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Shangri-La, July 1941

Page 19

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SHANGRI-LA                                                PAGE 19
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right up to the current issue (March 1940)!

Stories in the 4-star (****) variety represent an outstanding achievement, but for one reason or another do not quite swing into complete perfection.

Even a 3-star (***) rating represents Very Good, while the lowly 2-star (**) is used for up-to-standard variety. It is not until the 1-star (*) is used that Poor stories come under consideration at all,-and to make allowances for the rank bilge that occasionally creeps in, I have allocated a minus-star (-) which stands for plain lousy. Like the 5-star variety, the minus yarns are also hard to obtain. 

You will notice that there is not actually a great deal of difference between 4-stars and 2-stars. The difference is probably worked out in the actual craftmanship; usually poor writing or plot formation knocks those extra two stars off.

1939 brought me many long hours of enjoyable reading with ASTOUNDING, so many that I was appalled to note that there was not a single 5-star rating in the year! This led me to an immediate comparison with the issues of 1935 and 1936, which were reckoned to be peak years for the magazine. The former logged three 5-star stories and the latter four! Yet, in my own estimation, I enjoy the presentday type far greater than in those earlier years. Something definitely seemed to be loose in the hinges, so I drew up the ratings for the years, only including from 3-stars.

                *****                ****           ***
1934           2                    ?              ?
1935          3                     7             26 
1936           4                    3              18
1937           1                    2              20
1938           2                    12             28
1939           -                      11            19

Surprising? Sweet shades of Wesso! Notice the curve away from "classic" yarns and the downward  drop through to 1937 of the outstanding stories?

Then the sudden quick build-up of outstanding and very good stories -- when Campbell took over!

While compiling this bunch of statistics, I had to take into consideration the fact that my personal reading reactions have changed considerably during the past three years. I have learned much concerning actual literary values -- am still learning, come to that. Therefore, my first consideration now is taken from the literary standpoint where as previously I would root for a good plot and to hell with how it was written.

To make this article a fair summary from an average reader's viewpoint I took the trouble of spending weeks re-reading all stories rating 3-stars and over, cross-checked with Readers' Letters, and, latterly, with the Analytical Laboratory. Notwithstanding all this, I have only changed the star markings on five stories, and none of those in particular were in the 5-star or 4-star category.

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--------------------------------------------------------------------- SHANGRI-LA PAGE 19 --------------------------------------------------------------------- right up to the current issue (March 1940)! Stories in the 4-star (****) variety represent an outstanding achievement, but for one reason or another do not quite swing into complete perfection. Even a 3-star (***) rating represents Very Good, while the lowly 2-star (**) is used for up-to-standard variety. It is not until the 1-star (*) is used that Poor stories come under consideration at all,-and to make allowances for the rank bilge that occasionally creeps in, I have allocated a minus-star (-) which stands for plain lousy. Like the 5-star variety, the minus yarns are also hard to obtain. You will notice that there is not actually a great deal of difference between 4-stars and 2-stars. The difference is probably worked out in the actual craftmanship; usually poor writing or plot formation knocks those extra two stars off. 1939 brought me many long hours of enjoyable reading with ASTOUNDING, so many that I was appalled to note that there was not a single 5-star rating in the year! This led me to an immediate comparison with the issues of 1935 and 1936, which were reckoned to be peak years for the magazine. The former logged three 5-star stories and the latter four! Yet, in my own estimation, I enjoy the presentday type far greater than in those earlier years. Something definitely seemed to be loose in the hinges, so I drew up the ratings for the years, only including from 3-stars. ***** **** *** 1934 2 ? ? 1935 3 7 26 1936 4 3 18 1937 1 2 20 1938 2 12 28 1939 - 11 19 Surprising? Sweet shades of Wesso! Notice the curve away from "classic" yarns and the downward drop through to 1937 of the outstanding stories? Then the sudden quick build-up of outstanding and very good stories -- when Campbell took over! While compiling this bunch of statistics, I had to take into consideration the fact that my personal reading reactions have changed considerably during the past three years. I have learned much concerning actual literary values -- am still learning, come to that. Therefore, my first consideration now is taken from the literary standpoint where as previously I would root for a good plot and to hell with how it was written. To make this article a fair summary from an average reader's viewpoint I took the trouble of spending weeks re-reading all stories rating 3-stars and over, cross-checked with Readers' Letters, and, latterly, with the Analytical Laboratory. Notwithstanding all this, I have only changed the star markings on five stories, and none of those in particular were in the 5-star or 4-star category.