Slippage: Previously Uncollected, Precariously Poised Stories

I bought a copy of this when I heard Mr. Ellison speak in April, 1998 - it took me this long to get around to reading it. When I began, my husband said to me "Uh, oh, you'll be having wierd dreams for awhile". The stories do haunt you like that, in those quiet, creepy moments in the night. These are brilliant, violent, dark stories - you never forget them. While many reviews concentrate on the stories receiving wide acclaim, the one that hit me hardest was "Pulling Hard Time", a nightmarish vision of "capital punishment". It is a wonderful example of Mr. Ellison's ability to knock you between the eyes in relatively few words and the kind of work that is best appreciated by reading it out loud. He defies definition - honored in many fields of writing & superior in all of them. He is out-spoken & defiant in person, but I must say that the hour & a half I heard him speak was some of the best time I've ever spent, agree with him or not.

I've been a fan of Harlan ever since first learning of him back in the early 90s. I picked up one of his story collections....and then another, and another, until now I've read just about all of them. I truly believe that when it's all said and done, Ellison will be remembered as being one of the absolute best writers of speculative fiction that have ever lived.Note those key words: "speculative fiction". Harlan himself has mentioned before that he doesn't want to be pigeonholed into one genre (i.e. stuck with the constraining label of "science fiction writer", although much of his work would fall into the sci-fi field). And he doesn't limit himself to one genre. So I would tell you, whomever you are reading this review, to take some of the opinions of my fellow reviewers ("This book isn't sci-fi enough!!!") with a grain of salt. "Slippage" is another masterpiece by Harlan. It's one of my favorites, and I feel that some of the work here rivals some of his best. It's a beautiful work, one that touches the soul in places, particularly in "The Man Who Rowed Columbus Ashore", as well as the award-winning "Mefisto in Onyx".I strongly urge any fan of speculative fiction to pick up this book, and be welcomed into the wonderland of Ellison.

This is perhaps Ellison's best collection. It easily rivals Angry Candy (1988), which is widely considered to be his best work. The centerpiece of Slippage is the novella "Mefisto in Onyx." It is not only a well crafted story with too many twists to count, but it is a great commentary on race, gender, and human relations in general. Another jem in this collection is "The Man Who Rowed Christopher Columbus Ashore," which is a great tale of an unlimited man living in a limited world. This story is touching, contemplative, and horrifying at times. It was included in the 1993 Best American Short Stories. Many other stories are included as well as three essays: The introduction is worth the cost of the book, An essay on Ellison's writing process, and an essay about the dangers of television for writers. You also have to admire a man who puts someone else's short story in his collection and praises it. Included is Donald Westlake's striking "Nackles". A tale about hate, more or less. Many other stories are included and all are well polished. This is among my favorite Ellison collections.

This great collection gives you a representative sampling of Ellison's best short stories, and prove that he is far from a science fiction writer, which is what most people think. Sure, some of his stories definitely are sci-fi, like "Chatting with Anubis" and "Midnight in the Sunken Cathedral". However, most of Ellison's tales are better described as speculative fiction, and mostly consist of biting social observation. The best example is the classic "Mefisto in Onyx" which adds the supernatural to a treatise on racial tension, and the "Nackles" stories which deal with the uncomfortable realities of child abuse in the guise of a Christmas fairy tale. Ellison even veers into fantasy ("The Dragon on the Bookshelf") and bizarre character sketches ("The Man Who Rowed Christopher Columbus Ashore") while keeping his offbeat but perceptive worldview intact. Here you can see that Ellison as a writer is impossible to categorize, and also impossible to ignore. (Note: For an even better collection, see the similarly-packaged volume "Angry Candy".)

Once again, Harlan Ellison has done it. He's put together an amazing collection of inventive, thought-provoking, and absolutely incredible stories.From an incredibly funny essay on his year working for The Twillight Zone, to a dark and brilliant novella about a telepath in the mind of a serial killer, Ellison is able to cover almost all boundries of the imagination. Everything from love to sorrow to unrelenting horror is here.Definitely worth every penny.