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Nebula Awards Showcases #1
Nebula Award Stories
FOUR AWARD-WINNING STORIES
THE SALIVA TREE, by Brian W. Aldiss
An invasion of invisible monsters strikes terror on an English farm.
HE WHO SHAPES, by Roger Zelazny
The science of tomorrow makes possible a new kind of psychiatrist--one who can enter another human mind and reshape it...if he dares!
THE DOORS OF HIS FACE, THE LAMPS OF HIS MOUTH, by Roger Zelazny
A man measures his courage against a Venusian sea monster the size of a thirty-story building.
"REPENT, HARLEQUIN!" SAID THE TICKTOCKMAN, by Harlan Ellison
A John Birch world of the future where tardiness takes time off your life, and a joker who's never on time throws jelly-beans into the clockworks.
Four Distinguised Runners-up:
THE DROWNED GIANT, by J.G. Ballard
COMPUTERS DON'T ARGUE, by Gordon R. Dickson
BECALMED IN HELL, by Larry Niven
BALANCED ECOLOGY, by James H. Schmitz
"The stories in this book...show the quality of modern science fiction, its range, and, I think, its growing depth and maturity. Science fiction has come a long way." --DAMON KNIGHT
Contents
ix • Introduction (Nebula Award Stories) • (1966) • essay by Damon Knight
1 • The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth • (1965) • novelette by Roger Zelazny
34 • Balanced Ecology • (1965) • shortstory by James H. Schmitz
53 • "Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman • (1965) • shortstory by Harlan Ellison
65 • He Who Shapes • (1965) • novella by Roger Zelazny
151 • Computers Don't Argue • (1965) • shortstory by Gordon R. Dickson
165 • Becalmed in Hell • [Known Space] • (1965) • shortstory by Larry Niven
178 • The Saliva Tree • (1965) • novella by Brian W. Aldiss
234 • The Drowned Giant • (1964) • shortstory by J. G. Ballard
THE SALIVA TREE, by Brian W. Aldiss
An invasion of invisible monsters strikes terror on an English farm.
HE WHO SHAPES, by Roger Zelazny
The science of tomorrow makes possible a new kind of psychiatrist--one who can enter another human mind and reshape it...if he dares!
THE DOORS OF HIS FACE, THE LAMPS OF HIS MOUTH, by Roger Zelazny
A man measures his courage against a Venusian sea monster the size of a thirty-story building.
"REPENT, HARLEQUIN!" SAID THE TICKTOCKMAN, by Harlan Ellison
A John Birch world of the future where tardiness takes time off your life, and a joker who's never on time throws jelly-beans into the clockworks.
Four Distinguised Runners-up:
THE DROWNED GIANT, by J.G. Ballard
COMPUTERS DON'T ARGUE, by Gordon R. Dickson
BECALMED IN HELL, by Larry Niven
BALANCED ECOLOGY, by James H. Schmitz
"The stories in this book...show the quality of modern science fiction, its range, and, I think, its growing depth and maturity. Science fiction has come a long way." --DAMON KNIGHT
Contents
ix • Introduction (Nebula Award Stories) • (1966) • essay by Damon Knight
1 • The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth • (1965) • novelette by Roger Zelazny
34 • Balanced Ecology • (1965) • shortstory by James H. Schmitz
53 • "Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman • (1965) • shortstory by Harlan Ellison
65 • He Who Shapes • (1965) • novella by Roger Zelazny
151 • Computers Don't Argue • (1965) • shortstory by Gordon R. Dickson
165 • Becalmed in Hell • [Known Space] • (1965) • shortstory by Larry Niven
178 • The Saliva Tree • (1965) • novella by Brian W. Aldiss
234 • The Drowned Giant • (1964) • shortstory by J. G. Ballard
244 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1966
6 people are currently reading
506 people want to read
About the author
Damon Knight
580 books97 followersDamon Francis Knight was an American science fiction author, editor, and critic.
Knight's first professional sale was a cartoon drawing to a science-fiction magazine, Amazing Stories. His first story, "Resilience", was published in 1941. He is best known as the author of "To Serve Man", which was adapted for The Twilight Zone. He was a recipient of the Hugo Award, founder of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), cofounder of the National Fantasy Fan Federation, cofounder of the Milford Writer's Workshop, and cofounder of the Clarion Writers Workshop. Knight lived in Eugene, Oregon, with his wife Kate Wilhelm.
