Can & Can'tankerous

by Harlan Ellison, Jason Davis (Editor)

Available for the first time in paperback! From the 1999 Chris Carter-prompted sf-noir, “Objects of Desire in the Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear,” to last year’s enigmatic blend of fact and fiction, “He Who Grew Up Reading Sherlock Holmes,” CAN & CAN’TANKEROUS gathers ten previously uncollected tales from the fifth and sixth decades of Harlan Ellison’s professional writing career, a work-in-progress now encompassing over 100 books. In the eighteen years since his last all-new collection, SLIPPAGE, Ellison’s continued to expand the frontiers of his inimitable oeuvre with tales that force his readers’ imaginations to the edge of conception while simultaneously plumbing the depths of their a second entry in his (now) ongoing abcedarian sequence; a “lost” pulp tale re-cast as a retro-fable; a melancholy meditation for departed friend and fellow speculative fiction legend, Ray Bradbury; a 2001 revision of a 1956 original; an absurdist ascent toward enlightenment (or its gluten-free substitute); a 200-word exercise in not following the directions as written (with a special introduction by Neil Gaiman that weighs in at four times the word count of its subject); a fantastical lament for a bottom-line world; and—at no extra cost—the 2011 Nebula Award-winning short story “How A Tiny Man.” Strokes be damned! Ellison’s still here! HE’s still writing! And with more new books published in the last ten years than any preceding decade of his career, his third act is proving to be the kind other living legends envy. How A Tiny Man Never Send to Know for Whom the Lettuce Wilts Objects of Desire in the Mirror Are Closer than They Appear Introduction to “Loose Cannon” by Neil Gaiman Loose Cannon, or Rubber Duckies from Space From A to Z, in the Sarsaparilla Alphabet Weariness The Toad Prince, or, Sex Queen of the Martian Pleasure-Domes Incognita, Inc. Goodbye to All That He Who Grew Up Reading Sherlock Holmes

Genres: Short Stories, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Horror, Speculative Fiction

174 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2015

About the author

Harlan Jay Ellison (1934-2018) was a prolific American writer of short stories, novellas, teleplays, essays, and criticism.

His literary and television work has received many awards. He wrote for the original series of both The Outer Limits and Star Trek as well as The Alfred Hitchcock Hour; edited the multiple-award-winning short story anthology series Dangerous Visions; and served as creative consultant/writer to the science fiction TV series The New Twilight Zone and Babylon 5.

Several of his short fiction pieces have been made into movies, such as the classic "The Boy and His Dog".

Reviews

[Marvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Harlan Ellison either made me weird or made me grow up. I still cant figure out which one it is.

I was a normal but nerdy kid in my teens. I played the clarinet in the high school band, read voraciously, and sneaked peeks at horror movies on TV and scary comics when my parents weren't watching. I also discovered science fiction when I was eleven years old . The school and community library mainly had books by Heinlein, Clarke, Norton and Asimov, the nerdy boy's sci-fi drugs of choice. At 16, I convinced my parents to let me join the Doubleday Science Fiction Book Club. When you joined, you got a bunch of books as an incentive, 9 for 99 cents or something like that. One of those books was the anthology Dangerous Visions edited by Harlan Ellison.

It was either a wake up call or an invite into the group mind for the perverse. These were science fiction stories but filled with topics, language, emotions and controversy not visited by the usual 60s schoolboy rather than the more technological but simplified social mindsets of Heinlein and Asimov. There were horror elements in some but most of all they made me think...a lot. Dangerous Visions introduced me to a number of authors that made an everlasting impact on me including Philip K. Dick, Fritz Leiber, J. G. Ballard,...and Harlan Ellison.

