The Van Rijn Method

Book excerpt: The Buck Starts Here! Think there's an unbridgeable gulf between human and alien thought Not so! There's a common tongue, all right -- and Nicholas Van Rijn speaks it fluently: TRADE. For behind the buffoonish blarney and bawdy bonhomie of the Falstaffian Van Rijn is a man who gets things done. A born wheeler-dealer who usually leaves both sides better off in the bargain. (While pocketing a hefty cut of the profits himself, of course!) With The Man Who Counts and a passel of other tales included, this is the first of three volumes set to contain the complete cycle of _Polesotechnic LeagueÓ books and stories by transcendently-gifted science fiction master (how does seven Hugos and three Nebula Awards strike you ) Poul Anderson _ and starring Nicholas Van Rijn, his most famous character of all! At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).