(urth) Padding?

Son of Witz Sonofwitz at butcherbaker.org
Tue Nov 30 09:31:54 PST 2010


Wait, Isn't the storytelling contest in the fourth book, in the Lazaret?
I feel that stuff is obliquely relevant, but mostly padding. I can barely stand that contest in the Lazaret.

~Mike

On Nov 30, 2010, at 3:16 AM, Mo Holkar <lists at ukg.co.uk> wrote:

> Hi all,
> 
> One of Wolfe's comments in the Cooney interview, linked here recently, caught my eye. Re BotNS:
> 
> "If you look in the third book, you will find a storytelling contest that’s strictly padding. That contest got me a really good review in Playboy Magazine – and I’ve always been grateful to it for that reason."
> 
> I have always seen the storytelling contest as narratively and thematically important. We step back from the main action, and get a succession of insights into the metaphysics of the characters' world. We then read on with somewhat renewed eyes.
> 
> I guess we can continue to believe that Wolfe is being a little disingenuous when he says it's "strictly" padding. But it is slightly sobering to reflect that if BotNS had remained a trilogy, it wouldn't have been included.
> 
> Although perhaps you may feel that this is post hoc reasoning, and really it is indeed padding that we could have done happily without?
> 
> best wishes,
> 
> Mo
> 
> 
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