Barsoom

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JH
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Barsoom

Post by JH »

Would anybody be interesting in collaborating on a story set on Edgar Rice Burroughs' Barsoom? If so, there's a thread on Game 3 that I could copy across as a starting point. It starts at option 1 of http://www.addventure.com/cgi-bin/read. ... 74538.html and could be linked in at episode 20427 of the NEQ.
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Lost Soldier (Ib)
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Post by Lost Soldier (Ib) »

Never heard of the author or the story. Would you recommend reading the book if anyone was to take you up on the offer?
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JH
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Post by JH »

Lost Soldier (Ib) wrote:Never heard of the author or the story. Would you recommend reading the book if anyone was to take you up on the offer?
I'm surprised. Burroughs was a very famous author about a hundred years ago, being responsible for the Tarzan books as well as a whole series of books set on "Barsoom" = Mars. He also did a series set on "Pellucidar" = Venus.

Since his books are out of copyright, many of them are available online at places like Project Gutenberg. The first Barsoom book, which isn't the best of the series but is the best one for a basic grounding in the mythos, is "A Princess of Mars": http://www.gutenberg.net/etext/62

You may also find these links useful for background: http://www.erblist.com/ and http://www.locksley.com/toysoldier/mars.htm

If you looked through those two sites, you could probabluy get away without reading any of the books, though they are a very enjoyable read.
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Post by JH »

Well, I've now posted the story, which has several branches. I hope it's an enjoyable read.
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Post by Lost Soldier (Ib) »

They sound very similar to a series of 'space odyssey' books by C.S. Lewis. I think the first book in that series is called 'Out of the Silent Planet' (the 'Silent Planet' being earth). Though they are a bit outdated they are pretty entertaining.

I'll check out those sights and who knows, maybe I'll even go the library and pick up one of the books.
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JH
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Post by JH »

I know that CS Lewis did a series of novels set on a version of Mars. But, as tended to be the case with Lewis, IIRC there was a serious moral message behind them, whereas Burroughs' books were pure entertainment. Lewis wrote his books about 30 years after Burroughs wrote his.

Incidentally, rereading the thread reminds me that at the time I hadn't read any of the Barsoom books, though I did do a little research on the web. That explains a few things in my episodes like referring to a character called the Black Duke, when "Duke" isn't a "genuine" Barsoomian title.
JH
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