This short review is now followed by notes. These are mainly to help
my memory of items that struck me as interesting, especially in 
providing a common Galactic Civilization background to these novels.
The notes are not complete and additional information may be found 
within the planet list. This file was last on updated September 2, 
2006 C.E. 

CATSEYE, Ace, 1961.

CATSEYE is a Dipple tale. It is the story of Troy Horan, a young man
who has grown up largely on the pleasure world of Korwar, though his
birth and early childhood were on the frontier world of Norden. The
warfare that displaced him and brought him to the slum of the Dipple
has claimed his father's life and when the story opens he is alone
with the ambition to become a sub-citizen. There are three ways out
of the Dipple: one can sign up as an offworld labourer and be shipped
out in cold sleep; one can join the Thieves' Guild, or one can get a
job. Troy gets a job, as an animal handler for the merchant Kyger,
dealer in exotic pets, including from distant Terra.

Here we see one of the key themes in the writings of Andre Norton,
the portrayal of enhanced animal intelligence along with telepathic
communication between animals and a sympathetic protagonist. Troy is
able to communicate with Terran animals, and joins them in seeking
escape in the wilderness of Korwar. He takes a stand with these
intelligent animals in a tale of interstellar espionage and of the
Rangers who offer him another out from the bleak prospects around
him.

There is also the aspect of the Rukharv archaeological site, ruins
of a possible base by offworlders and the location of something
that went very wrong when the Fauklow expedition attempted to test
there a time scanner. Like many of her stories, this one describes
a youth coming of age and demonstrating self-reliance in an exotic
background of intricate interstellar civilization. There is a lot
of fast paced action, inspired prose, sympathetic treatment of
animals, artfully presented details from the complex cultural
mosaic of that future generation, so remote and yet so alike the
world and age of Twentieth Century Terra.

Anyone enjoying the above aspects ought to respond well to this
novel.

Notes on Catseye:

p. 5 Dipple
p. 5 Casual Labor Center, ship deep freeze, Thieves Guild
p. 6 Confederation, Council p. 174
p. 30 Gentle Fem, Gentle Home
p. 30 tri-dees
p. 34 hunters, rangers hereditary
p. 36 Sattor class ships
p. 36 Treaty of Panarc Five
p. 37 Pa-ta-du of the sea mountains of Qwan
p. 37 pink-grey lace bushes
p. 39 kinkajou
p. 42 eazi-rest
p. 42 curious as a ffolth sand borer
p. 42 quagger nuts
p. 46 person protect (device)
p. 47 cov-aid dressing on burn
p. 53 the Mountains of Larsh (Korwar)
p. 55-57 Ruhkarv
p. 56, 61 200 years Korwar, less than 100 Norden 
p. 59 owhee, fussell (animals)
p. 61 no carbite on Korwar
p. 62 sofaru rat
p. 64 pansta (wild cattle of a sort)
p. 69 hur-hurs (aquarium occupant)
p. 69 Citizen Dragur
p. 71 Lupan snails and the throw-worms
p. 72 palm lock
p. 80 trasi from Longus
p. 85 Hunter Headquarters in Torrent district (Korwar)
p. 89 Gal-basic (language) p. 82
p. 108 atom torch
p. 117 quondam (animal)
p. 139 ozone stench of blaster discharge
p. 151 pure Bushman from Terra
p. 160 pinner
p. 164 Dandle pups
p. 166 Thieves' Guild, Blasterman's section
p. 171 dorch crabs and tramjan reef snake
p. 171 nerve needler


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