Review: The Trouble Twisters The Trouble Twisters by Poul Anderson
X141 / Berkley Medallion Paperback June 1967 / Review by Ernest Lilley
Back in the mid 60's, about the time Trek was airing with its vision of utopian humanity reaching for the stars, Poul Anderson introduced a character with no less charisma than James Kirk, but rather than a dashing starship commander, David Falkayn was an explorer merchant. It's easy to say that Anderson maintained that greed and need would remain constants in the human expansion to the stars, but the truth is rather that he recognized that where man goes, so goes trade. Trek itself only accepted this in recent years, and begrudgingly at that, characterizing the greedy Ferengi as vile creatures. And yet, there was one episode where Quark, DS9's oft derided bar owner, had to sit a Vulcan down and explain the economics of war to him. And offer him peace at a fraction of the cost.