I started hunting down the books of Harlan Ellison in my often obsessive style .Ellison arguably did his best work in the 60s and 70s; "Repent, Repent Said the Ticktockman", "I Have No Mouth but I Must Scream", "A Boy and his Dog", and "Shatterday" are all important and now classic short fiction. The list is long. But it left me yearning not for the mainstream but for the unusual. The fiction that your father and mother wouldn't understand. The tales that seemed a little off from the polite society. The type of stories that sensed of chaos but smelled of relevancy. For the social concerns of Ellison's mind were never far away in any of his writings. If his stories sometimes felt rude and manic, it was rudeness that came with the anger of observing social injustice and wondering why the "Visigoths" in our society were so blind to it. For me, the stories of Ellison were just as much as an awakening and a foundation for my growth as a human being as the Civil Rights Movement, men on the moon, and the assassination of Kennedy and King.

So now we are in the 21th century. Harlan is in his 70s and recently has suffered a stroke, although he is recovering and from what I hear from people still in touch with him, he is "still Ellison" which I imagine evokes in some people a nostalgic feeling of pleasure, relief and dread. Can & Can'tankerous is his newest collection of stories featuring, as stated by the publisher, "ten previously uncollected tales from the fifth and sixth decades of Harlan Ellison’s professional writing career". A couple stories are 21th century rewrites of earlier fiction from the 50s. The others are not on the level of his classics like his work from the 70s. That would be asking too much from a writer who has already surpassed both quantity and quality of most writers his age. Yet the Ellison wit, style, and emotion are all there. Some stories like "How Interesting, a Tiny Man" shows the social mind of Ellison that often waivers between idealism and cynicism. "Never Send to Know For Whom the Lettuce Wilts" displays his quirky humor in a tale that starts with the search for a fortune cookie factory and ends with very weird aliens. "Incognita Inc". is a homage to the cartography of imaginary worlds and feels a bit Bradbury to me. "Goodbye to All That" at first reads like a single punchline story but says a lot in a few pages with an climatic wry reference that I guess some people didn't get.. "The Toad Prince or Sex Queen of the Martian Pleasure Dome" is the longest, most fantastical and most intricate story of the lot. It display much of what makes Ellison so original. It is possibly the best of the ten but picking a best Ellison tale even among the ten in this collection is a very subjective matter.

Ellison includes introductions and sometimes afterwords to the stories giving insight in how they came about and how they were received. But the most intriguing bit of non-fiction throughout the book are brief italicized segments that describe his stroke in 2014. They add an extra dimension to the book and are consistent with the writer's habit of placing everything out there for you to see.

Rating this work, though, causes the reviewer to admit to some issues. The nature of uncollected stories throughseveral decades give the collection a haphazard feel. His best collections like Deathbird Stories and Shatterday have an intensity and mood through them like glue for the mind. These stories feel more like also-rans even if they would give Sea Biscuit a run for his money. Yet that running description of his stroke does manage to bring them together in a way unusual to a collection. He also gives some insight in the art of writing in his introductions. I am also happy to hear that through the decades he still has his beloved portable Olympic typewriter and kept up with his two fingered 120 words a minute, at least until his stroke and with Ellison...perhaps even now?

So in the fickled and unscientific art of reviewing , especially with established authors who tend to be judged by the bulk of their work., I would give this a 3.5 out of 5 stars. It is a splendid work but mainly for those already captured in Ellisonland. For the readers still to discover Ellison, I must direct to either Deathbird Stories or Shatterday then they can check out where the master has taken us.

[Stewart Tame · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of new stories from Harlan Ellison is always a joyful occasion. I’ve been a fan of the man’s work for so long that it's impossible for me to be objective about it. The stories are brilliant and wonderful. They're always brilliant and wonderful. His output may have diminished over the years, but he writes as well as ever. Some highlights:

“How Interesting: A Tiny Man” is as fine as anything he’s ever written.

