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dustydigger
Posted 2024-01-15 2:14 PM (#29255 - in reply to #29237)
Subject: Re: Pick & Mix challenge 2024
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Philip Latham's exciting juvenile novel Five Against Venus was one of the better of the Winston Classic series.A small family on their way to a new job on the Moon are abandoned on board their ship by the crew who are intending to steal a prototype weapon. They crashland and have a pretty hard time,nothing like most Robisonade tales which are usually lighter fun.. There are nasty bat like aliens and several quite strong suspense scenes.All in all a nice addition to the series,where every time it is a young brave teenager who heroically risks all in fraught conditions.
Actually Latham was a pen name for Dr Robert Richardson,an esteemed professor of astronomy,who was involved in being an expert consultant on such films as Destination Moon. Charming and enjoyable full of an innocence that is a delightful component of the series.
Written right at the end of the time authors could at least speculate that Venus was an exciting world setting for SF. In 1962 the first fly past of Venus occurred,and after that dear old Planet and Sword stories of the Barsoom sort were no longer plausible.
A staple strand of SF became sadly obsolete.No more Barsoom,or Carter of Venus,no more Malecandra or Perelandra.In the future such tales would have to take place in a galaxy far away........

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