Knight's first professional sale was a cartoon drawing to a science-fiction magazine, Amazing Stories. His first story, "Resilience", was published in 1941. He is best known as the author of "To Serve Man", which was adapted for The Twilight Zone. He was a recipient of the Hugo Award, founder of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), cofounder of the National Fantasy Fan Federation, cofounder of the Milford Writer's Workshop, and cofounder of the Clarion Writers Workshop. Knight lived in Eugene, Oregon, with his wife Kate Wilhelm.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 13, 2022
It's fitting that Damon Knight, generally credited as the founder of the Science Fiction Writers of America, edited this first annual anthology of award-winning stories as selected by vote of the membership. The Nebula winners were Harlan Ellison for best short story ("Repent Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman), Roger Zelazny for best novelette (The Doors of His Face, The Lamps of His Mouth), and there was a tie for best novella (Zelazny again, for He Who Shapes, and The Saliva Tree by Brian Aldiss. There are also four runners-up included, an early amusing computers-are-evil story from Gordon R. Dickson, a very good James H. Schmitz story, an early hard-science story by Larry Niven, and the only story in the book that didn't appear in one of the genre digests (from Playboy) by J. G. Ballard. All of the stories were originally published in 1965, so some are somewhat dated by current standards, but I think they're all still quite worthwhile. The two Zelaznys have long been among my favorites (He Who Shapes was expanded into the novel The Dream Master), and Ellison's story is among the most-often reprinted stories ever published anywhere ever. (Jelly for God's sake beans...This is madness!) It was a very auspicious kick-off to a long-running series of the best of the field.
June 28, 2021
Good stuff, for being as old as I am. Skipped THE DOORS O HIS FACE, THE LAMPS OF HIS MOUTH, "REPENT, HARLEQUIN!" SAID THE TICKTOCKMAN, HE WHO SHAPES, and BECALMED IN HELL, having previously read them in other collections.
March 15, 2021
3.5 stars, rounded up
This was published in 1967, so a lot of the outdated applies in the usual ways (casual sexism, horrifying terms for various disabilities, nearly all white dudes, etc.). I liked the stories around those things, though.
Balanced Ecology, by James H. Schmitz, was the one I found most pure fun to read, and is only coincidentally the lone story that both contains even a single female character and manages not to be weird about it. It's highly original and a little reminiscent of Heinlein's juveniles in its sense of adventure.
You know that feeling you get when you're reading something and it's really clear that a character is being lionized specifically because it's the author's idealized vision of themselves (raises quizzical eyebrow in Hemingway's direction)? That is so pervasive throughout "Repent, Harlequin, said the Ticktock Man" that I couldn't believe it took me nearly the whole to story to realize how much Harlequin sounds like Harlan. (rolls eyes) I know. This story, aside from competing with The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth for most melodramatic title, mostly convinced me that I'm glad I never met the author. He is, I can say with certainty, the sort who would say "wake up, sheeple!" on the internet earnestly and without irony.
I read somewhere that Zelazny wanted to call The Doors of His Face [...] instead The Leviathan of Venus, which would have made a ton more sense and would have been thematically congruent with the story, which is in the style of an old pulp. His other in the collection, He Who Shapes, is darker and very interesting, even while the characterization of all of the women (a sum total of four, 1 in the former story, 3 in the latter) leaves, ah, something to be desired. It's psychologically complex and is worth a reread.
The Saliva Tree was quite good and I can see how it tied with He Who Shapes.
Gordon Dickson's Computers Don't Argue was cute and prescient.
Becalmed in Hell by Larry Niven was good and, in my opinion, ought to have won over Ellison's story.
The short, absurdist The Drowned Giant, by J. G. Ballard, was only mildly neat for this reader.
This was published in 1967, so a lot of the outdated applies in the usual ways (casual sexism, horrifying terms for various disabilities, nearly all white dudes, etc.). I liked the stories around those things, though.
Balanced Ecology, by James H. Schmitz, was the one I found most pure fun to read, and is only coincidentally the lone story that both contains even a single female character and manages not to be weird about it. It's highly original and a little reminiscent of Heinlein's juveniles in its sense of adventure.
