Land and Overland
Encyclopedia
The Land and Overland trilogy is a group of three science fantasy
novels by Bob Shaw
.
The trilogy consists of the books The Ragged Astronauts (published 1986), The Wooden Spaceships (1988) and The Fugitive Worlds (1989). In the U.K, all three novels were originally published by Victor Gollancz
(VGSF). The Ragged Astronauts won the BSFA Award
for best Novel in 1987.
The setting for the trilogy is a pair of planets, Land and Overland, which orbit about a common center of gravity, close enough to each other that they share a common atmosphere.
reviewed the first volume favorably, saying "The Ragged Astronauts is what an 18th-century hard-sf novel might have been, if Swift or Defoe had paid more attention to Newton. There are marvels enough to make you feel like you're discovering science fiction for the first time. . . . Shaw writes with an extraordinary combination of intelligence, clarity, and compassion."
Science fantasy
Science fantasy is a mixed genre within speculative fiction drawing elements from both science fiction and fantasy. Although in some terms of its portrayal in recent media products it can be defined as instead of being a mixed genre of science fiction and fantasy it is instead a mixing of the...
novels by Bob Shaw
Bob Shaw
Bob Shaw, born Robert Shaw, was a science fiction author and fan from Northern Ireland. He was noted for his originality and wit. He won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 1979 and 1980...
.
The trilogy consists of the books The Ragged Astronauts (published 1986), The Wooden Spaceships (1988) and The Fugitive Worlds (1989). In the U.K, all three novels were originally published by Victor Gollancz
Victor Gollancz
Sir Victor Gollancz was a British publisher, socialist, and humanitarian.-Early life:Born in Maida Vale, London, he was the son of a wholesale jeweller and nephew of Rabbi Professor Sir Hermann Gollancz and Professor Sir Israel Gollancz; after being educated at St Paul's School, London and taking...
(VGSF). The Ragged Astronauts won the BSFA Award
BSFA award
The BSFA Awards are literary awards presented annually since 1970 by the British Science Fiction Association to honor works in the genre of science fiction. Nominees and winners are chosen based on a vote of BSFA members...
for best Novel in 1987.
The setting for the trilogy is a pair of planets, Land and Overland, which orbit about a common center of gravity, close enough to each other that they share a common atmosphere.
The Ragged Astronauts
Land is a strictly feudal society that undergoes a peak energy crisis (the trees that provide energy and hard materials are scarce), and is frankly undergoing a process of cultural decay. Much of the human population of Land travels to Overland via hot-air balloon to escape airborne creatures called the Ptertha.Translations
- RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: ("Astonauts in Rags"), 2003 - GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: , 1991 (ISBN 3-453-04484-3) - CzechCzech languageCzech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
: , 1993 - PolishPolish languagePolish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
: ("Space removal"), 1994 (ISBN 83-7082-624-5) - ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
: ("The Ptertha invasion, or Challenge to the sky"), 1999 (ISBN 88-4291-093-7)
The Wooden Spaceships
Conflict breaks out between the new inhabitants of Overland and those who stayed behind on Land and, having developed an immunity to the Ptertha, intend to invade Overland. The inhabitants of Overland manage to defeat them by erecting a network of fortresses between the two planets. The spaceships of the title are made of a super-hard wood, brakka, which resembles metal in its properties.Translations
- RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: ("The Wooden Spaceships"), 2003 - GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: , 1991 (ISBN 3-453-04485-1) - CzechCzech languageCzech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
: , 1996 - ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
: ("The attack to the world"), 2000 (ISBN 8842911275)
Translations
- RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: ("The Fugitive Planets"), 2003 - GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: , 1991 (ISBN 3-453-04486-X) - ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
: ("Towards the Unknown"), 2000 (ISBN 8842911364)
Reception
Orson Scott CardOrson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...
reviewed the first volume favorably, saying "The Ragged Astronauts is what an 18th-century hard-sf novel might have been, if Swift or Defoe had paid more attention to Newton. There are marvels enough to make you feel like you're discovering science fiction for the first time. . . . Shaw writes with an extraordinary combination of intelligence, clarity, and compassion."