“From A to Z, in the Sarsaparilla Alphabet” echoes the format of “From A to Z, in the Chocolate Alphabet” published in Strange Wine many years ago: twenty six short short stories revolving around--in this case--gods and mythical creatures, one for each letter of the alphabet. In his afterword, he mentions ideas for two more stories in this format. I’m keen to read them, but, as with all announcements for future Ellison projects, I’ll wait to actually see them before I get too excited …

“Never Send to Know For Whom the Lettuce Wilts” and “Goodbye to All That” both made me laugh out loud. Harlan can be damn funny when he wants to be. But don't be lulled into a false sense of security because he can also crush your heart and freeze your blood. He’s sneaky that way.

And between and around the stories are the usual Ellisonian digressions and autobiographical asides. His books function as extensions of his personality, which is why they're so insanely addictive. Harlan Ellison books can be habit forming. Don't say I didn't warn you. Highly, highly recommended!

[Steve · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF @30%

Harlan Ellison used to be one of my favorite writers, and he's written so many classics that are near the top of my all-time favorites list.

I'm not sure what happened, if my old age or HIS old age got in the way, but I can't read this one. The stories that I finished made absolutely no sense, had no purpose that I could find.

I hate when that happens, it's so disappointing.

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am an Ellison fan, and have been for almost twenty years, so I bought this book once I learned of it's existence. I was two years late, sorry.
The main reason for this purchase was "From A to Z in the Sarsaparilla Alphabet", spiritual sequel to "... Chocolate Alphabet", one of my favorite novellas ever. This one was quite good, but not quite on the level of the earlier piece.
That's a running theme here; there are echoes of earlier works all over this book, and if the stories don't live up to their predecessors, they don't sully them either. It's good, but not his best. Still, the first all-new collection in almost twenty years is a big deal, and if you're excited at the prospect, you'll find it worthwhile.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Harlan Ellison. As far back as I can remember, I've always loved Harlan Ellison. I have a photograph of him speaking at a Star Trek convention some time back in the '80's. (FYI, it was not as cool back then to say you went to a con. Now that shit is conventional. Then, you were just weird. I dragged my dad to many many Star Trek conventions. I was super, extra-special weird.) I have two whole bookshelves filled with his books. I used to peruse the used bookstores in Chicago to find used old Ellison books. I still measure the worth of any bookstore by whether I can find Ellison's books. (I'm tired of only seeing Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man. No, I'm not going to read it.) I learned the words bugfuck, widdershins, djinn and about 2346 more from Harlan. (If you know what stories those words are from, we need to be friends.)

It hurts to see that he's having health issues. I kind of presumed that anyone that obnoxiously crotchety simply couldn't get sick. Nonetheless, I am happy to have several newish Ellison books to read. This one was great. I really enjoyed these stories. The next up will be the fantastically named The Last Person to Marry a Duck Lived 300 Years Ago.

[Sherrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Science fiction icon Harlan Ellison has just released a new collection of short stories, along with introductory notes, afterwords and commentary on the recent stroke that had him in intensive care. I can't give a balanced review, as Harlan has been my literary hero for over 30 years, but I did thoroughly enjoy reading this short story collection.

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first book by Harlan Ellison I read was Angry Candy about 20 years ago, so I was curious to read this one, published in 2015. Ellison can get too "far out" for me, as can Terry Pratchett--but they both are special to Neil Gaiman, and for that alone, I wanted to try this one, published a year after Ellison had a stroke. It's a collection of writings that weren't published, and some are better than others. But as the last lines of the blurb on the back cover say: "Strokes be damned! Ellison's still here!"

This NPR review by Jason Sheehan says it for me:
http://www.npr.org/2016/01/02/4612813...

"Harlan Ellison is America's weird uncle. He's the angry, elderly cousin at the table — the one who, for weeks before dinner, everyone asks about. Is he coming this year? Is Harlan gonna be there? They ask because they're worried; Harlan is always starting something. But they'd also be sad if he wasn't there. Ellison is old now, but age hasn't dimmed his anger or taken the edge off his humor. He's our curmudgeon. He's family.....