You know that feeling you get when you're reading something and it's really clear that a character is being lionized specifically because it's the author's idealized vision of themselves (raises quizzical eyebrow in Hemingway's direction)? That is so pervasive throughout "Repent, Harlequin, said the Ticktock Man" that I couldn't believe it took me nearly the whole to story to realize how much Harlequin sounds like Harlan. (rolls eyes) I know. This story, aside from competing with The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth for most melodramatic title, mostly convinced me that I'm glad I never met the author. He is, I can say with certainty, the sort who would say "wake up, sheeple!" on the internet earnestly and without irony.
I read somewhere that Zelazny wanted to call The Doors of His Face [...] instead The Leviathan of Venus, which would have made a ton more sense and would have been thematically congruent with the story, which is in the style of an old pulp. His other in the collection, He Who Shapes, is darker and very interesting, even while the characterization of all of the women (a sum total of four, 1 in the former story, 3 in the latter) leaves, ah, something to be desired. It's psychologically complex and is worth a reread.
The Saliva Tree was quite good and I can see how it tied with He Who Shapes.
Gordon Dickson's Computers Don't Argue was cute and prescient.
Becalmed in Hell by Larry Niven was good and, in my opinion, ought to have won over Ellison's story.
The short, absurdist The Drowned Giant, by J. G. Ballard, was only mildly neat for this reader.
February 17, 2019
As with any collection, some of the short stories are great and others are not so great. But worth a read.
May 23, 2018
A bit of a mixed bag, as many short story collections are. While there are alot of great names in this one, many of them are not their best work.
The highlight was definitely Gordon Dickson, his 'story' (really a collection of letters) computers don't argue is brilliantly hilarious. The Saliva Tree is also quite fun, documenting a bit of an alien invasion in the british countryside, while a young man with an interesting acquaintance observes.
I always enjoy a good Burroughs-ian travelogue, which the first two stories are, but they're nothing too special.
The others really seemed to require a bit of an altered state in order to fully appreciate them... 'He who shapes' was long on colorful descriptions, but short on logic and story, though the mutated talking dogs were fun.
The highlight was definitely Gordon Dickson, his 'story' (really a collection of letters) computers don't argue is brilliantly hilarious. The Saliva Tree is also quite fun, documenting a bit of an alien invasion in the british countryside, while a young man with an interesting acquaintance observes.
I always enjoy a good Burroughs-ian travelogue, which the first two stories are, but they're nothing too special.
The others really seemed to require a bit of an altered state in order to fully appreciate them... 'He who shapes' was long on colorful descriptions, but short on logic and story, though the mutated talking dogs were fun.
May 26, 2025
This series is 59 books long as of the writing of this review and still ongoing. This first entry in this series was not auspicious. That's mostly because of the time: 1965. The New Wave movement of science fiction was at its height. Wikipedia has an article on what this science fiction movement of the 1960s and early 1970s was all about: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Wav.... I won't rehash it in this review, except to say I consider it to be a mostly failed experiment. This book contains stories steeped in this school, hence its two-star rating.
The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth (1965) by Roger Zelazny ★★
Just as Moby-Dick or, The Whale by Melville can be considered a fishing story about a hunt for a whale told in an elevated, literary style, so too can Zelazny's highly-regarded tale here. Only instead of taking place on Earth in the mid-nineteenth century off the coast of New England, Zelazny's occurs on Venus, and the hunt is for an underwater, Venusian life-form 300 feet long.
The story won numerous awards for the time, the mid-1960s. There were not many science fiction authors of that era who could write in high literary style. Today there are, and elevated writing style alone is less valued than it once was. Ideas now count for more. This story is less of an anomaly today than it was in 1965 and would not be as highly regarded if it were being published for the first time this year.
Balanced Ecology (1965) by James H. Schmitz ★★
The story is almost as exciting as its title. It is about whether a person should accept money to allow developers to cut down more of the forest than is good for the environment. It's a very suspenseful decision (sarcasm). I won't spoil the ending, except if you read the title you can figure it out.
That's all there is to this story. It's science fiction because it was set on another planet. But it didn't have to be. It would have been just as boring and insubstantial if it had been set on Earth. And nothing would have needed to be changed.
It amazes me how these two stories so far could possibly have been among the best science fiction or fantasy 1965, or any year, had to offer.
"Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman (1965) by Harlan Ellison ★★1/2
This is the classic, counter-culture, 1960s, war-protest SF short story that won so many awards. The half star above two is because even I can recognize how well it's written. Three-star ratings and above are reserved for works I like.
This one isn't really science fiction to my way of thinking. I mean, it's slightly more so than Animal Farm, slightly less so than 1984, both of which I class in the same type of literature as this short story.
