The Beast Master by Andre Norton; book review

This nice SFF from Andre Norton, is pretty contemporary in feel for a sci-fi that was first published in the 1950's. The characteristically enjoyable writing that I always expect from this author combined with the frontier plant type setting and the main character and his animal team. Great little classic book.
#classicsciencefiction

[@prc789]

This is another book i read years ago. From what I remember, Puffin was the branch of Penguin used to publish what the considered children's books. Andre Norton was a favourite author of mine when I was a child, specially the series with the Solar Queen which included Postmarked the Stars. Well worth getting. I think it was her love of cats that hooked me...

[@OmnivorousReader]

Yes! Puffin was the kid's imprint, I have a few. But this copy clearly states on the inside of the cover that it is a Penguin. The imprint of the cover equally clearly states Peacock science fiction and a quick google does not show that penguin ever had a sci-fi dedicated imprint called Peacock. So it is all very intriguing.

[@ReadingIDEAS.-uz9xk]

Great cover there. Happy summer of reading to you.

[@OmnivorousReader]

Thanks, still winter in Oz though, 6 degrees C this morning.

[@greedycapitalist8590]

Although I've been reading SF since I was a kid, Andre Norton is not an author I paid much attention to for a long time. As a very mature adult, that's now changed, and I've started getting into her stories over the last couple of years - partly as a result of my hobby of collecting Ace Doubles. From the Norton stories that I've read so far, she seems to have liked to write about a particular type of hero - a young male with no close family, who doesn't quite fit into normal society, but who comes into his own when forced into a survival situation. Hosteen Storm I found particularly interesting, because we don't know his exact motivations until almost the end of the book. In the face of what's happened to Earth, it could be argued that the quest he's on, along with his connection to his animal team, are what keeps him sane. Without his obsession with Quade he might have fallen apart. I think it's my favourtie Norton book of the ones I've read so far, and I'll be reading the sequels in due course. Norton had a way of writing fast-paced pulp adventure stories without talking down to her readers.

[@OmnivorousReader]

She certainly is an interesting one, I become fascinated with her books as a teenager, I could not get many of them but I got the Witch World books. Back then, I had no idea 'Andre' was a woman of course, there was no internet to speak of. Yes, most of her lead characters do tend to be male, there tend to be a lot of animal characters too. What I noticed, even as a teen, was that her female characters, even though they are usually secondary, are always strong and autonomous in not-always traditional ways. I would love to read more female characters by her, but so far I have only found one.

[@CptSamel]

I’ve been thinking of buying this book for a while now. Do I buy it instead of the John Brunner books I was planning on getting? Aah! So many good books to read!

[@OmnivorousReader]

Oo hard choice! I think, if you are on a Brunner reading spree - go for the one that you are likely to read and enjoy first. I really enjoyed this one, but if I was in a more sciency mood, I might not have liked it as much. I have some Brunner on my to-read shelf but I have not read any of his work for so long that I can't really compare them.

[@CptSamel]

@@OmnivorousReader I'm thinking of getting The Whole Man or To Conquer Chaos 🤔

[@OmnivorousReader]

@@CptSamel I think I read The Whole Man years ago - I look forward to hearing what you think of whichever Brunner you read!