tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8679457768571800783.post5327265381453029530..comments2023-09-01T10:14:30.179+01:00Comments on Graeme's Fantasy Book Review: ‘The Distant Suns’ – Michael MoorcockGraeme Floryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15411505049326440010noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8679457768571800783.post-50113037604185621082010-08-17T08:41:32.998+01:002010-08-17T08:41:32.998+01:00Good call Prof. Faustaff and a timely reminder tha...Good call Prof. Faustaff and a timely reminder that if I'm going to read the introduction I should read the whole thing instead of just the bit that mentioned 'Flux'... (the past week has been a little crazy) That makes things a lot clearer (as does your comment on 'The Black Corridor', thanks! :o)Graeme Floryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15411505049326440010noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8679457768571800783.post-35141825470561968812010-08-17T02:03:49.030+01:002010-08-17T02:03:49.030+01:00Something you don't mention - perhaps because ...Something you don't mention - perhaps because it might not be clear in the omnibus - is that <b>The Distant Suns</b> was co-written with Philip James, which is a pseudonym for Moorcock's long-term friend James Cawthorn. <br /><br />Roughly the first half of the novel is by Moorcock but the second half was written by Cawthorn when Moorcock fell ill and was unable to complete the serial (originally commissioned for <i>The Illustrated Times of India</i>, who wanted a story that would promote technology among its readers). <br /><br />It might also be of interest to know that originally Moorcock intended to re-hash his earlier novel <b>The Black Corridor</b> (itself co-written with Moorcock's then wife, Hilary Bailey) and in fact the opening chapters of <i>The Distant Suns</i> 'recycle' passages of the opening of <i>The Black Corridor</i> almost verbatim (although some editions of the <i>Sailing to Utopia</i> omnibus exclude the similarities to avoid repetition). However, after starting the serial in this manner Moorcock decided to tell a very different story instead. <br /><br />It's perhaps unfortunate that he wasn't able to finish the story as intended and, even if Cawthorn completed the serial from any notes Moorcock may have made (and I don't know if he did or not), consequently I'm not sure it can really be regarded as a 'proper' Moorcock novel in its own right.Prof. Faustaffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13511289745213156924noreply@blogger.com