Another great, classic Haldeman novel revived by Open Road Media.

THERE IS NO DARKNESS follows Carl Bol, an underprivileged young man from a harsh planet. He's accepted into the "Starschool", a institution to train space-travellers. He will gain the opportunity to travel far and wide among the colonized worlds. And, of course, he'll get a break from his deadly homeworld. During his training, he's confronted with prejudice from the rich children who are his new colleagues and classmates. In order to help meet his financial needs (his scholarship is meagre), he takes on a side-gig as a prize-fighter.

THERE IS NO DARKNESS is an intriguing take on the "school" trope of SFF, and Haldeman does a great job of giving the characters from different planets different characteristics and personalities. The protagonist is pretty well-drawn, and you come to root for him quickly.

Well-written, engaging, and enjoyable. Worth a look, if you want to read more of the classics.

This is a good intro to science fiction and fantasy, especially if you enjoy YA characters or stories. It’s a quick read that consists of three short stories that share the same main character and protagonist, Carl. I enjoyed watching Carl grow throughout There is No Darkness. Joe and Jack Haldeman wrote this story in 1955, 19 years before Joe’s Sci-Fi classic The Forever War. Good world building, characters and pacing from a young author.
I received a free copy of There is No Darkness in exchange for an honest review. Thanks NetGalley!

Carl is a student from Springworld on a tour of many different planets. When he’s charged a ridiculous entry fee to Earth because of his large size, he begins an attempt to earn the money back that leads him to fight animals, men, and his own stubborn pride. The end kind of whirls off in a very different direction due to an alien encounter; didn’t hold together very well.

The ultimate coming-of-age story combined with the strangest school trip, and it all started with an extra charge on a Springer when the <i>Starschool</i> tried to land at a specific spaceport.

Carl Bok might be a poor country boybut he has his pride, and he thinks he can use his unusual size to earn back the money fighting professionally (albeit illegally). Size isn't everything, however, and he quickly learns that he must rely on his wits and friends if he wants to be successful.

But this isn't about weird cagematches, or even about space travel. It's an exploration of several planets, with different customs, different aliens, and different dangers, and the similiarities that are discovered. And it's the story of how a school trip with a scholarship boy changed lives.

Very enjoyable young adult book. Carl Bok, a young man given the opportunity to go to school aboard a starship with all the trials that entails. This would have made a great series.

As much as I love Joe Haldeman, this tale is for kids. It was first published by Ace in 1955 and, while it is still fun, it is not really a book that an adult is likely to warm to today.

I received a review copy of "There Is No Darkness" by Joe Haldeman (Open Road Media) through NetGalley.com.

Carl Bok is one of the first students from Springworld to visit Earth with a scholarship to Starschool, and he sticks out like a sore thumb because of his immense size. Finally escaping the grueling farm work of his inhospitable home planet, Carl undertakes a series of adventures while visiting sixteen colonized planets, including becoming a professional fighter on Earth, learning how to be a solider on war-torn Hell, and meeting new alien races on the artificial planet Construct.

Brothers Joe (author of Hugo and Nebula award-winner The Forever War) and Jack Haldeman (science fiction writer and biologist) collaborated together to create a series of intergalactic adventures in this coming-of-age tale of an obtuse yet honorable teenage boy. Originally published as separate novellas and later compiled into a novel, There Is No Darkness is particularly disjointed, though I find each section more interesting than the last.

The Earth story primarily follows Carl's disobedience of school rules to professionally fight for money to pay back his high weight tax upon entering Earth. It's full of animal wrestling and bloody fighting. Although the school doesn't expect Carl to pay back his debts, his obsession with earning money in ever-increasing dangerous fighting events comes off as obstinately simple-minded.

Carl's time on Hell contains some unexpected twists, but it's hard to imagine any school dropping off their university students to complete a boot camp for soldiers. A very short synopsis of the planet, disguised as curriculum notes, indicates that Hell is the planet where other worlds rent space to fight their wars, which is an intriguing concept that isn't explored any further.

The artificial planet of Construct is the first section that actually feels like a science fiction book. Carl and his friends explore a world of seemingly infinite artificial worlds designed for all manner of alien species, until one of their friends is lost. Again, there are several good ideas within this section, but the actual story just isn't one in which I'm particularly interested.

Recommended as an action adventure for pre-teen and teenage boys!