The Door Through Space

Marion Zimmer BradleyProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.4

Word count: 238K words
Chapters: 24

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Door Through Space by Marion Zimmer BradleyAuthor: Bradley, Marion Zimmer, 1930-1999,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Nov 6, 2006

Editor's review

This work comes from the hand of Marion Zimmer Bradley and stands as a compact novel within the vein of her early science fiction. The Project Gutenberg edition presents the original English text, giving readers direct access to the narrative feel and imaginative modes of mid-twentieth-century science fiction. The book revolves around a doorway in interstellar space, carrying the genre elements of adventure and alien civilizations, with a brisk pace and moderate length; it serves well as an introductory sample for understanding the author's creative lineage. For readers accustomed to contemporary science fiction, its value lies not in the precision of its technical speculation but in how it handles space, the other, and transgression as that era did. While reading, one may focus on the relationship between spatial imagery and the characters' actions, and appreciate how genre fiction builds suspense within a limited length. As a public-domain ebook, it is better suited as material for study or leisure reading than for readers seeking complete world-building.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who want to understand the early science fiction of Bradley
Readers who enjoy mid-twentieth-century space-adventure genre fiction
Those who need an English public-domain text for genre-reading practice
Science fiction fans interested in interstellar doorways and alien civilization settings

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting hard science fiction with technical detail and rigorous world-building
Young readers used only to fast-paced contemporary multi-strand narratives
Those hoping for a complete biography of the author and interpretation of her work's background

Reading tips

First read through to grasp the main adventure line, then revisit the recurring imagery of the spatial doorway.
Mark as you read how the characters' attitudes toward unknown space change, to help understand the theme.
If the original English is difficult, follow the public-domain ebook chapter by chapter according to its pacing.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book Bradley's representative work?

The material only identifies it as one work by Bradley and does not state its place in her career. It is better read as a sample of her early science fiction than as her sole representative work.

What are the features of the Gutenberg edition?

Project Gutenberg provides free ebooks; this edition is in the original English and includes language and literary classification information. It allows direct reading of the original text but offers no additional introduction or notes.

Do I need to know the history of science fiction before reading this book?

No. The story itself moves forward through adventure and a spatial doorway, so you can enter it directly. A prior familiarity with common motifs of mid-twentieth-century science fiction will make its period characteristics easier to appreciate.

Comments

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About the author

Marion Zimmer Bradley Author · American · 1930–1999

Marion Zimmer Bradley (1930–1999) was an American science fiction and fantasy writer, born in Albany, New York, and died in Berkeley. She is known for the Darkover series, which grew over many years and became a mainstay of her career, and she became a bestselling author with The Mists of Avalon, a retelling of the Arthurian legend from a female perspective that brought wider attention to women's voices in Arthurian fiction. She also edited the annual Sword and Sorceress anthology, providing a continuing platform for short fantasy and women-centered fiction. Five of her works are included here—The Colors of Space, The Door Through Space, Year of the Big Thaw, The Planet Savers, and Falcons of Narabedla—showing that much of her early work involved space adventure and science-fictional imagination. Public information about the details of her life is limited.