Read by Scott D. Farquhar of Prometheus Radio Theatre, we’re happy to release Star Surgeon, by Alan E. Nourse:
Dal Timgar always wanted to be a doctor. As a Garvian and the first non-human to study medicine on Hospital Earth, he must face enormous adversity from classmates, professors, and some of the highest ranking physicians on all of Earth. Will his efforts be enough to earn him the Silver Star of a Star Surgeon?
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on Tuesday, September 4th, 2007 at 12:23 pm and is filed under New Books.
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September 10th, 2007 at 4:30 am
Enjoying the first few chapters, This looks like it will be an interesting read / listen
September 16th, 2007 at 5:31 am
On behalf of the late Mr. Nourse… Thanks, Nigel. I certainly hope it unfolds and ends as interesting as it seems to be starting for you.
September 21st, 2007 at 8:00 am
its great keep going
September 24th, 2007 at 11:31 am
I’m sorry but the reading is so clipped and wooden… I tried, I really tried….
September 25th, 2007 at 7:40 am
Thanks, mooood (is this a term used to describe how a cow feels?)… I aim to upload a new chapter or two immediately after each shows up.
Glad you tried, Barry, and sorry it wasn’t quite your thing. I wouldn’t claim to be everything to everyone, of course!
As it is the first book I’ve ever read, I like to think the reading gets better as it progresses, but that’s for each to decide.
Thanks for the feedback all… Cheers!
September 26th, 2007 at 7:53 am
Enjoyed the story so far, and am looking forward to more episodes.
October 1st, 2007 at 6:10 pm
like it. been listening to pod cast books for about a year 10 hours a day at work. some i stopped in the first 30 seconds. this one has me anticipating more. will be sad when its over-jeremy
October 2nd, 2007 at 10:14 pm
They have virtually the same sound files for Star Surgeon over at Librovox, with the same reader All it’s missing is the intro music. The conclusion is worth waiting for, but this time, you don’t have to wait if you don’t want to.
October 4th, 2007 at 8:02 am
Thanks, Jon and jeremy. Only 2 more chapters to go over the next 2 or 3 weeks and it will be complete on Podiobooks, however brainswarm is correct. For those who can’t wait, you can also find my reading at Librivox where I originally did the project. I’d like to see folks stay and finish it out here just for stat-keeping purposes, and I’m sure the fine lads of Podiobooks would echo that sentiment. And it’s just plain more nifty with my music and everything! Also, I will be including some additional material for the final chapter. Some notes about the book… I may play some outtakes of the recording session… so you can hear me stumbling over those atrocious medical terms, cursing at cars driving by, belching (okay, that might not be a selling point), etc. So stick around if you can!
October 22nd, 2007 at 5:08 pm
I really enjoyed this book. This is my favorite type of science fiction, and along the lines of what I’m currently scribbling about.
If you read more, I will listen! The reading was rather stiff at first, but all in all I think very good for a first try. It will get easier as you go along. More like telling a story than trying to have perfect diction for an essay.
Thanks again!
Anemone
October 25th, 2007 at 7:00 pm
I never paid attention to where the book came from before, I was just thoroughly enjoying it. Then I found out it was written in the 50’s which makes perfect sense, it is classic Sci-Fi and the audio version comes out amazing. If you are a fan of classic Sci-fi this is a must listen to book.
October 29th, 2007 at 10:11 pm
Thanks, Chris. I think the big giveaway on dating the book is the guinea pig reference at one point. The other items are more charming than anything, like the output from the computer on cards and the teletype for incoming communications.
Thanks for the feedback, Anemone. I did take a while to settle into the reading. I think it was somewhere in the Chapter 5-7 area that I hit my stride. I am currently just plain (silently) reading another Public Domain Sci/Fi book and pondering an audiobook version. I want to see how it ends first, though…
November 27th, 2007 at 9:07 am
Sounds a little like Philip K. Dick so I’m going to look forward to reading this.
December 5th, 2007 at 7:17 am
Hope you like it, Alison.
There’s actually a somewhat cursory connection between Alan Nourse and Philip K. Dick. Nourse wrote a book called “Bladerunner” which was, of course, stolen to be the name of a film based on a Philip K. Dick story…. There’s a piece of trivia for you to use at a cocktail party when you have the chance, huh?
February 6th, 2008 at 12:07 am
Scott, you are a little bit funny guy … but even you are a logical person
March 5th, 2008 at 7:01 am
Only a little bit? I need to work harder! *smirk*
March 17th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
I liked the book star surgeon, even though it is somewhat dated but the core story is very good classic sci fi. I think if it could be done the terminology could do with updating to include something other than tapes and to include gene therapy but well a good read(listen?) if you can call it that all the same. Also Scott thankyou for the reading it was most excellent and added to the feel of the novel, having both a very clinical and psycological tone to it. I hope you intended for that. Again thankyou
July 6th, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Thanks for the feedback, Nathan! I didn’t really set out to have a “clinical” tone. I think I was mostly just a little intimidated by the amount of medical terminology in the story. That, and I was trying to keep it closer to a “reading” instead of a “performance” since that’s usually where my own preference is for audiobooks.
July 6th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
I remember reading this book a long time ago and a long way away. Thanks, Scott, for bringing back a memory
(and No, that’s a different Nathan up there)
July 6th, 2008 at 9:09 pm
Well, one can’t have too many Nathans, I suppose! Glad you enjoyed it, Nathan the other…!
For you and any others who enjoyed Star Surgeon, keep your eye out for John W. Campbell’s “The Black Star Passes” which should go live here on Podiobooks quite shortly.
Cheers!
September 19th, 2008 at 12:51 am
I loved the story, and it was well read. The only problem is that at the beginning of some episodes there is a very loud CLICK right after “The following is a podiobooks.com presentation.” This happens in chapters 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, and 12. It can actually be painful if you’re wearing headphones. If that can be fixed, then I would give audio quality 5/5. But otherwise it’s a nice job for a first audiobook and I hope you do more!
September 19th, 2008 at 7:17 am
That’s a problem on Libsyn’s end, Peter. Thanks for reporting it. I’ve put in a ticket. FYI, we sometimes miss error reports in blog comments. There’s a “Report a problem with an episode” link that will take you to Get Satisfaction. That’s actually a better way to report problems.
September 23rd, 2008 at 5:03 pm
Thanks for the kind words, Peter. As far as doing more is concerned, I’m actually working on another one right now. Search right here on Podiobooks for my reading of Black Star Passes by John W. Campbell. Hope you enjoy that one as well. Cheers!
September 29th, 2008 at 10:37 pm
Top notch reading quality on this book. I found the narration particularly pleasant to listen to. I am delighted to hear that Scott has been busy recording another title.
October 12th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Thanks so much, Sonja!
April 23rd, 2009 at 8:30 am
Really a gem. If you finish the book, and hear Scott’s motivations, you’ll see he perfectly met them. The story is a wonderful mid-1950 style, and Scott’s narration is spot-on. A real don’t miss effort!