Most important, he's back. A new collection of shorts — annotated, as is his way, with little stories, forewords, afterwords, explanations and interstitial material — is on the shelves, bearing the odd (and oddly Ellisonian) title Can & Can'tankerous. He's got a lot of stuff in here. A lot of rage, some sadness, more laughs. There's the story (a bit famous now, called "How Interesting: A Tiny Man") about the creation of a tiny, perfect man, humanity's irrational fears, and how they can condense into a rain of hatred against anything different....

The tiny man story also gets two endings, each grimmer (and more inevitable) than the last. But he follows them with "Never Send To Know For Whom The Lettuce Wilts", which is the most Ellison-y tale of the lot — goofy, but prescient, cruel and smart, having to do with a curious man, a fortune cookie, and an alien trying to conquer the world through small, demoralizing acts (like wilting lettuce, making nails bend, and inventing the English language).....

That's how Ellison rolls. Tired, old, ornery — and yet kind, too. Generous. Giving us stories, and then stories about the stories. The lettuce story? Inspired by a Chinese dinner with Norman Spinrad in 1956, sold to Amazing Stories that same year for $49.50, then remastered for this collection. "Weariness" is just a few hundred words long but his afterword is a kind of love letter to Ray Bradbury, and runs for five times the story's length, maybe more. And it is beautiful.

The best moments in all of Can & Can'tankerous are also the saddest, though. Between each story, Ellison has included a few italicized lines describing the stroke he suffered in 2014 — the lead-up to it, the moment of it, what came after. He does this because (like with the forewords, the afterwords, et cetera) he can't not do it. His stories can't exist without the framework of Harlan Ellison explaining why they exist — talking about dinner with Norman or a conversation with Ray or the sensation of one side of his body just quitting on him one day. He's a man who literally can't fall down without writing a story about it.

And because he's Harlan Ellison, the story of him falling down one day is the best, funniest, saddest, sweetest and truest tale of the bunch."

I wrote this review on my first read of the book in 2016, and Ellison died this year (2018). It's fitting to include Jason Sheehan's article from NPR for this irascible, large-hearted man:
https://www.npr.org/2018/06/29/624641...

"Harlan Ellison is dead. He was 375 years old. He died fighting alien space bears.

Harlan is dead. He exploded in his living room, in his favorite chair, apoplectic over the absolute garbage fire this world has become. He's dead, gone missing under mysterious circumstances, leaving behind many suspects. He went down arguing over the law of gravity with a small plane in which he was flying. Harlan took the contrary position. He won.

Harlan Ellison, science fiction writer and legendarily angry man, died Thursday. He exited peacefully (as far as such things go) at home and in his sleep. He was 84 years old.

Any one of those first lies seems to me more likely than the truth of the last one. Hard enough to believe that Ellison is gone — that something out there finally stilled that great and furious spirit and pried those pecking fingers from the keyboard of his Olympia typewriter (without, apparently, the aid of explosives). But a quiet farewell to this life that he loved so largely and this world that he excoriated so beautifully? If someone had asked me, I would've bet on the space bears....

He lived like he had nothing to lose, and he wrote the same way. Twenty hours a day sometimes, hunched over a typewriter, just pounding. He published something like 1,800 stories in his life and some of them (not just one of them or two of them, but a lot of them) are among the best, most important things ever put down on paper.

"My work is foursquare for chaos," he once told Stephen King. "I spend my life personally, and my work professionally, keeping the soup boiling. Gadfly is what they call you when you are no longer dangerous; I much prefer troublemaker, malcontent, desperado. I see myself as a combination of Zorro and Jiminy Cricket. My stories go out from here and raise hell."....

To say he was one-of-a-kind would be trite, and he would likely hate that. What he was, was a legend. Singular. Absolutely deserving of all the love and all the anger he earned in his time. With his work, he has purchased immortality at bulk rates. With his life, he stayed on till dawn and cursed the sun for rising. If ever there was a man who lived more than he was due, it was Harlan Ellison.