He Who Shapes (1965) by Roger Zelazny ★★
I read and reviewed this story eight years ago. I'm not about to relive that torture. If interested, my review can be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show....
Computers Don't Argue (1965) by Gordon R. Dickson ★★★★
This is one of those funny bill-collector-from-hell automated letters stories that spawned its own sub-genre. They never get old.
Becalmed in Hell (1965) by Larry Niven ★★★
In Larry Niven's Known Space novels, the character Eric is a spaceman who controls a spaceship using his brain and nervous system. Eric the person has disintegrated and become the spaceship. The ship's human crewmember, Howie, troubleshoots the ship's problems, both mechanical and psychological. In this story--it's a sequel to an earlier Niven story featuring the same characters exploring Mercury--Eric and Howie now explore a hostile Venusian surface.
This is an enjoyable story even if it reads like a rehash of "The Coldest Place." In this story, the psychological element is downplayed to bring the difficulties the Venusian surface poses more to the forefront. This is not a favorable exchange in my opinion.
The Saliva Tre (1965) by Brian W. Aldiss ★★★
I read and reviewed this novella last year. My review, if interested, may be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show....
The Drowned Giant (1965) by J.G. Ballard ★★★
Perhaps Ballard's most frequently anthologized story, I had read this before a time or two. A large giant corpse washes up on a shore of a small town to become a tourist attraction. It's a statement about humanity's love for a spectacle and its ability to find one from pretty much anything. The story could have been about a dead beached whale that had washed up ashore somewhere, then it would have been neither science fiction, or even necessarily fiction.
The last two fifths of this anthology is significantly better than the first three fifths.
The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth (1965) by Roger Zelazny ★★
Just as Moby-Dick or, The Whale by Melville can be considered a fishing story about a hunt for a whale told in an elevated, literary style, so too can Zelazny's highly-regarded tale here. Only instead of taking place on Earth in the mid-nineteenth century off the coast of New England, Zelazny's occurs on Venus, and the hunt is for an underwater, Venusian life-form 300 feet long.
The story won numerous awards for the time, the mid-1960s. There were not many science fiction authors of that era who could write in high literary style. Today there are, and elevated writing style alone is less valued than it once was. Ideas now count for more. This story is less of an anomaly today than it was in 1965 and would not be as highly regarded if it were being published for the first time this year.
Balanced Ecology (1965) by James H. Schmitz ★★
The story is almost as exciting as its title. It is about whether a person should accept money to allow developers to cut down more of the forest than is good for the environment. It's a very suspenseful decision (sarcasm). I won't spoil the ending, except if you read the title you can figure it out.
That's all there is to this story. It's science fiction because it was set on another planet. But it didn't have to be. It would have been just as boring and insubstantial if it had been set on Earth. And nothing would have needed to be changed.
It amazes me how these two stories so far could possibly have been among the best science fiction or fantasy 1965, or any year, had to offer.
"Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman (1965) by Harlan Ellison ★★1/2
This is the classic, counter-culture, 1960s, war-protest SF short story that won so many awards. The half star above two is because even I can recognize how well it's written. Three-star ratings and above are reserved for works I like.
This one isn't really science fiction to my way of thinking. I mean, it's slightly more so than Animal Farm, slightly less so than 1984, both of which I class in the same type of literature as this short story.
He Who Shapes (1965) by Roger Zelazny ★★
I read and reviewed this story eight years ago. I'm not about to relive that torture. If interested, my review can be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show....
Computers Don't Argue (1965) by Gordon R. Dickson ★★★★
This is one of those funny bill-collector-from-hell automated letters stories that spawned its own sub-genre. They never get old.
Becalmed in Hell (1965) by Larry Niven ★★★
In Larry Niven's Known Space novels, the character Eric is a spaceman who controls a spaceship using his brain and nervous system. Eric the person has disintegrated and become the spaceship. The ship's human crewmember, Howie, troubleshoots the ship's problems, both mechanical and psychological. In this story--it's a sequel to an earlier Niven story featuring the same characters exploring Mercury--Eric and Howie now explore a hostile Venusian surface.
This is an enjoyable story even if it reads like a rehash of "The Coldest Place." In this story, the psychological element is downplayed to bring the difficulties the Venusian surface poses more to the forefront. This is not a favorable exchange in my opinion.
