I tried to read Triplantary when I was younger, and gave up on the book pretty quickly. I've recently found out that the first two books in the series, Triplanetary and First Lensman, were written as prequels.

I'd like to give E. E. Smith's writing another chance, and I'm considering starting with the third book, Galactic Patrol, as it was the first one written. Was the series intended to be read with the prequels first? Are there any spoilers to the later books in the prequels?