(Koman, Victor, Kings of the High Frontier, www.pulpless.com, approx. 260 pages, $3.50)
On rare occasion, a book comes along which serves to coalesce all the urges, frustrations, dreams, and ideals of a movement. If it is also well written, the book can assume the role of a clarion cry, a call to arms for all those interested in the movement. If it is exceptional, the book can assume a place among the great classics of its genre, in this case ranking with such works as The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, Lucifer's Hammer, or Autour de la Lune.
Kings of the High Frontier is such a book. The author, Victor Koman, whose previous work has twice earned him the Prometheus Award, has combined the skill at narrative of Robert Heinlein, the characterization abilities of Ayn Rand, and the deft management of plot and theme of Larry Niven to create a truly masterful piece of literature. Even Jules Verne would be hard pressed to envision such an amazing future as Koman's.
Kings begins in a world not unlike our own, in a future not more than a few years away. It is peopled with characters who are strongly reminiscent, for anyone who has spent the last 20 years in the space migration movement, of individuals who have been or are currently working in that vital field of endeavor.
Several important threads are developed simultaneously, with fluid transitions between the different action sequences. In one, a group of New York University graduate students create a unique space launch vehicle in an abandoned warehouse in the South Bronx. In another, a billionaire develops an advanced version of the X-15 to launch from the back of a 747. Another thread follows the efforts of a smuggler to create a space station for a variety of interesting purposes in low Earth orbit. A struggling entrepreneur, reminiscent of my business acquaintance Gary Hudson, labors over a single stage to orbit launch vehicle design. A Russian army colonel steals rocket components from under the watchful eyes of UN disarmament personnel. Finally, several threads deal with different efforts within NASA and other government agencies to counter these private space initiatives.
The story is incredibly realistic. Many of the specific scenes have been pulled from recent historical events, such as the mysterious death of real-life space entrepreneur George Koopman on his way to a rocket test at Vandenberg Air Force Base. Another compelling set of scenes describes in astonishing detail the specific events of the Challenger accident, including a thorough analysis of how the accident could have been avoided had the corruption within NASA not awarded the solid rocket motor contract to a company promoting inferior technology.
A story with this level of realism could not have been written without an impressive amount of research. In his acknowledgments, Koman thanks many of his sources, who read like a Who's Who In America's Space Migration Movement. My personal acquaintance with several of these sources convinces me of the serious intent of this book, its depth of understanding, and its value for our future.
The author tells us that the government of our country is opposed to independent space flight initiatives. He then goes on to prove it with countless examples from real life, as well as some from his fictional world which are believable because they are so reminiscent of events in reality. During the course of telling this story, he has a shuttle launch end in catastrophe caused by a software error which leads to a solid rocket booster asynchronous firing.
This particular cataclysm is so intelligently evoked and carefully written that it is at once completely believable and powerfully thrilling. Those familiar with the shuttle launch system know that a significant difference in the timing of the firing of the two solid rocket motors could cause not only the complete destruction of the launch vehicle, but an amazing disaster from a low altitude explosion of a massive quantity of hydrogen and oxygen. In this particular event, Koman satisfies a deep-felt urge among many space enthusiasts: the utter and complete destruction of NASA.
In a later chapter, he has a newsman who is eerily reminiscent of Walter Cronkite ask us, "Does the end of NASA mean the end of the dream? Or have we awakened from a nightmare to the cool, hard light of day?" Indeed, he goes on to show how private efforts, which he has described in vivid detail throughout the book, not only offer a better opportunity for human exploration, settlement, and development of the space frontier, but also offer the only realistic opportunity for any of us common people to go.
Victor Koman has done something amazing. In Kings of the High Frontier he has captured all the hopes and dreams of the space migration movement, detailed the glories of its finest efforts, identified the pernicious enemies who keep it grounded, and shown a myriad of possibilities for breaking free from Earth. As these dreams continue to be realized, and as the destruction of NASA comes to pass in our world, Koman will be heralded not only as a science fiction visionary with prophetic ability, but as the man who issued the call to arms.
One may read Kings of the High Frontier for fun or amusement, for it is as delightful as any novel, as suspenseful as any thriller, and as ingenious as any work of science fiction. But space enthusiasts will read it for a different set of reasons. Some will read it in shock and disbelief as their illusions of the glories of NASA are shattered one after the other. Some will read it in satisfaction, as their closely held opinions are sanctioned by overwhelming evidence. And some, like me, will read this book with every intention of carrying forth the ideas and ideals within.
Kings of the High Frontier illustrates many ways for determined individuals to carry out practical efforts to reach that frontier and take rank with the pioneers of a fabulous new horizon. The dedicated space enthusiast will take this message to heart. As Heinlein inspired the scientists and engineers who put man on the Moon in the 1960s, so does Koman inspire the entrepreneurs and dedicated individuals who will achieve economic freedom in orbit.
Reading Kings of the High Frontier may be a new experience for you. It is published as a set of Web pages which you download from the publisher's Web Site at www.pulpless.com for a trivial fee ($3.50, or about half of the typical paperback book price for science fiction). You can either view the book on screen or print it out. If you distribute books for a living, or would like to, there are instructions on the publisher's site for that activity, as well. If you write for a living, you should certainly contact this publisher. There is great potential in this new mode of publishing and distribution, as much as there was at the dawn of printing itself.
I urge you to read Kings of the High Frontier. If you have ever wondered about the fire in the Apollo capsule or the Challenger disaster, you will want to read this book. If you have ever been concerned about the pace of NASA's work to carry out their Charter which obliges them to facilitate the human settlement of space, you will want to read this book. If you have ever looked up into the night sky and asked when you might have a chance to fly in space, you will want to read this book. And if you have ever concluded that there had to be a better way, and decided to act on that conclusion, you simply must read this book. Besides, Koman has left himself plenty of room for one or more sequels, and you don't want to miss the beginning of a great epic like this one.
An ancient Roman senator once ended his every speech with the phrase, "Carthago delenda est," which translates as "Carthage must be destroyed." Ultimately, Rome listened to Cato and Carthage was destroyed. After reading Kings of the High Frontier one can only conclude, "NASA delenda est."
