Product Description
James Blish called him the “finest conscious artist science fiction ever produced.” Kurt Vonnegut based the famous character Kilgore Trout on him. And such luminaries as Harlan Ellison, Stephen King, and Octavia Butler have hailed him as a mentor. Theodore Sturgeon was both a popular favorite and a writer’s writer, carving out a singular place in the literary landscape based on his masterful wordplay, conceptual daring, and narrative drive. Sturgeon’s sardonic sensibility and his skill at interweaving important social issues such as sex—including gay themes—and war into his stories are evident in all of his work, regardless of genre.

Case and the Dreamer displays Sturgeon’s gifts at their peak. The book brings together his last stories, written between 1972 and 1983. They include “The Country of Afterward,” a sexually explicit story Sturgeon had been unable to write earlier in his career, and the title story, about an encounter with a transpatial being that is also a meditation on love. Several previously unpublished stories are included, as well as his final one, “Grizzly,” a poignant take on the lung disease that killed him two years later. Noted critic and anthologist Paul Williams contextualizes Sturgeon as both man and artist in an illuminating afterword, and the book includes an index to the stories in all thirteen volumes. ... Read more

Product Description
This book contains ten major stories by the master of science fiction, fantasy, and horror written during the 1960s. The controversial “If All Men We re Brothers, Would You Let One Marry Your Sister?” shows the author’s technique of “ask the next question” used in a way that shatters social conventions. “When You Care, When You Love” offers a prescient vision of the marriage of deep obsessive love and genetic manipulation, written long before actual cloning techniques existed. “Runesmith” constitutes a rare example of Sturgeon collaborating with a legendary colleague, Harlan Ellison. Included also are two other rarities: two detective stories and a Western that showcase Sturgeon’s knack for characterization and action outside his usual genre. “Take Care of Joey” has been read as an allusion to the complex personal relationship between Sturgeon and Ellison, while “It Was Nothing, Really!” hilariously skewers the mores of the military-industrial complex. As always, these stories demonstrate not only Sturgeon’s brilliant wordplay but also his timeliness, with “Brown-shoes” and “The Nail and the Oracle” standing out as powerful commentaries on the use and abuse of power that might have been written yesterday. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

when you care, when you love...
This is the 11th volume of Ted Sturgeon's collected works and it contains, among other things, some of his lesser stories. The main entertainment here, at least at first, appears to be Harlan Ellison.

Yeah, that Harlan Ellison. Only now, apparently, Harlan is a Registered Trademark, because we get the little circled (r) every time his name is mentioned. Right. Well... yeah, he's Harlan Ellison and the introduction is worth the price of admission. It is, by turns, the "usual" Ellison bit of reportage, which is to say: by turns funny, poignant, informative, and provoking. He dishes from eight directions and it's good stuff.

However... Sturgeon gets the best of Ellison (a hard trick to turn when you're dead), or at least his editor does, with a single letter so totally hilarious that it, alone, is worth the price of the volume.

Oh, yes, there are also stories. And there are some quite fine ones in this volume. If you've been collecting these, you've no reason to stop before the XIth book. If this is your first foray, well, *do* stop and go back to volume I. This one will be here. It's not his best work nor his most indispensable work. But it's Sturgeon.

Not the Best of Sturgeon
There are some great stories in here, but there are also, to be frank, some really pedestrian clunkers. This is the problem and glory with a "complete stories of": you get warts and all.

Four stars ain't peanuts and I would not want to be without this, or any volume of the Complete Sturgeon, but some of the earlier volumes would be my choice for a desert island.

Fine Collection
A good collection of stories highlighted by a slightly whiney Harlan Ellison introduction that ham handedly serves no introductory purpose except to introduce you to Harlan Ellison, the Harlan Ellison. Harlan Ellison includes a review he wrote of STURGEON IS ALIVE AND WELL, which reviews a handful of the stories in this volume and disses TO HERE AND THE EASEL.

Read the stories, ignore the introduction. Or read the introduction knowing that Harlan Ellison is in love with Harlan Ellison and sweats guilt for having known anyone who is not Harlan Ellison and is a better man than he.

Continuation of SF Heaven
Theodore Sturgeon is the greatest writer of the "SF ghetto", and this collection gathers all his works, regardless of genre or even publication. I think there is 1 more volume to go.You should instantly put it on your Must Have list.Everyone who loves good literature should purchase the entire series -- I know I have, and I'm on limited income. ... Read more

Product Description
Written between 1955 and 1957, the 15 stories in And Now the News ... include five previously uncollected stories along with five well-known works, two cowritten with genre legend Robert Heinlein. Spanning his most creative period, these tales show why Sturgeon won every science fiction award given. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A good stiff drink with an old friend
I first read the title story in 1973. I was in high school, preparing to enter the military, and debating many great questions about the Universe and Life. "And Now The News" spoke to me on many different levels. It shaped what I chose to do in the service; become a paramedic. How I dealt with the sick and injured was informed by the character of the psychologist; arrogance and ego have no place in medicine. How we perceive each other and the world around us.

The other stories, for the most part, are a joy. Some, I hadn't read until this collection. The rest were like old friends you'd like to sit by a fire with and share a fine bourbon.