He's earned his rest.

And the respect of the space bears."

[James Swenson · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the Afterword to "Goodbye to All That," the author writes, "All I'm saying is that this is a great short story...," with the emphasis in the original. One paragraph later, an introductory note begins with the sentence, "`He Who Grew Up Reading Sherlock Holmes' is -- I think -- an important story."

Harlan Ellison is a famous name, and I'd like to admire his stories, but there seems to be no chance I'll ever admire them as much as he does.

[Steve Klemz · Rating 4 out of 5]

The last collection of short stories published before Harlan's death. Certainly a couple of classics that will land in best of anthologies down the road. Time to pull out a few more volumes, his short stories are addictive.

[Ralph Blackburn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can & Can'tankerous by Harlan Ellison- A police officer finds a hundred-year old body dead but also viably pregnant. A strange fortune cookie script sends a curious man on cosmic investigation. Such are the musings and wonderment of a Harlan Ellison short story collection. This is his latest and collects most, if not all, of his recent output plus some "lost" manuscripts from the past coming to the light, some for the first time. The stories are a mixed bag but the intro and afterword for each are funny, and very informative. One particular story, "From A to Z in The Sarsaparilla Alphabet", a series of 22 self-contained stories is dedicated to story-smith Frederic Brown, are inventive and challenging. I've been reading Ellison for over fifty years and this, for the most part, is not as stellar a some of his other works; no Death Bird here, no Harlequin, no Boy and his Dog, just a bunch of stuff that's way better than anything else out there. Let's face it- it's Harlan, What's to complain!

[Tim Hicks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was going to give this four stars as I started, but then I thought, "Why not five?"
It doesn't break through the walls of SF/F as Ellison has so often done; as the notes mention, he's mellowed a bit. There isn't the shivering "ewww!" of I Have No Mouth or Repent, Harlequin. There is no sign of the curmudgeonly Harlan, although I don't remember that ever showing in his work anyway.

Just a solid book of clever, engaging, intelligent and interesting short stories, deftly told with his usual classy style. You know you're reading a classy, polished writer, but somehow noticing that doesn't break the flow of the story.

I thought the stories were ALL good, which is rare these days.

What more can you ask of a book?

Also, I have to mention - you see that creaky 80+-year-old man in the other checkout line?
Be nice, he might be Ellison, who was born in 1934. Time to check your assumptions about octogenarians?

[Mary Spickler · Rating 1 out of 5]

This collection of short stories is really hit-or-miss. I enjoyed some of the stories and others were so awful I wished I could regain the time wasted reading them. This author was recommended to me by a friend after discussing literary interests, and I plan on giving him a chance, reading some other of his books, but this one just wasn’t for me.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harlan Ellison’s latest story collection has a loose overall theme of encounters with gods or godlike beings. These 10 stories showcase the sheer range of Ellison’s capabilities as a writer, combining elements of fantasy, science fiction, mystery, horror, and humor, depending on the needs of the story. The stories and interstitial introductions, afterwords and anecdotes work remarkably well together, creating a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. In particular, this collection illustrates his spirit of playfulness and experimentation, continually pushing the envelope of style and story structure.

The overall mood and tone of the stories range from dark and gritty (“Objects of Desire in the Mirror…,” “He Who Grew Up Reading Sherlock Holmes”) to absurdly humorous (“Never Send to Know for Whom the Lettuce Wilts”, “Loose Cannon,” “Goodbye to All That”) to poignant and elegiac (“Incognita inc,” “Weariness”). My personal favorite among the stories is “Incognita, inc,” probably the best “magic shop” story I’ve ever read, a poignant commentary on the downsizing of imagination in the modern world. Another standout is his Nebula winner “How Interesting: A Tiny Man,” a commentary on creativity and public backlash that allows for multiple interpretations (and even has two endings). “Never Send to Know for Whom the Lettuce Wilts” is not a deep story but is lots of fun, featuring an absurd alien with the most ridiculous plan for world conquest ever imagined. This collection answers questions that you probably never thought to ask (or ones for which you never knew you wanted answers). Who writes the fortunes in fortune cookies? What is the ultimate punchline? Who writes the maps to imaginary lands? What is a Nidhoog? The answers to these and many other questions will surprise and enlighten you. Some stories work better than others, but I enjoyed them all and together they show a remarkable and unique imagination at work.

