Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Review: Operation: Outer Space


Operation: Outer Space
Operation: Outer Space by Murray Leinster

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I read this as part of the "Startling Stories" Spring 2009 magazine. The magazine combines new and classic material and in this issue features Operation: Outer Space.

In this short novel Leinster follows the somewhat coincidental development of interstellar space travel as an unplanned side effect of the psychiatric treatment of a wealthy scientist with self-concept issues.

The overcrowded Earth portrayed in the novel is one where individuals have little hope of advancement and Leinster does an excellent job of showing the psychological impact of this. The main character, Jed Cochrane, is a television producer who cleverly finances the development of interstellar travel through the production of a reality series and in so doing restores hope to humanity. There is also a strong theme throughout the book of man's separation from nature due to the urbanization of Earth and the healing aspects of a return to a more naturalistic setting.

Characterization is fairly strong for a novel first published in 1954. Recommended.



View all my reviews

No comments: