And All The Stars A Stage by James Blish (book review).
‘And All The Stars A Stage’ is a marvellous title, a take on ‘All The World’s A Stage’ in case you didn’t know. Oddly, the slowness of the opening of this book, where Jorn Birn wants to move out from his boring existence, is more apparent from reading the inside book cover and back cover. Oddly, author Jim Blish seems to get things lost in the words, which is rather unusual for him.
The list of books he recently completed for publisher Corgi includes twelve ‘Star Trek’ books, with eleven of them being episode adaptations, three per book. Getting back to his writing must have been interesting.
One thing the notes on the cover are wrong about is the sun turning nova. Essentially, this is the creation of some generation starships sent out to look for life. Birn is on the Javelin, working his way up the ranks. It’s rather interesting how the crews were selected. The selection criteria included being under thirty years of age, having no medical issues, and having a variety of careers. I am uncertain about the decision to exclude medical staff. Even if they were all healthy, they’re landing on alien planets and risk infection and injury. As the crew fail to find a suitable planet and age, they begin breeding their own replacements.
By condensing the narrative into 157 pages, it becomes clear that Blish has compressed the story significantly, particularly in terms of pacing. The transition from construction to space travel is swift and unexpected. So, essentially, you end up with a quick read. Quite why he stayed with space adventures after his run on ‘Star Trek’, I would guess, is that he hadn’t gotten it out of his system.
I wouldn’t put it amongst Blish’s best books, but it is worth a read.
GF Willmetts
October 2025
(pub: Corgi Books, copyright 1971 this reprint 1975. 157 page paperback. Price: varies. ISBN: 0-552-09732-2)