The Saliva Tre (1965) by Brian W. Aldiss ★★★
I read and reviewed this novella last year. My review, if interested, may be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show....
The Drowned Giant (1965) by J.G. Ballard ★★★
Perhaps Ballard's most frequently anthologized story, I had read this before a time or two. A large giant corpse washes up on a shore of a small town to become a tourist attraction. It's a statement about humanity's love for a spectacle and its ability to find one from pretty much anything. The story could have been about a dead beached whale that had washed up ashore somewhere, then it would have been neither science fiction, or even necessarily fiction.
The last two fifths of this anthology is significantly better than the first three fifths.
February 15, 2025
8 stories:
**** The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth (1965) • Roger Zelazny
***** Balanced Ecology (1965) • James H. Schmitz
*** "Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman (1965) • Harlan Ellison
**** He Who Shapes (1965) • Roger Zelazny
* Computers Don't Argue (1965) • Gordon R. Dickson
**** Becalmed in Hell (1965) • Larry Niven
*** The Saliva Tree (1965) • Brian W. Aldiss
* The Drowned Giant (1964) • J. G. Ballard
**** The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth (1965) • Roger Zelazny
***** Balanced Ecology (1965) • James H. Schmitz
*** "Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman (1965) • Harlan Ellison
**** He Who Shapes (1965) • Roger Zelazny
* Computers Don't Argue (1965) • Gordon R. Dickson
**** Becalmed in Hell (1965) • Larry Niven
*** The Saliva Tree (1965) • Brian W. Aldiss
* The Drowned Giant (1964) • J. G. Ballard
October 9, 2015
A lovely collection of short stories, from the days when science fiction was truly 50:50. These stories investigate humanity through the lenses of ecology, engineering, agriculture... and our entrepreneurial streak when dealing with a drowned giant.
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July 3, 2025A solid enough collection, easily worth the $4 it cost me at Wee Book Inn. Stylistically varied, but all quite recognizeable as 1960s sci-fi, for better and worse.
Balanced Ecology was my favourite of the bunch, it felt the most nuanced and the most novel, the environmental theme still feeling particularly resonant today. Ballard's entry had a pleasant melancholy to it, and I'm glad to have finally gotten around to reading "Repent, Harlequin," which is fun once you get past Ellison's glaring sense of self-satisfaction. Computers Don't Argue is both an entertaining comedy of errors and a warning shot against the age of automation in a way that would take only minor updating to be completely contemporary.
A few others didn't work as well for me; The Saliva Tree is drawn out and overwritten, even as a tribute to an era of overly fussy writing. Zelazny's two entries are impressively different from each other, but both feel quite of their time. Not exactly a fair criticism, but I don't think they'd have much appeal for anyone who isn't specifically seeking stories of this vintage.
Balanced Ecology was my favourite of the bunch, it felt the most nuanced and the most novel, the environmental theme still feeling particularly resonant today. Ballard's entry had a pleasant melancholy to it, and I'm glad to have finally gotten around to reading "Repent, Harlequin," which is fun once you get past Ellison's glaring sense of self-satisfaction. Computers Don't Argue is both an entertaining comedy of errors and a warning shot against the age of automation in a way that would take only minor updating to be completely contemporary.
A few others didn't work as well for me; The Saliva Tree is drawn out and overwritten, even as a tribute to an era of overly fussy writing. Zelazny's two entries are impressively different from each other, but both feel quite of their time. Not exactly a fair criticism, but I don't think they'd have much appeal for anyone who isn't specifically seeking stories of this vintage.
April 11, 2025
I've read some of these before. A few have some attempts at sexual activity in them. Some have partial humans hooked up to machinery and computers in a symbiotic ('transhumanist') condition. Some are a bit perplexing in their mechanistic detail for me. Sometimes the exhibition of human behavior was a bit eyew.
Generally, however, they're better than anything that's come out of the 80s, 90s, and on. I mean, of course there are exceptions. These did not wow me either. They were just better than much that has come out in years after.
Little surprised me, or shocked me, or just moved me. I was glad to be reading old sci-fi again, but honestly, it just sorta made me want to go back to Ray Bradbury or Isaac Asimov.
So, maybe these worked after all.
Generally, however, they're better than anything that's come out of the 80s, 90s, and on. I mean, of course there are exceptions. These did not wow me either. They were just better than much that has come out in years after.
