The Essential Ellison: A 35-Year Retrospective

When Harlan Ellison published Dangerous Visions and Again, Dangerous Visions way back in the mists of the previous century, the speculative fiction community was turned on its ear, not just once but several times. Awards and accolades were heaped upon the participants -- none more so than Harlan himself, who brought the whole thing together. When the promised final volume, The Last Dangerous Visions, failed to materialize for thirty years, accolades turned to puzzlement, accusation, invective, and anger -- almost all of it directed at Harlan, who may or may not be the proper target. I won't enter into that debate (much of it is pointless and silly, not to mention frequently absurd and childish). The only reason I bring up the whole DV mess at all is because, in rereading Essential Ellison, I find that while other writers may have produced stories worthy of inclusion in those volumes, it is Harlan himself who, for all these years, had had the truly dangerous visions. Consider the following stories, all included in this eye-opening retrospective:* "Lonelyache" -- a dark, mysterious tale of a man at the end of his emotional rope, which wallops you like a chunk of slate;* Punky and the Yale Men" -- wherein a man tries to relive the violent days of his youth; one of Harlan's most underrated stories;* "A Prayer For No One's Enemy" -- one of Harlan's most controversial tales, which puts not just anti-Semitism but all racism in its proper perspective;* "Neither Your Jenny Nor Mine" -- a harrowing story of the days of illegal abortions, absolutely riveting;* "The Resurgence of Miss Ankle-Strap Wedgie" -- Harlan's best-ever parable about the cannibalistic world of Hollywood;* "'Repent, Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman" -- Harlan's delightful, delicious ode to nonconformity;* "Jeffty Is Five" -- wistful, haunting, and scary all at once, this story (like Bradbury's "The Playground") shows that eternal youth is not all it's cracked up to be;* "Mom" --Harlan could've talked Oedipus into leaving home;* "Alive and Well On a Friendless Voyage" -- existential despair as only Harlan can render it;* "A Boy and His Dog" -- I usually hate the post-apocalypse genre, but Harlan gets it right on this one;* "The Deathbird" -- my all-time favorite Ellison story, bar none, a beautifully-constructed parable about God, the Devil, and Man's true place in the universe......and this list just barely scratches the surface! I haven't touched upon half of the great work in this retrospective -- such as Harlan's heartfelt, sometimes touching, oftimes scathing nonfiction and essays, or the samples of his wicked sense of humor, his brilliant screenwriting, and his absolute fearlessness and honesty in the face of every sort of mendacity and double-dealing one could imagine.That said, there are some things missing from this book as well; my short list would include such gems as the brilliant "The Beast Who Shouted Love At the Heart of the World," the chilling "Croatoan," the hysterical

Like anyone interested in science-fiction I had heard of Harlan Ellison but could never find any sort of book that would fairly summerize his talents and save me the trouble of tracking down his best stories among the many volumes available. Unfortunately this is not that book, a lot of his best stuff is in here but a lot more is still left out, notably (for me) "The Beast That Shouted Love At the Heart of the World", however if you want one volume to serve as a sort of introduction to as many sides of the author as they could cram in, this is probably your best bet. A thousand pages and not a wasted page among them, sure you get some early stuff that is just amateurish or just plain normal genre fiction, but then it's a "retrospective" and not a greatest hits package (though that would be nice too), most of the stories are good and some, like "Deathbird" or "Repent Harlequin, Said the Ticktockman" are simply mindblowing and well worth any effort made to get a hold of them. And I'm leaving out a lot more, this guy has more "awesome" stories that most people should be allowed. Even the essays and other articles are revelatory, showing the passion and fire that courses behind all his stories without the fictional settings hiding them. He's at his best when speaking plainly but he can weave a darn good yarn at the same time. Get this if you have any passing interest in the man and while it shouldn't be your only Ellison purchase, it's a good a place to start as any

I was introduced to Harlan Ellison by a high school English/Literature teacher almost 25 years ago and have thanked her in my mind many times. There is no author who has challenged me, entertained me, and frightened me as much and as often as Mr. Ellison. This collection should be owned by anyone who is interested in science fiction, imaginative fiction (Ellison's term), or contemporary literature. Ellison is to the modern short story what Vincent Van Gogh was to Impressionist visual art (disturbing, yet real). Buy this volume and help make this man the star he should have been years ago when he published "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream" or "Deathbird".

This is one of the best collections of a single authors work in all of SF. Ellison is one of the best writers of science fiction writing today. (I know he does not like the term science fiction. I'm writing this review though, and I like it.) Ellison has written over 1700 stories, essays, other works in his career. He has thoughts of all kinds on lots of differing topics. And there is one thing to say, he is never boring. You might disagree with Harlan Ellison, but you will be entertained and you will think after reading his thoughts. This is a great book and I would highly recommend it to one and all.

Harlan Ellison is in many ways the quintessential author of our time. This book proves it. Paranoia, sex, megalomania, torture--all described graphically in a way few authors can manage. I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream is clearly the greatest short story ever written. If it doesn't scare the Hell out of you, you're not breathing. This collection is a fitting tribute to a modern literary master.