanley G. Weinbaum. August has the Fedor-Hasse sequel, "The Return of Tyme". In September we find a pair of unusual stories which are of merit, Manning's "The Living Galaxy" and J. B. Harris' "The Man from Beyond". October's best is Binder's "The Thieves from Isot", which is plenty good. In November we have the Weinbaum Odyssey sequel "Valley of Dreams", a story which is almost up to hits predecessor, and we have the start of Binder's great "Dawn to Dusk". In December, I liked Palmer's "The Time Tragedy" best. Nothing very outstanding to open 1935, but in the February issue there is Binder's "The Robot Aliens". March is better, because of the start of "In Caverns Below", a Coblentz satire which I greatly enjoyed. There was also the fairly unusual "The Eternal Cycle" by Hamilton. April draws another blank, and may is marred by "The Waltz of Death", one of the worst stories I've read. In June 1935 the price of WONDER went down to 15[[cent symbol]] again, but the stories improved. Best was another Manning Stranger Club story, "Seeds from Space." In July we have the start of "The Green Man of Graypec" by Pragnell -- almost straight adventure, but not bad. August is an improvement, if only because of the humorous Weinbaum, "The Words of If." This was the first of the van Manderpootz stories, a series I liked, altho many didn't. In September we have another Weinbaum "The Ideal", but the top story in the issue is Bartel's "One Hundred Generations." Liked Phillips "Martian Gesture" in October. By this time WONDER was almost through, and at the end of 1935 went bi-monthly again. A couple of very short shorts feature the December issue so far as quality goes. One is Connell's "Dreams End" and the other is "Red Moon" by Sterling. 1936 saw only two WONDERS. In February, Weinbaum's "The Point of View" stands out, and Burkholder's "The Mad World" is unusual and interesting. At least WONDER wasn't afraid to continue experimenting. Best story in the April 1936, the last, issue of WONDER is Gardner's "The World of Singing Crystals." Wonder was probably mourned by fans more than any other s-f mag had ever been, and its passing was a severe blow to the field. During the 7 years of its publication, WONDER had presented far more than its share of great and near-great stories. It had introduced quite a few of the best writers in the field, and above all it wasn't afraid of stories with originality. It was probably this latter featur , together with the interest shown to fans, that mostly accounted for its immense popularity. The magazine was good, and from its start in 1930 until about the end of 1933 it had been the unquestioned leader in the field. Still, many fans have enshrined it with a halo which it doesn't quite deserve. Many of its best stories appeared during the time when many of us were first reading science-fiction, and stories which we read then often appear better in retrospect than they really were.
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