Skip to main content

story identification - Looking for a book series from the 1960's - NOT the Tripod series



I'm looking for a book series from the mid-1960's. I only ever got to read the first book as (apparently) the others hadn't come out yet - this would have been in the 1965-66 time range. If I recall correctly it vaguely resembled the Tripod series, but was set in the eastern United States. One plot element I remember clearly was that the parents of the protagonist were worried that the protagonist's younger sister was unusually small and might be declared to be "a dwarf", although I don't recall why that was such a terrible thing. Any pointers appreciated.


EDIT


Sorry - poor explanation on my part. If I recall correctly it's set in a post-apocalyptic future world - it may have been a nuclear holocaust, or it may have been aliens-coming-down-from-the-skies - where technology has regressed to the late-middle-ages level - lots of mud, not much in the way of "modern" conveniences like electricity and running water. I recall that there's a "religion", and that one of the protagonists friends is chosen to be trained as a "priest" of this religion. Before being "chosen" he was very religious, but afterwards he (apparently) learned it was all a sham and would answer questions about it by hanging his head and saying something like, "Yes, the gods are real...". The protagonist, BTW, was male.



Answer



It sounds like you are thinking of the Sword of the Spirits trilogy, by Tripods author John Christopher. Many details fit: It is post-apocalyptic; people who are born too short are considered dwarfs (and consigned to jobs like blacksmithing); the protagonist spends time as an acolyte of fake spirits/gods in which he previously believed; and obviously it is stylistically similar to the Tripods books.


The three books are The Prince in Waiting, Beyond the Burning Lands, and The Sword of the Spirits. They were published from 1970 to 1972, which is a little later than you thought, but not too far off. The most notably difference from what you describe is that the books are set entirely in the British Isles. The hero, Luke, is from Winchester; the high priests of the spirit religion live under a ring of standing stones near Salisbury (Stonehenge, although not named in the story); and the plots of the second and third books involve commerce with Wales, which has been mostly cut off by a range of active volcanoes.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

futurama - How much time is lost in 'Time Keeps on Slippin''

In time Keeps on Slippin' , Farnsworth creates a basketball team which he matures by abusing Chronitons. This leads to time skipping forward by random, but ever increasing amounts. How much time was skipped in this way? Answer Unfortunately, I don't think a good estimate can be made for this, for two reasons: Many of the time skips move forward by an indeterminate amount of time. At one point, the Professor mentions localized regions of space skipping forward much more than others. We then see two young boys on the street below complaining about having to pay social security, only to suddenly become senior citizens and start complaining about wanting their money. Thus, each individual could have experienced a different amount of time skippage.
Post a Comment
Read more

What is Tolkien trying to say in this letter?

In a draft of a letter, later recorded as #246, Tolkien makes a strange statement. I am interested in the first few sentences of the letter, but I will include the remainder for the sake of context. In the 'Mirror of Galadriel', 1381, it appears that Galadriel conceived of herself as capable of wielding the Ring and supplanting the Dark Lord. If so, so also were the other guardians of the Three, especially Elrond . But this is another matter. It was part of the essential deceit of the Ring to fill minds with imaginations of supreme power . But this the Great had well considered and had rejected, as is seen in Elrond's words at the Council. Galadriel's rejection of the temptation was founded upon previous thought and resolve. In any case Elrond or Galadriel would have proceeded in the policy now adopted by Sauron: they would have built up an empire with great and absolutely subservient generals and armies and engines of war, until they could challenge Sauron and destroy ...
Post a Comment
Read more

tolkiens legendarium - Was Galadriel's temptation of Boromir instrumental to his fall?

We know Galadriel tempted the members of the Fellowship, did she tempt Boromir with visions of taking the Ring and saving Gondor? In the books, Boromir willingly accepts the judgement of the council that the Ring should be destroyed, but after the meeting with Celeborn and Galadriel his personality seems to change. Was the temptation offered by Galadriel in some way responsible for Boromir's fall? Answer It's likely, but not certain I believe it is likely Galadriel tempted him with the ring, and in doing so re-ignited a pre-existing idea to take the ring, but to be clear lets break this down into three parts. Boromir at the Council of Elrond Boromir after setting off Boromir after being tempted Boromir at the Council of Elrond Boromir pleas for the ring to go to Minas Tirith, to help Gondor in its defense against Mordor. “ Why should we not think that the Great Ring has come into our hands to serve us in the very hour of need? Wielding it the Free Lords of the Free may surely...
Post a Comment
Read more

harry potter - What is the difference between Diffindo and Sectumsempra?

In the Harry Potter books, Diffindo is called the 'Severing Charm' and it’s most commonly used to cut ropes and the like. However, in the last book Hermione uses it on Ron but misses, creating a 'slash in his jeans' and his knee gets cut, causing him to 'roar in pain'. We've only seen Sectumsempra used once on screen when Harry directly uses it on Malfoy in the sixth book, but there it's mentioned that he is 'waving his wand wildly'. Wouldn't Diffindo, if used in such a fashion also cause a similar effect? Similarly, if it was able to cut Ron, it would also be able to, say, chop off an ear (George's)? In that case, how are these two spells different, except for Sectumsempra seemingly used exclusively to hurt humans? Answer While Diffindo and Sectumsempra both can be countered by other spells, Diffindo is far more easily countered. Reparo, a relatively common spell, can completely reverse its effect when used once. “He pulled the old cop...
Post a Comment
Read more