Ellison also intersperses snippets of a poignant anecdote about his stroke in between each story, which creates a unique effect, almost making the stories seem like some interconnected fragmented narrative spinning out of his brain during the stroke. As he notes, “all the tales seem interlocking now.” That he can still create effects with the written word that I’ve never seen before is an amazing achievement for a writer in his eighties. Highly recommended.

[Cale · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of Harlan Ellison has some familiar favorites (Incognita Inc. specifically, although Never Send to Know for Whome the Lettuce Wilts is also absurdly fun), and a couple stories I hadn't run into before. I don't think I had seen the Sarsaparilla Alphabet in its complete form, or Goodbye to All That. None of the stories new to me are going to rank in his best, and you get a sense from Ellison's forewords and afterwords that he knew he was coming to the end of his writing days with some of them. His comments about the stories are as entertaining as the stories themselves (including a Neil Gaiman introduction that dwarfs the length of the story it introduces; a fact which the introduction spends it entirety making light of), although the brief comments depicting the incident of his stroke are a cold splash of water between each piece.
If you're a fan of Ellison, it's worth picking this up to see if any of the stories are new to you (the Toad Prince novella is probably the key determining factor), but those not familiar with him should start somewhere else. These stories aren't bad, but there are much better collections to give you a true sense of Ellison's talent.

[Luke Bishop · Rating 3 out of 5]

Harlan Ellison's final short story collection publishes a variety of stories from the last decades of his writing career. I hate to say that it shows. Ellison reputedly produced around 1700 short stories, so I can't fault the guy for running out of steam at the end of his life, especially considering his health problems. However, it is still sad that his final collection did not go out on a particularly strong note. With that in mind, this book wasn't bad but simply ok. However, for a man of Ellison's talent and repertoire, I think that makes it feel all the more mediocre.

Some stand-outs
"From A to Z, in the Sarsaparilla Alphabet" - I appreciated all the mythological references, but I think the stories are hit or miss.
"The Toad Prince" - A novella about a Martian courtesan trying to save the planet. Its predictably zany, but fairly effective with a curious ending.
"Incognita, INC." - The story itself is fine. The truly enjoyable part is basking in the enormous number of famous places from mythology and fiction that Ellison references here.

[Eric Copeland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this collection of short stories, I found myself often asking, "What the hell did I just read?" and, occasionally, I would also ask "What the hell am I reading?" It's as if Terry Gilliam gave up film, Salvador Dali abandoned painting, and Samuel Beckett ignored the stage, and each of them instead focused on short fiction. From a fortune-cookie-writing alien who protects the Earth pending a future conquest, to Norse gods who meet at the A&P and eventually find their way to Chinatown, to a crime story that encompasses every corner of the planet, this collection will no doubt thrill Ellison fans, and confound everyone else.

I would like to point out that McCormick doesn't make bourbon. They make whiskey, but any bourbon made at that distillery will be under the Holladay label. Just saying.

[Jodi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have long worshiped at Ellison's alter. I read most of my large Ellisonian collection between high school and college and sporadically since then. People have always said my vocabulary is good but compared with Ellison my vocabulary has regressed to that of a preschooler. This is not a bad thing, he makes me work harder. But these were not his best stories. They were good, interesting, unfortunately, at the end of most of the them I wasn't disquieted, I was confused. This isn't to say there weren't some winners and as always, the forewords and the afterwords are always worth the price of admission. Plus learning a little more about his stroke was also interesting. But when I think about Ellison's body of work, these will not be the stories I remember.

