In the novel “Galaxy Blues” by Allen Steele published for the first time in 2007 Jules Truffaut is a former Union Astronautica officer who was kicked out for having helped his brother to cheat the academy final exams. Left with no prospect he decides to travel to the planet Coyote as a stowaway on a spaceship, but he’s discovered during the journey and ends in prison.
René Barjavel was born on January 24, 1911, in Nyons, France. His father was a baker, his grandparents were peasants and his origins influenced his work.
Barjavel is still a relatively unknown writer outside France: just a few of his novels have been translated into other languages, making it impossible to give a complete opinion on his work. Inevitably a pessimistic novel such as “Ravage” may discourage readers from seeking more of his stories that could provide a deeper insight into René Barjavel’s ideas and how they evolved out of the dark time of the war.
The novel “Imperial Earth” by Arthur C. Clarke published for the first time in 1975 starts on Saturn’s moon Titan in 2276. The Makenzie family is the most important in the colony that thrives on Titan thanks to the trade of hydrogen, essential as fuel for the fusion engines that make space travel possible.
