Tales from the White Hart by Arthur C. Clarke

148 Pages (Fiction) Paperback

I have been a huge Arthur C. Clarke fan for many years. In fact a big reason I started this blog was to keep track of what books I have read. Clarke has so many books and many of them have similar names. I made this blog so I could know for sure what books I had read before starting a new one by him. I found this in a used book store for twice as much as the cover price.

Tales from the White Hart is really a collection of short stories. It is presented in a uncommon way. We are introduced to a hidden bar in London that attracts a collection of scientists and authors. A gentleman names Harry Purvis continually enthralls the crowd with a series of tall tales. Although presented as fiction the book gives the impression that the White Hart is based off of a real place.

Each chapter is another story being told. They are wide in range going from mysterious tanker crashed on the road, to great ships collecting minerals on the sea, to an army of termites with the power to take over the world. Clarkes written is easy to get into. Even though the stories are a bit fantastic what has always appealed to me about his work is that they are all grounded in reality. You could believe that the at least some of the stories are probable.

I actually read this book in between others a chapter here and a chapter there. I imagine an avid read could read it easily in a day or two.

3 Intellectual/Emotional - As I said, Clarke's ability to venture just beyond reality makes his stories very entertaining.

4 Style/Readability - Sometimes Clarke is treading on topics that are fairly complex. He has a way of distilling these down to layman's language that makes enjoyable for any reader.

2 Long term Impact - Clarke is one of the founding father of Science Fiction and will be an inspiration for sci fi writers for many years. This book is a bit more obscure and more based on earth science and will have less of an impact.

9 out of 13. An entertaining book and easily read. I think most people would find something worthwhile in this book. As a Clarke fan it is worth your while. If you are just getting into Sci Fi, I might suggest other books by him such as Childhood's End or the Rendezvous with Rama series. He is famous for 2001: A Space Odyssey which is even more famous as a movie. If you have seen the movie the book actually clarifies a lot of the confusion caused by the end of the movie.

As always, Keep Turning Pages