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Wasp (Sf Masterworks) Paperback – International Edition, December 19, 2023
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The war had been going on for nearly a year and the Sirian Empire had a huge advantage in personnel and equipment. Earth needed an edge. Which was where James Mowry came in.
If a small insect buzzing around in a car could so distract the driver as to cause that vehicle to crash, think what havoc one properly trained operative could wreak on an unsuspecting enemy. Intensively trained, his appearance surgically altered, James Mowry is landed on Jaimec, the 94th planet of the Sirian Empire. His mission is simple: sap morale, cause mayhem, tie up resources, wage a one-man war on a planet of eighty million.
In short, be a wasp.
First published in 1957, WASP is generally regarded as Eric Frank Russell's finest novel, a witty and exciting account of a covert war in the heart of enemy territory.
- Print length192 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherGateway
- Publication dateDecember 19, 2023
- Dimensions5 x 0.6 x 7.7 inches
- ISBN-100575129042
- ISBN-13978-0575129047
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- Publisher : Gateway (December 19, 2023)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 192 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0575129042
- ISBN-13 : 978-0575129047
- Item Weight : 2.31 pounds
- Dimensions : 5 x 0.6 x 7.7 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #250,373 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #869 in Time Travel Fiction
- #4,149 in Military Science Fiction (Books)
- #6,518 in Science Fiction Adventures
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What took me then? Believe or not, but Jaimec of the late fifties was very similar to Russia, Saint-Petersburg of the early nineties. Let's see, what I mean:
-personal computers were utterly uncommon due to their cost and the fact that ninetynine percent of the population was unaware of MS-DOS
-personal typewriters existed, but in opposite to Jaimecian users, there was the need to register any one bought
-mobile phones weren't available for citizens
-Russian kaitempi wasn't so severe, but rumors represented it so frightening as Jaimecian spec ops
-not many had a car, similarly to Jaimec, being free of heavy traffic
-the ruling caste was strong, admired and abhorrent, just as for now here
In other words, Jaimec matched exactly our life of those times.
Discussing the plot, it's one of the most dynamic and fun, the great combination, I ever read. The book is relatively short, so this factor along with aforementioned makes the impression of an explosion! The good fun explosion of actions performed by the protagonist James Mowry.
Recently I read this in English, of course slightly slower then in Russian, but the plot caught me again. I almost completely forgot the most of the book, since I last time read it in the late nineties, and it's been read as virtually new to me.
Indeed, no mobile phones even for military officers, no traffic jam and using of typewriters are not signs of the contemporary landscape, but the intencity of actions, somewhat formal style of narration combined with the humor, again overwhelmed me for a couple of weeks commuting with the Kindle.
Never regretting if you bought it. Also, this Kindle edition has a font slightly bigger than usual.
The book is set in the future, with the Earth up against the Sirian Combine - a galactic conglomeration of planets intent on conquering the Earth. While the Terrans (read: Earthlings) have superior weapons and technology, the Sirians have vastly superior numbers. As the war drags on, the Terrans feel the best way to defeat the Sirians is through propaganda. The theory is that if a wasp can distract the driver of a car, destroying the vehicle and all 4 adults, causing havoc, death and destruction grossly disproportionate to the insect's size, that one man, armed with the right tools, can also cause havoc to a whole planet. So they recruit James Mowry to land on the Sirian planet of Jaimec, to effect such disruption. In theory, with enough distraction, more attention and resources will be concentrating on the internal strife, enabling the Terrans to launch a quick and successful attack on the planet.
To effect this goal, Mowry creates a fictitious underground rebellion called DAG, making the authorities believe that there's a whole group set against the overthrow of the government, when in reality it's just one man.
The book can be seen as a how-to in propaganda, playing into the fears of the enemy, forcing over-reaction and panic with minimal effort and maximum results. Some of the technology doesn't seem that advanced. Granted, there's space ships that can travel between planets, but there are also cars and telephones. However, considering that it was first published in 1957 - 50 years ago - it's hardly surprising. With the brilliance of the story, it is also unsurprising that the book is still in demand - the copy I have is out of print, but there are new anthologies of the author's works being brought out.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
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1. It talks about a completely new concept of covert operations.
2. It can get funny at some parts thanks to its dry humor.
3. The narration is good, and the story has a consistent pace.
The long review -
The main premise of this book is, 'Covert Operation'. The story revolves around James Mowry who is sent to an enemy planet and is tasked with causing chaos and commotion, so it cannot win the space battle.
This book might just inform us as to how a terrorist operates. James’s covert work starts off small and it leads to much bigger threats to the planet. The story was neither boring or slow nor was it too fast paced. It had a consistent flow. The characters were dull because this book was written during the golden age of Science-Fiction.
Various ideas were also explored throughout the book. The main theme was how a tiny little object like a wasp, can topple an entire car, similarly how one man can bring an entire planet to its knees. Various other ideas were mass hysteria, withholding of information, and the reaction of the general population to false rumors. The book succeeded in doing one of the weirdest things, i.e., making us root for an amoral hero. The author deliberately distorts the sense of morality and amorality. So this book may be about a covert operation, but you'd end up wanting the hero to succeed in his job. At some parts it was also quite funny.
The book tells you how one man can destroy an entire planet and make it weak. It's a completely new concept in Sci-Fi. Just read it and it's also very short, I finished it in 2 hours.
not good enough to keep so i donated to a bookstore atfer reading. 3.5/5 star