The Solarians by Norman Spinrad

The Solarians is the first published novel by controversial author Norman Spinrad. In the book, which was first published in 1966, an alien race called the Duglaari has been steadily conquering human systems. Because humans cannot defeat the Duglaari in space battles, they must forge an alliance with a mysterious alien race known as the Solarians.

While this book is fairly mainstream sci-fi, Spinrad’s later work was far more contentious. His serialized novel Bug Jack Barron kicked off a conflict between the British Arts Council and the Parliament. His alternate history novel The Iron Dream was presented as “a reprint of Hitler’s Hugo Award Winning SF Classic Lord of the Swastika.” (Although the novel won the Prix Tour-Apollo Award, it was banned in Germany for eight years.)

Even though some of Spinrad’s work has drawn ire, he is a respected figure in the work of fantasy and science fiction. He served as the president of the Science Fiction Writer’s of America from 1980-1982, and again from 2001-2002. He was also the president of World SF from 1988-1990. He has been nominated for numerous awards, including the Hugo and the Nebula Award.

This edition of The Solarians was published by Paperback Library in 1969. No artist is credited and no signature is visible. The cover appears to be heavily inspired by the art used in the novel’s first printing, which is shown below.