Friday, September 27, 2013

Paperback 700: The Traveler in Black / John Brunner (Ace 82210)

Paperback 700: Ace Books 82210 (PBO, 1971)

Title: The Traveler in Black 
Author: John Brunner
Cover artist: Leo & Diane Dillon

Yours for: $8

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Best things about this cover:
  • Original title: Death Gives Two Hand Jobs
  • Johnny Cash IS ... Death IN ... The Traveler in Black!
  • Those hands are spectacular, and scary as hell.

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Best things about this back cover:
  • Only the highest of people could a. make sense of this and b. think "oh man, we gotta buy this."

Page 123~

The borderland between rationality and chaos seemed to be shrinking apace as the harsh constraint of logic settled on this corner of the All.

George Washington was in a cult, and the cult was into aliens, man.

~RP

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Tumblr]

3 comments:

Karl said...

"The time was the unguessably remote past -- or perhaps the distant future..."

Um... could the word "was" help you out with the answer to that question?

capewood said...

The first book you've featured that I actually own. John Brunner was always a favorite of mine.

Emphyrio said...

The Traveler in Black had only one explicit super-power. When someone expressed a desire, he'd say "As you wish, so be it." And so it would be fulfilled.

The lady who looked over the banquet and said it looked so delicious she wished she could eat it all came to regret her remark.

What was interesting about the stories was that there was absolutely no attempt to ingratiate any character, including the Traveller, with the reader. There was nobody to root for.

But many strange doings to witness, and odd moods to experience.