Little surprised me, or shocked me, or just moved me. I was glad to be reading old sci-fi again, but honestly, it just sorta made me want to go back to Ray Bradbury or Isaac Asimov.
So, maybe these worked after all.
February 1, 2021
An anthology of the short fiction winners (novella, novelette and short story) for the 1966 Nebula Awards. Also includes four runners-up. The winners will all be reviewed below as I wanted to keep a record of my thoughts on them for an upcoming podcast episode. The Ellison short story is the only overlap winner with the Hugo (the Nebulas had three shorter fiction categories and the Hugos one). The winners here are all worthy stories though the non-winners show a real drop-off in quality. Zelazny had a BIG year in 1965, winning a novel Hugo and two short fiction Nebulas. If you are at all interested in the sf prize winners for a particular year this is an essential anthology series.
R: 3.8/5.0
R: 3.8/5.0
December 2, 2025
Solid collection including a handful of stories I've read before ("'Repent, Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman" and "Computers Don't Argue").
Really enjoyed "He Who Shapes" and "The Drowned Giant" as well.
Really enjoyed "He Who Shapes" and "The Drowned Giant" as well.
December 16, 2017
Mostly entertaining stories, a few are dated.
September 18, 2021
A good collection of old Sci-Fi short stories
December 20, 2022
He who shapes - 4.5 stars
The saliva tree - 3.5 stars
Doors of his face - 4 stars
Repent harlequin - 4.5 stars
Computers don't argue - 4 stars
Becalmed in hell - 3 stars
Drowned giant- 3 stars
Balanced ecology- 3 stars
The saliva tree - 3.5 stars
Doors of his face - 4 stars
Repent harlequin - 4.5 stars
Computers don't argue - 4 stars
Becalmed in hell - 3 stars
Drowned giant- 3 stars
Balanced ecology- 3 stars
July 14, 2023
2.5/5
This being the first anthology of short stories that I've read, I'm struggling to think of how to give it a rating. I'm think of rating them like music albums; rating them as a whole, rather than individually. I also don't really feel like talking about the stories that I didn't like, or felt indifferent about, because that would mean that these reviews take a long time to write.
If we're to do it that way, then I would definitely say this one is mixed. Half of the stories are nonsensical, out-dated, or dull. Because of them, I struggled to make it through the collection as a whole. Which was unfortunate, because there are a few flawed gems here too.
-He Who Shapes, by Roger Zelazney-
I didn't realize that the novella that was fleshed out into The Dream Master was in this collection until I started reading it, and it was a pleasant surprise. A wonderfully original concept, pared with some good prose and a kicker of an ending. Probably won't read The Dream Master for awhile, but I'm interested to see how this was fleshed out into a longer work.
-The Salvia Tree, by Brian Aldiss-
A Lovecraftian story about first contact with invisible aliens in a pastoral setting. A little long-winded and stately, but enjoyable and atmospheric. I really enjoyed how the story builds, leading up to a chaotic and quick finish.
-"Repent Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman, by Harlan Ellison-
I have read very little Ellison, but this has convinced me to read more. A short story about a dystopia heavily influenced by time and scheduling. What really blew me away was the prose. The seeming ease of the writing, and yet so much depth and description. Excellent little thing.
-The Drowned Giant, by J.G. Ballard-
The last story in this anthology, and a really short one. Ballard's prose is on point, and he so effectively creates a tone and a feeling in a limited amount of words. Melancholic and gruesome, yet also full of awe. Not much other than that, but good for what it was.
The disparity in the stories in this anthology leaves me feeling rather middling about the whole thing. Some real clunkers that clogged the whole thing, with nothing superb to balance it out. It's fun though to see a years worth of stories in one place. I have a few of the books in the series, and I'm sure that some years are better than others.
This being the first anthology of short stories that I've read, I'm struggling to think of how to give it a rating. I'm think of rating them like music albums; rating them as a whole, rather than individually. I also don't really feel like talking about the stories that I didn't like, or felt indifferent about, because that would mean that these reviews take a long time to write.
If we're to do it that way, then I would definitely say this one is mixed. Half of the stories are nonsensical, out-dated, or dull. Because of them, I struggled to make it through the collection as a whole. Which was unfortunate, because there are a few flawed gems here too.
-He Who Shapes, by Roger Zelazney-
I didn't realize that the novella that was fleshed out into The Dream Master was in this collection until I started reading it, and it was a pleasant surprise. A wonderfully original concept, pared with some good prose and a kicker of an ending. Probably won't read The Dream Master for awhile, but I'm interested to see how this was fleshed out into a longer work.