Theodore Sturgeon and his works are a treasure, not to be lightly regarded or forgotten easily.

Recommended to anyone who likes great stories as told by a master.

Each volume is a treasure.
Each volume just gets better and better.Sturgeon may well have been the best American short story writer of the 20th Century and this volume showcases some of his most powerful tales.If you enjoy great writing and stories that can literally change your life--then get this book (and the previous 8 volumes as well).You'll never be sorry you did. ... Read more

Product Description
The Ultimate Egoist, the first volume of The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon, contains the late author's earliest work, written from 1937 to 1940. Although Sturgeon's reach was limited to the lengths of the short story and novelette, his influence was strongly felt by even the most original science fiction stylists, including Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, and Gene Wolfe, all contributors of laudatory forewords. The more than forty stories here showcase Sturgeon's masterful knack with clever, O. Henry-ish plot twists, sparkling character development, and archetypal “why didn't I think of that?” story ideas. Early Sturgeon masterpieces include “It,” about the violence done by a creature spontaneously born from garbage and mud, and “Helix the Cat,” about an inventor's bizarre encounter with a disembodied soul and the cat that saves it. Sturgeon's unique genius is timelessly entertaining. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

The Ultimate Egoist
Having already read volume II of this series, my expectations were high. So it isn't surprising that these earliest works of Sturgeon weren't quite as mature or complex as his later work. But seeing the significant improvement from volume I to volume II, I can't wait to get my hands on the later volumes!! And these in volume I are great as well. Even by the second half of the book, the stories are getting deeper, darker, and cerebral. Sturgeon was amazing!

Learn about the development of a master storyteller
I've been excited by the prospect of this book for quite some time. Imagine all the Sturgeon short stories collected in a series of volumes, and not just the ones that were published or previously collected, but ALL of them. Edited and with notes, to top it off, by that most meticulous of literary executors, Paul Williams (the man behind the Collected Philip K. Dick). Unfortunately, Sturgeon never attracted the same fanaticism that Dick did, and this project was on shaky ground for some time. The first book is finally out, and it definitely lives up to the expectations for it.

Selected stories here include:

* "Heavy Insurance" -- Sturgeon's first published and possibly first completed work. A clever short short revolving around the, then, unusual properties of dry ice. With short shorts I am always reminded of Jack Ritchie's LITTLE BOXES OF BEWILDERMENT, and this story, even as early in Sturgeon's career as it was, can stand among those tales.

* "Fluffy" -- A few awkward wording moments, but they don't detract from the joy of a clever little twist story. This would have been a page from Jonathan Carroll except Sturgeon has to have a "logical" explanation (well, OK, *an* explanation--Carroll wouldn't have felt the need for any) for the basic conceit. However, it's still just a twist story. Sturgeon quickly moved beyond it.

* "Alter Ego" -- Almost a study in what not to do in a story, this previously unpublished piece reeks of the new writer, for it is all tell and no show. It spans years, yet there is not time sense. There are some specifics, but no details. While the plot itself could become something, it's too pithy for this treatment and too pathetic for longer. It's not too surprising that this one didn't see print in its time.

* "Permit Me My Gesture" -- This is my kind of short short: neat set up, perfect background, and clever ending twist. The notes include a letter from Sturgeon to his wife; in it, he calls this kind of story a gadget plot, and "Golden Day" a gag.

* "One Sick Kid" -- A short based on Sturgeon's personal experience, kind of a "true life" op-ed piece. A bit formless, though, without a genuine payoff, i.e., life isn't as clever as fiction.

* "A God in a Garden" -- Here is the *raison d'etre* for this volume, for the admiration that writers and readers have for Sturgeon is based on stories like this one. The perfect twist tale--what some people would term a Twilight Zone story. A man with a character flaw (he lies to his wife), a conflict (his wife knows about the lying, and is upset), and the twist (he digs up a god in his garden that gives him the ability to always tell the truth--not the actual truth, but whatever he says *becomes* the truth). Sturgeon handles it all brilliantly. The notes seem to agree. This story--Sturgeon's first sale to John W. Campbell for Unknown--was like his coming out party. Finally he had found a market that didn't require formula (the string- tugging as described under "Some People Forget" above), yet welcomed cleverness.

* "Bianca's Hands" -- A disturbing little fantasy/horror piece, showing the depth of Sturgeon's mastery of character, mood, and language. Yes, there's a plot, but the plot is nothing besides the description. It is so well done--this description of Bianca's hands and Ran's love for them--that is is close to erotic. Of course, Sturgeon was no stranger to that genre, although his take on it would not be fully revealed until years later with the novels SOME OF YOUR BLOOD and GODBODY.

* "The Ultimate Egoist" -- The logical extreme of the philosophical question best answered by Rene Descartes when he wrote, "Cogito, ergo sum." Whatever Woody thinks is, and what he doubts isn't, and it doesn't take long for him to break under the strain.

