In a book that reads more like an anthology than a novel, Mike Resnick tells the kind of tall tales in which history isn't necessarily written by the winners. It's written instead by the best human, alien, and mutant storytellers this side of the Galactic Core, with a little embellishment from Willie the Bard.
At the edge of an enormous black hole on the planet Henry II, one of the Eight Henrys, rests the Outpost tavern, owned by Tomahawk. It's so far out that only heroes, villains, and adventurers "three times as big as life and twice as wide" can manage to find it. But once they do they've earned bragging rights to tell their story.
It's the kind of place where characters like Catastrophe Baker, Bet-A-World O'Grady, Cyborg de Milo, and Hurricane Smith come to hang around, swap tales, and wait for the approaching alien invasion to get close enough to bother with. However, once the aliens decimate the Navy and start to take over the Henrys, the adventurers reluctantly set off to save the universe one tall tale at a time.
Hugo and Nebula award-winner Resnick spins the stories into a novel that examines the way legend and history are created, and the philosophy that you shouldn't let the facts stand in the way of a good yarn. Fans of tall tales will love the vivid characterizations and the way Resnick shows how each character's real adventure is embellished into an even better story. --Kathie Huddleston
From Publishers Weekly
Hugo and Nebula award winner Resnick's (A Hunger in the Soul) tales are often surprising, and this novel comprised of individual narratives is no exception. The characters at the Outpost a gathering place at the outer edge of the galaxy where adventurous souls can come to drink and brag are galaxy-renowned "heroes and bandits, artists and athletes, ministers, geniuses, prostitutes, bounty hunters, gamblers, even aliens." What begins as a fun round of tale-swapping turns more serious and thoughtful as the book progresses through its three parts: "legend," "truth" and "history." Throughout the opening a war has been approaching the Outpost, and by the second segment the "heroes" are forced to fight. Resnick then changes the tone. The complexity the characters gain when their actions are described by an impartial narrator in the "truth" section elevates the book from simple entertainment. Some act with honor, some back down from everything they stand for, some show their dedication to humanity while others flee. When they reconvene and record their exploits for posterity, they reveal even more of their true natures in the ways they want history to remember themselves and others. This lightly philosophical read is a good introduction to a solid author. (May 16)his stories, "Hunting the Snark" and "Hot House Flowers."Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
The Outpost, a tavern located on the planet Henry II, serves as a watering hole for some of the galaxy's most colorful individuals each with a tale to tell. When an invasion by aliens threatens the sanctity of the Outpost, heroes and miscreants learn to cooperate to save what they truly value. Resnick (A Hunger in the Soul) peoples his latest novel with a cast of memorable characters, and the author's easy-going style lends an air of raw elegance. For most sf collections. Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
"The Outpost is highly entertaining and as smooth as a mug of eggnog-complete with the hidden bite." - Analog
"If you want a rough-and-tumble collection of tales from the frontier, look no further. Mike Resnick assembles as outlandish a collection of space frontiersmen (and women) as you'll ever find and sets them to playing 'can you top this' in an out-of-the-way corner of the galaxy. Recommended." - SF Revu
"Amusing and witty, with an agreeably ironic edge." -Kirkus Reviews
Book Description
Award-winning writer Mike Resnick takes us back to his wild and wooly Inner Frontier in this tall-tale of an adventure novel.
On the planet Henry II, orbiting the twin suns of Plantagenet and Tudor, at the very edge of the great black hole at the center of the Milky Way, there is a tavern called The Outpost. Through the doors of The Outpost have come the greatest heroes, villains, and adventurers of the galaxy - to drink, to brag, and to swap tales.
The Outpost is neutral territory where fighting is forbidden and blood enemies can have a drink together and tell stories of battles past. After all bounty hunters, con men, itinerant preachers, thieves, and assassins have more in common with each other than they do with the rest of the mundane galaxy.
But their pleasant life of recalling murder and mayhem is interrupted by an alien invasion, and to save their way of life these rugged individualists must try to work together for a change.
The Outpost FROM THE PUBLISHER
Award-winning writer Mike Resnick takes us back to his wild and wooly Inner Frontier in this tall-tale of an adventure novel. On the planet Henry II, orbiting the twin suns of Plantagenet and Tudor, at the very edge of the great black hole at the center of the Milky Way, there is a tavern called The Outpost. Through the doors of The Outpost have come the greatest heroes, villains, and adventurers of the galaxy -- to drink, to brag, and to swap tales. The Outpost is neutral territory where fighting is forbidden and blood enemies can have a drink together and tell stories of battles past. After all, bounty hunters, con men, itinerant preachers, thieves, and assassins have more in common with each other than they do with the rest of the mundane galaxy. But their pleasant life of recalling murder and mayhem is interrupted by an alien invasion, and to save their way of life, these rugged individualists must try to work together for a change.
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