May 18, 2025 and twenty-five years ago on this day in 2000, Bruce Wood’s extremely limited edition of “The Moon Maid” was distributed at the 2000 Edgar Rice Burroughs Chain of Friendship gathering. The edition of 50 copies contained an introduction by Bob Zeuschner, text comparison with previous editions by J. G. Huckenpoher, a glossary by Duane Adams and George McWhorter, ending commentary by Scott Tracy Griffin, printing, sewing and binding by Bruce Wood, formatting by David Bruce Bozarth, Dust wrapper design by Phil Norman, and generally coordination by Jim Thompson. Dave Hoover did the dust jacket art, Tomas Yeates illustrated a frontispiece for one section, and Jeff Doten contributed two interior illustrations. That tell us where nine of the fifty copies ended up.
I’m fortunate to have one copy. It appears for sale on EBay and other sites occasionally, sometimes reasonably priced and sometimes priced over the moon. The book is beautiful. It’s the first hardcover edition to contain the entire story as originally published in All-Story Weekly.
“The Moon Maid,” is a tale of occupation, oppression, and resistance. The 100-word drabble for today, "The Valiant Die But Once," is excerpted from the closing paragraph o the “Text Comparison" section by J. G. ‘Huck’ Huckepohler. Words that apply all too often. For the information of those who haven’t read the novel, Jarth, Or-tis and Soor, are the leaders of the forces that have enslaved America.
“And Finally, on a personal note, It seems pretty clear that Burroughs intended this story as a warning to his readers. I was in the middle of this project at the time of Janet Reno’s predawn raid of the Gonzales home, and the similarity between the activities of the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the methods of Or-Tis was chilling.
Oppressors need not come from the moon; they can be home-grown. All that is necessary is for a sufficient proportion of the population to acquiesce in their own enslavement. There are plenty of would-be Jarths, Or-tises, and Soors among us.”
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