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Typically Cantankerous

The stories are excellent as always. There are a multitude of genres to choose from, science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery/suspense, magical realism, fantastique, whatever. It's difficult to figure which story to recommend. I'd recommend all of them. However, the last three, the reader will have to use brain muscle, to get the electro-chemistry to circulate thru this big grey cell commonly called a brain, to figure what Ellison called "a Chinese puzzle box" stories. If you're looking to read mindless entertainment, Harlan Ellison is not for you. These stories are not mindless typing. They never are, and never will be. You want to read to think, then they are readily available. Dig in.

[Craig Childs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Can & Can’tankerous is Harlan Ellison’s first collection of new material since Slippage (1997). That’s not to say he wasn’t busy over the last 19 years. He published 31 books, after all, but they were retrospectives, reprints (sometimes with updated material), collections of obscure stories and screenplays from the 1950’s-1970’s, and graphic novel adaptations of previously published work.

On the whole, this is a strong collection—with a Nebula award-winner and a Bram Stoker nominee--that shows Ellison, while his output may have slowed, still has authorial chops.

How Interesting: A Tiny Man – Tied for the Nebula Award in 2011. This story uses satire and speculative fiction to examine the nature of creativity and society’s responses to it.

Never Send to Know for Whom the Lettuce Wilts -- HE extensively rewrote his 1956 story “But Who Wilts the Lettuce”. The result is a well-paced but thin story about a gnome-like alien attempting to subvert Earth through small inconveniences. He bends nails, wilts lettuce, weakens buttons, and even invents the English language. He wears a yellow button with the proclamation “Conqueror”.

Objects of Desire in the Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear – HE wrote this in a single sitting at a bookstore after Chris Carter (producer of the X-files) suggested the premise. The result is sci-fi noir unlike anything else I have seen from him. The ending is a mess, though. In the final two pages, readers abruptly encounter a gender-shifting time-traveling succubus, and the final paragraph introduces a paradoxical time-loop without any explanation. The rushed ending is a shame because this story surely contains the seeds for a great novella.

Loose Cannon, or Rubber Duckies from Space—This is a dreadfully bad 200-word story commissioned by a magazine and inspired by a painting. However, it is introduced by a hysterical 800-word essay from Neil Gaiman which tries to sell the story as all that’s left of Harlan’s 17-volume masterpiece fifty years in the making. Harlan must have a great sense of humor, because Gaiman spoofs both his obsession for brevity and also his reputation for sometimes failing to deliver big projects on time, or even at all (Dangerous Visions 3? Blood’s A Rover?). Assuming it was all planned in advance, this is a fun little piece of literary mayhem.

From A to Z, in the Sarsaparilla Alphabet—Nominated for a 2001 Bram Stoker award. Comprised of 26 short-short stories, each one concerning a different creature of myth and legend, presented in alphabetical order (Archon, Banshee, Charon, etc.) Some tales are funny, some violent, some disturbing. HE draws on Greek, Norse, Chinese Egyptian myths, as well as American tall tales. Texan author Joe Lansdale even gets a shout-out. These are wildly inventive and fun, but also highly informed. Case in point: I did not understand the two-sentence tale about Seraphim, until I researched the nine celestial orders of angels common in Eastern Orthodox doctrine.

Weariness – Three ancient alien beings confront the end of the universe and ponder the existence of an afterlife. Another piece of flash fiction, this time inspired by a dark moody surrealistic painting; HE wrote this tale in an hour during a writer’s workshop. The painting is reproduced in the book, as well as an afterward explaining how he wrote this as a tribute to his friend Ray Bradbury and how it is part of their continuing philosophical conversation about God and death. I found this one to be effective in its own unique way.

