Posted by David Pierce on September 11, 1999 at 21:32:17:
In Reply to: Anderson/Vance? posted by David Pierce on September 11, 1999 at 21:12:59:
J.K. Huysmans seems more like the kind of author Jack would rave about: Huysmans' synesthesia of detail is more skillfully presented on every page than the best of Vance's phenome-jazz (this statement begs argument)! And here may lie a clue to Jack's public endorsement of Anderson. Maybe Jack discerns highly specific truths in some works quite different from his own. Would like to know about their friendship.
: Would anyone care to offer an insight on why Jack Vance has so publicly acclaimed works by Poul Anderson? I've read a few of Anderson's early books and thought they were okay, sort of fun, and then tried some of the ones Jack recommends, but found them impenetrable (the language wasn't difficult, but the plots unfolded tediously). Obviously, Anderson is erudite, but why Vance's enthusiastic endorsements of his books when Vance never blurbs book covers and claims he doesn't read sf? What am I missing? Are some of Anderson's books really good, and my senses simply can't apprehend this fact after a life-long addiction to adventure fiction that has no doubt numbed me to subtlety? Input & Anderson recommendations appreciated.