5 replies to this topic

[freemo]

Was reading SILHOUETTE MAN's post about The Man From Barbarossa, and he mentions that the US Putnam version was "heavily edited and vastly shorter" than the UK version. Haven't read The Man From Barbarossa yet, it's one of three Gardners I've still got to go (I've re-read, or in most cases, read for the first time, 11 in the last year or so), though I bought the US hardcover recently.

I also recall ACE and others mentioning the opposite being true for Role of Hono(u)r and Nobody Lives For( )ever, i.e. the US versions being the extended text. I've only read the UK editions of these two.

Just wondering if anyone has some sort of rough idea of how different the two versions of his books were (beyond the title changes), particularly the ones mentioned. Is it just merely the usual few lines or words different one would expect (in which case, not a big deal), or heavier changes: entire scenes cut, paragraphs re-done, etc (more interesting). Nothing definitive required, it's only a minor curiosity, just whatever anyone can recall.

[Dustin]

I think I somewhere read Bond was wearing Nike sneakers in LR. My own edition mentions Adidas. That could be due to a different US/UK edition - provided it's true. I can't say either way as I only ever bought one copy of the Gardners.

Vastly different - really? How much need for change between both US and UK edition can there ever be? It's not as if the 80s and 90s had as difficult topics as the present does seem to have at times. Who would feel a need to butcher Gardner's work, and for what reason? The only tricky topic I was aware of was ROH's role playing game - 'micro' based - that supposedly came too close to NSNA's arcade/world domination scene.

[glidrose]

In FSS, the soldier who won't eat ice cream hates the "muck" (U.K.), hates the sht (U.S.).

[Randy Wiggins]

I'm going to have track down a UK edition of THE MAN FROM BARBAROSA as I have only read the US edition and was not as pleased with it as the previous Gardner Bond novels. I only have 2 UK editions and they are both by Raymond Benson novelizations. I had no idea there were differences between the editions and will now have to go back and read the UK editions of all the Gardner books.

 

Randy

[glidrose]

Vastly different - really? How much need for change between both US and UK edition can there ever be? It's not as if the 80s and 90s had as difficult topics as the present does seem to have at times.

Dunno about "vastly", but there's definitely an unusual number of editorial changes, especially in ROH, NLF and CF. For example in that last one, the UK edition cites Amis's Colonel Sun, but the US edition omits the mention. The UK edition of ROH omits the final paragraph(s) of the US edition. Someone once told me that Jonathan Cape - the UK publisher - wasn't pleased with the quality of the NLF manuscript and so set about tightening it, eliminating sentences, shortening sentences.

[Randy Wiggins]

I would love to get my hands on a set of the Gardner UK editions book they are so bloody expensive in the USA.

 

Randy