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The Science Fiction Fan, v. 4, issue 8, whole no. 44, March 1940
Page 7
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FAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 YE FANTASIE BOOKES Guest-written by Cyril Kornbluth A book that has been getting covert boosts from parts of the fan field is the Wowrm Ouroberos, by one Eddington. It's misty rep is due principally to the fact that practically nobody has read it or laid his hands on it, which is enough in most cases to assure it of a deep-carven niche in the hearts of fandom. This volume, as I have studied it, is a painfully faked pseudo-mediaeval narrative reminiscent of the metrical romances of the Arthurian cycle. As such it might pass muster for an entertaining trifle, but its lack of genuine scholarship is appalling. Diction throughout is atrociously confused; one finds in perhaps equal proportions archaisms from the French, English, Ersch, and German. The author's aim as stated is to produce that "suspension of disbelief" which makes possible the true romance. I submit herewith that no work involving incessant parsing, reference to long-dead lexicons and mythological opera, exhaustive notes on character and event, and a distressing poverty of inventiveness ever does quite achieve that goal. Another matter of interest to some fans is the phenomenon of the 'advanced' magazine. Stray copies of transition and similar periodicals are, presumably, to be found in the collections of some who wish to refer to such gems as Franz Kafka's Odradek or William Saroyan's wilder works. As a public service I submit the information that a complete record of this screwball school can be found in Bravig Imb's Adventures of Another Young Fan, published by Henklo-Yewdale in 1934. The title, I think, stems from The Adventures of a Young Man by Walter Pater or somebody very much like him. This book is recommended as a diverting touchstone to the incom- (Continued on Page 9)
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FAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 YE FANTASIE BOOKES Guest-written by Cyril Kornbluth A book that has been getting covert boosts from parts of the fan field is the Wowrm Ouroberos, by one Eddington. It's misty rep is due principally to the fact that practically nobody has read it or laid his hands on it, which is enough in most cases to assure it of a deep-carven niche in the hearts of fandom. This volume, as I have studied it, is a painfully faked pseudo-mediaeval narrative reminiscent of the metrical romances of the Arthurian cycle. As such it might pass muster for an entertaining trifle, but its lack of genuine scholarship is appalling. Diction throughout is atrociously confused; one finds in perhaps equal proportions archaisms from the French, English, Ersch, and German. The author's aim as stated is to produce that "suspension of disbelief" which makes possible the true romance. I submit herewith that no work involving incessant parsing, reference to long-dead lexicons and mythological opera, exhaustive notes on character and event, and a distressing poverty of inventiveness ever does quite achieve that goal. Another matter of interest to some fans is the phenomenon of the 'advanced' magazine. Stray copies of transition and similar periodicals are, presumably, to be found in the collections of some who wish to refer to such gems as Franz Kafka's Odradek or William Saroyan's wilder works. As a public service I submit the information that a complete record of this screwball school can be found in Bravig Imb's Adventures of Another Young Fan, published by Henklo-Yewdale in 1934. The title, I think, stems from The Adventures of a Young Man by Walter Pater or somebody very much like him. This book is recommended as a diverting touchstone to the incom- (Continued on Page 9)
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