-The Salvia Tree, by Brian Aldiss-
A Lovecraftian story about first contact with invisible aliens in a pastoral setting. A little long-winded and stately, but enjoyable and atmospheric. I really enjoyed how the story builds, leading up to a chaotic and quick finish.
-"Repent Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman, by Harlan Ellison-
I have read very little Ellison, but this has convinced me to read more. A short story about a dystopia heavily influenced by time and scheduling. What really blew me away was the prose. The seeming ease of the writing, and yet so much depth and description. Excellent little thing.
-The Drowned Giant, by J.G. Ballard-
The last story in this anthology, and a really short one. Ballard's prose is on point, and he so effectively creates a tone and a feeling in a limited amount of words. Melancholic and gruesome, yet also full of awe. Not much other than that, but good for what it was.
The disparity in the stories in this anthology leaves me feeling rather middling about the whole thing. Some real clunkers that clogged the whole thing, with nothing superb to balance it out. It's fun though to see a years worth of stories in one place. I have a few of the books in the series, and I'm sure that some years are better than others.
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July 25, 2011I loved this! found it in a used book store and have been looking for the other volumes ever since to no avail.
June 26, 2024
[3.5 - He Who Shapes],
[5 - Computers Don’t Argue]
[5 - Computers Don’t Argue]
April 11, 2017
Not all of the stories have aged well, but those that have - wow.
Both of Roger Zelazny's works in this anthology stand out, as he succeeds in bringing a sense of epic myth to the most personal dramas in both his Nebula-winning novella and novelette. Zelazny never fails to connect our most modern developments to our most ancient roots in his writing.
"Repent, Harlequin, Said the Ticktockman!" is Harlan Ellison at his best - which of course means his most bizarre. Fun fact: Ellison started proceedings to sue the movie "In Time" for copyright infringement over this story, but agreed after watching it that the stories were too different for the lawsuit to proceed.
Larry Niven's "Becalmed in Hell" starts out looking like a simple engineering/space rescue story - but doesn't end in quite the way you'd expect.
For the stories that didn't age so well - it's interesting to consider why.
"Balanced Ecology" feels like James Cameron's "Avatar" - but was written fifty years before, and doubtless helped set the template Cameron followed in his work.
Similarly, the theme of "aliens visit the Victorian era" now feels old and cliched - but "The Saliva Tree," 1965's Nebula novella co-winner, probably helped start that trope.
"Computers Don't Argue" doesn't seem avant garde so much as just depressing - which might speak to the matter of how much it has come true, given that it was written in a time well before the digital age.
"The Drowned Giant" didn't quite do it for me - and probably wouldn't have even in the 1960s. But it probably did help to inspire Sandra M. Odell's much more interesting recent story "Godfall," so we have it to thank for that!
Would buy again any day, if only to possess these Zelazny gems.
Both of Roger Zelazny's works in this anthology stand out, as he succeeds in bringing a sense of epic myth to the most personal dramas in both his Nebula-winning novella and novelette. Zelazny never fails to connect our most modern developments to our most ancient roots in his writing.
"Repent, Harlequin, Said the Ticktockman!" is Harlan Ellison at his best - which of course means his most bizarre. Fun fact: Ellison started proceedings to sue the movie "In Time" for copyright infringement over this story, but agreed after watching it that the stories were too different for the lawsuit to proceed.
Larry Niven's "Becalmed in Hell" starts out looking like a simple engineering/space rescue story - but doesn't end in quite the way you'd expect.
For the stories that didn't age so well - it's interesting to consider why.
"Balanced Ecology" feels like James Cameron's "Avatar" - but was written fifty years before, and doubtless helped set the template Cameron followed in his work.
Similarly, the theme of "aliens visit the Victorian era" now feels old and cliched - but "The Saliva Tree," 1965's Nebula novella co-winner, probably helped start that trope.
"Computers Don't Argue" doesn't seem avant garde so much as just depressing - which might speak to the matter of how much it has come true, given that it was written in a time well before the digital age.
"The Drowned Giant" didn't quite do it for me - and probably wouldn't have even in the 1960s. But it probably did help to inspire Sandra M. Odell's much more interesting recent story "Godfall," so we have it to thank for that!
Would buy again any day, if only to possess these Zelazny gems.
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