Strange Things in Close-Up: The Nearly Complete Howard Waldrop

by Howard Waldrop

Omnibus containing contents of the collections *Howard Who?* (1980) and *All about Strange Monsters of the Recent Past* (1987).

Contents:
The Ugly Chickens (1980)
Der Untergang des Abendlandesmenschen (1976)
Ike at the Mike (1982)
Dr. Hudson's Secret Gorilla (1977)
". . .The World as We Know't." (1982)
Green Brother (1982)
Mary Margaret Road-Grader (1976)
Save a Place in the Lifeboat for Me (1976)
Horror, We Got (1979)
Man-Mountain Gentian (1983)
God's Hooks! (1982)
Heirs of the Perisphere (1985)
All about Strange Monsters of the Recent Past (1980)
Helpless, Helpless (1984)
Fair Game (1986)
What Makes Heironymous Run? (1985)
The Lions Are Asleep This Night (1986)
Flying Saucer Rock and Roll (1985)
He-We-Await (1987)

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Short Stories, Fantasy, Collections

363 pages, Paperback

First published September 21, 1989

About the author

Howard Waldrop was an American science fiction author who worked primarily in short fiction, with shorties that combined elements such as alternate history, American popular culture, the American South, old movies, classical mythology, and rock 'n' roll music. He received the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 2021.

Reviews

[David H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an above-average collection from Howard Waldrop (technically it's an omnibus of two earlier collections, and structured that way). It includes some fantastic stories (like "Mary Margaret Road-Grader" and "The Ugly Chickens") and some headscratchers (like "What Makes Heironymous Run?") and some deeply horrifying stories (like "Horror, We Got," naturally). Waldrop is always good about including comments about each story, and I love him for that at least. Anyway, a great set of stories, and you can see a bit of his evolution as a writer.

[Jon]

Plan to finish this one later.

[Scifimoth · Rating 1 out of 5]

The greatest SF author you've never read? I found the introductions to each story more interesting than the short stories themselves.

[Chuck McKenzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A terrific collection of tales from a master of quirky science fiction. From the humorous to the odd to the outright hilarious, Waldrop's writing is always entertaining, thought provoking, and sometimes unsett;ling. A great read.