Opinions. Everyone’s got them, and most people have more than they share. When an opinion is voiced that runs contrary to popular wisdom, we label it a ‘hot take.’ Generally speaking, these hot takes are a bit of fun. A way of prompting a bit of conversation around any given topic from favourite foods to underrated films.

Today I’m gathering a small handful of hot takes on the topic of books. Discuss them – or ignore them – at your leisure.

Not Every Book Deserves A Special Edition

I don’t just enjoy books for the stories they contain, I love books as objects in their own right. It could be a glossy new hardback or a beat-up, dog-eared mass market paperback from seventy years ago. Doesn’t matter. They all have their charm. A lot of people feel the same. Markets capitalise on this by releasing special and limited editions. Maybe these are signed and numbered, maybe they have new cover art, maybe they’re printed on higher quality paper. There are a lot of reasons we call an edition special. But it seems like every book is getting this treatment these days. Or, if you’re Frank Herbert’s Dune, you get a new special edition every year.

Now, if a book remains popular for decades, I can understand a fiftieth anniversary edition. That makes sense. But I recently saw a book getting a celebratory fifth anniversary rerelease. That strikes me as unnecessary. A new print run, sure. But a full new edition? I’ll pass on that.

One of my favourite ongoing series is Christopher Ruocchio’s The Sun Eater. For these, I do buy the special editions from Anderida books. Hypocrisy? perhaps, but it’s the only way to get some of the short stories in print, and the whole series in hardback. At least in the UK. But am I going to fork out for deluxe editions, or the revised ‘diamond edition’ that’s on the way? No. I have one edition of the story, and that’s good enough for me. I’m also a little leery of the revised edition in particular, as the series isn’t even finished yet. Nobody should be having special reprints before the story has been completed the first time around. It bugged me when Brandon Sanderson did it, and it’s bugging me now.

Oh, and while I’m on the topic of special editions, sprayed edges can jump off a cliff. What kind of maniac stores their books edges out? And all they do is make the pages cling anyway. But I digress.

Books Are Too Long

Back in the day, two hundred pages made you a novel. Books could be sold from spinning racks in corner shops and street corners. These books often left you craving more, but could literally be carried around in your pocket. Hence the publishing imprint Pocket Books. Then something changed, and books started getting longer. It started off in fantasy, but science fiction soon muscled in on the action. Dune was among the first of these landmark tomes, but it was by no means the last. In fact, the original Dune is pretty trim compared to some modern behemoths.

Look at the Honor Harrington series by David Weber, and you’ll find books looming over you at a thousand pages. Look at Peter F. Hamilton’s novels, and you’ll understand why readers throw around phrases like ‘doorstoppers’ and ‘squirrel killers’ when discussing them. Books can be this long and still be good, but it seems like a lot of authors confuse quantity with quality.

I long for the days when a book could be carried around without the aid of a wheelbarrow, and with the increase in paper prices, we may just see a return to that three hundred page sweet spot.

Series Are Too Long

As individual books grow longer, so too does series length. It used to be the case that trilogies were king (another import from epic fantasy) but these days quartets and quintilogies seem to be all the rage. And I get it. When an author hits onto a good thing, it’s natural to do more of the same. Publishers no doubt agree. But if Marko Kloos’ Frontlines has taught us anything, it’s that even a good story grows dull if you tell it too many times.

An offshoot of growing story length is when books get split in two. This has happened everywhere from The Sun Eater to The End and the Death by Dan Abnett. There is something to be said for allowing the story to grow at its own pace, but I personally think it’s a sign of more skill to write to form. Just look at the glory days of episodic TV. Back then, you had to wedge your narrative into forty-two minutes, and set arcs. Nowadays with streaming, stories just sort of sprawl as they will. Good things have come from this, but bad things too. Some series seem headed in a similar direction.

What I will say in the name of balance is that I love large universes. Rather than one single story, give me a dozen stories set in the same narrative. Give me prequels and sequels and spin-offs. This has helped keep Jack Campbell’s The Lost Fleet fresh even as the core dynamics remain the same. So too is the Dune saga invigorated by Brain Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson’s contributions. Though in both these cases, the risk of staleness and repetition is ever-present.

Adaptations Should Change Things

And now for the hottest take of all. How many times have you watched your favourite book get adapted on the big (or small) screen, and cried out ‘how dare they change that?’ Well, I’m here to tell you to calm down.

First off, yes, changes can undermine the message or feel of the original. However, the original still exists. No matter how many versions there are on screen, Dune will always exist as the original prose story. David Lynch and Denis Villeneuve both made changes dictated by both the needs of their chosen medium, and personal choice. That’s good. Adaptation means change.

My feelings on the matter come down to this. I have already read the book. If I’m watching the adaptation, I presumably enjoyed the book. There are probably some scenes that I’d like to see realised with brilliant special effects and spot-on acting. But do I really want to sit through five seasons of a show that offers no surprises or innovation? No. Of course I don’t. I have already read the book. If I want that version of the story, I’ll read it again. I want to see someone else’s interpretation now. I want to see the directors, screenwriters, and actors contribute to a new imagining of what I think I already know.

Maybe it will be a complete and utter mess. If so, the original remains untouched. Maybe it will be even better, and no one in their right mind would complain about. Most likely of all, it will simply be different. And that is exactly what it should be.

I’m sure you have your own hot takes. Never be afraid to share them. If you like science fiction, you’re among friends here.