The Literary Galaxy of Star Trek: An Analysis of References and Themes in the Television Series and Films



After a period of relative quiet on the unauthorized/academic Trek books front, we're getting some activity again.

You can get some info, including the table of contents, at the McFarland site or at the Complete Starfleet Library. Each chapter in the book deals with a particular theme (Journey of the Hero, Quest for Revenge, etc), discussing episodes or movies that exemplify that theme and discussing literary works that may have influenced or been mentioned in those stories. Every Star Trek series is represented by at least two or three episodes, some by more, and approximately fifty literary works, poems, plays, novels, and other forms, are listed in the first appendix.

Though Broderick is a university professor, teaching English literature and journalism, his book is not an advanced critical work but appears instead to be aimed at younger readers who enjoy Star Trek and are interested in literature. I haven't read the book yet but it looks like it'll be the easiest read of the critical works being published this year.