Friday 24 August 2012

Reading, not reading about...


At the recent OSRcon, I had the great pleasure of a tour of the Lillian H. Smith Library Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation & Fantasy (http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?Entt=RDMLIB137&R=LIB137).  Without a doubt, the crown jewel, at least for me, was the pulp magazine collection.  Yet, in retrospect, seeing the rows of stacks produced an odd sense of exclusion, perhaps voyeurism, not unknown to academics.  In short, while necessary (and preservationist), the magazines sanitary, inaccessible, orderly, sterile and ultimately lifeless entombment presents them as objects to be studied rather than enjoyed.    

So, where then can we find the ‘pulp-spirit’?  Where can we find stories and poems to be devoured simply because they are fun to read?  

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