“The Toad Prince, or Sex Queen of the Martian Pleasure Domes” – My favorite story in this book. If you believe the tongue-in-cheek introduction, HE sold this in 1957 to Amazing Stories but it never got published. What did he do? He revised it and sold it to the same magazine again in 1999, this time telling them it was a loving tribute/parody of the old time pulp style. The story is classic Ellison – inventive, weird, and refuses to march along in the direction you think it will go.

Incognita, Inc – An ancient cartographer who draws maps of lost lands and fabled kingdoms is finally put out of business by modern technology. This is a magic shop story that a less mature HE would have played for laughs, like “Djinn, No Chaser”. However, the power of this light fantasy is its evocation of a sense of loss in a world where technology has eliminated all frontiers and mystery. The final scene is both triumphant and fitting.

Goodbye to All That – The only misstep in this collection. HE occasionally writes a story that is essentially a joke leading up to a single punch line. If the joke is funny and the story is very short, like “Voices in the Garden”, then it works ok for me. I chuckle and move on to the next page. This punch line was funny but not enough to justify the whole story. The afterword HE wrote was entertaining, though.

He Who Grew Up Reading Sherlock Holmes – HE creates his own Sherlockian puzzle with this story. He provides a series of scenes (which may or may not have occurred in the order presented), several mysterious characters (most without names), and a resolution to an undefined mystery. The reader must work out the plot—who did what, and when, and why. I read it twice but have not been able to unravel the story. I searched online, and it would appear no other sharp-eyed readers have posted solutions.

[David Allen · Rating 2 out of 5]

A decent final book by Ellison collecting his 21st century output. I'd say two-thirds of the stories are entertaining, one-third weak. (I could have done without the Sarsaparilla Alphabet.) I don't know if Ellison was self-publishing for monetary or control reasons or because nobody wanted to work with him, but either way, it's a little sad that a writer of his stature was reduced to releasing this oddly sized, print-on-demand book. All that said, it's an envoi to a long, remarkable career.

[Steven VanderMolen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harlan's last published book of short work, and one of his best. There's a strong sense of melancholy to this collection. Mr. Ellison knew his time left on Earth was short, and he addresses this issue. This is in no means depressing, Harlan tackles this with style and grace. A very fitting ending to one of THE best and most intelligent, clever, and FUNNY writers this world will ever know. RIP, Mr. Ellison, and thank you for all of your wonderful work over the years.

[Steven Witt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harlan Ellison, in his seventh decade as one of the finest speculative fiction writers, is at his acerbic and Cantankerous best. This is a wonderful collection of his recent short stories, all lots-o-fun! If you haven't read Harlan before, this would be a great place to start. Find his books and stories.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is Ellison's final volume of short stories before his death. In between stories, he talks a little about the stroke he had. Most of these stories are pretty entertaining, especially "The Toad Prince...". The only story that I didn't find interesting (and skipped after reading the entry for "B") was the Abcderian "From A to Z in the Sasparilla Alphabet".

[Robert Blenheim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three of the stories in this collection are prime Ellison, two or three are very good, one or two are 'filler' (not his best).

His best are as good as anything written in the English language. That alone makes this worthwhile.

I still don't believe he's not with us. Live forever, Harlan!

[Mark Cofta · Rating 5 out of 5]

An intriguing collection of Ellison stories, supplemented by introductions and afterwards (including one by Neil Gaiman) and Ellison's commentary about the debilitating stroke he suffered. A beautifully produced book, as well.

[Duane · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting collection of short stories that really shine with a feast of obscure and well-chosen words.

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've somehow managed to read virtually no Harlan Ellison before which seems crazy. I need to find a recommended reading order somewhere and try more.

[JayDeeReading · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those cases where it'd be a 3.5 if goodreads let us give half-stars.

[Jaime · Rating 2 out of 5]

Apparently I'm not much of a fan of Ellison's short fiction. Didn't finish.

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good collection of late (but not The Late) Ellison. Weird, funny, and usually pretty esoteric.