* "It" -- Probably one of the most famous Sturgeon stories, spawning at least two comic creatures: DC's Swamp Thing and Marvel's Man-Thing. Actually what Sturgeon accomplishes here is the envy of every horror writer--he invents a new monster. Unfortunately he did it in a short story rather than a novel or a movie, so his creation has yet to join the full pantheon to which it belongs, taking its place beside Frankenstein's monster, Dracula, the Wolf Man, the Mummy, and the Creature from the Black Lagoon.

I hope that this project--to collect all of Sturgeon's short stories-- continues apace. Paul Williams' earlier effort in this vein was the incredible Collected Philip K. Dick, and while the Dick was interesting, PKD was a writer who excelled at novels, not really the short. Sturgeon, on the other hand, was the opposite. I learned a lot about writing from the Dick volumes, and I hope to learn even more from Sturgeon.

The beginning of one of the truly great careers
One of the great tragedies of science fiction's success in taking over the world is that we've lost our sense of the history of the genre.After the explosion of popularity the genre saw in the late seventies, there has simply been way too much science fiction and fantasy for anyone to read all of it, much less read the best of the past.In other words, the time when every fan had read the essential works has passed; in other words, any sense of tradition and common ground has vanished into the mediocrities of Hollywood and the latest endless series of repetitious commercial formula.Which is precisely why this series of Theodore Sturgeon's complete stories, accompanied by the recent reprints of most of his novels, is so incredibly important.When one considers the fact that at the 2002 World Science Fiction Convention I met three fans who had never even heard of Sturgeon, much less read him, these reprints are highly essential.How anyone can call themselves a fan without reading Sturgeon (and Heinlein, and Asimov, and C.L. Moore, and Kuttner, and so many more) is beyond me.This first installment of the complete works of the greatest short story writer science fiction and fantasy ever produce may not be his best, but it is critical for any understanding of where science fiction began to attain the levels of greatness it has all too often forgotten.Among the best this volume has to offer includes the utterly chilling and absolutely unique "Bianca's Hands," which will both revolt and delight you, and the charming "Ether Breather," with its original aliens.As a writer myself, I enjoyed all the journeyman work, especially since I could see how the craft developed; as a science fiction critic and scholar, I also thoroughly enjoyed the biographical story notes at the end, which may be the closest we ever get to a biography.All in all, one of the great publishing events of the history of our chosen obsession.

The beginning of one of the truly great careers
One of the great tragedies of science fiction's success in taking over the world is that we've lost our sense of the history of the genre. After the explosion of popularity the genre saw in the late seventies, there has simply been way too much science fiction and fantasy for anyone to read all of it, much less read the best of the past. In other words, the time when every fan had read the essential works has passed; any sense of tradition and common ground has vanished into the mediocrities of Hollywood and the latest endless series of repetitious commercial formula. Which is precisely why this series of Theodore Sturgeon's complete stories, accompanied by the recent reprints of most of his novels, is so incredibly important. When one considers the fact that at the 2002 World Science Fiction Convention I met three fans who had never even heard of Sturgeon, much less read him, these reprints are highly essential. How anyone can call themselves a fan without reading Sturgeon (and Heinlein, and Asimov, and C.L. Moore, and Kuttner, and so many more) is beyond me. This first installment of the complete works of the greatest short story writer science fiction and fantasy ever produced may not be his best, but it is critical for any understanding of where science fiction began to attain the levels of greatness it has all too often forgotten. Among the best this volume has to offer includes the utterly chilling and absolutely unique "Bianca's Hands," which will both revolt and delight you, and the charming "Ether Breather," with its original aliens. As a writer myself, I enjoyed all the journeyman work, especially since I could see how the craft developed; as a science fiction critic and scholar, I also thoroughly enjoyed the biographical story notes at the end, which may be the closest we ever get to a biography. All in all, one of the great publishing events of the history of our chosen obsession.

Even the best start somewhere
This volume showcases the earliest works of Sturgeon, and it shows both that he was going to be really, really good, and that he wasn't quite there yet. ... Read more

Product Description
The second of thirteen volumes that reprint all Sturgeon's short fiction covers his prolific output during 1940 and 1941, after which he suffered five years of writer's block. Showcasing Sturgeon's early penchant for fantasy, the first six selections include whimsical ghost stories, such as “Cargo,” in which a World War II munitions freighter is commandeered by invisible, peace-loving fairies. With the publication of his enduring science fiction classic, “Microcosmic God,” Sturgeon finally found his voice, combining literate, sharp-edged prose with fascinating speculative science while recounting the power struggle between a brilliant scientist, who creates his own miniature race of gadget makers, and his greedy banker. Every one of the stories here is entertaining today because of Sturgeon's singular gifts for clever turns of phrase and compelling narrative. As Samuel R. Delaney emphasizes in an insightful introduction, Sturgeon was the single most influential science fiction writer from the 1940s through the 1960s. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Still one of the best
There is no better sci-fi writer than Sturgeon. He is especially adept as a short story writer. It has been decades since I have read these stories. I intend to buy them all and read them again. If you like top notch science fiction will be thrilled with these works. No one today is writing anything of this quality.

Unbelievable...
Without Theodore Sturgeon, life would be a mistake. I have never been so moved. This man's short fiction may be the best the world has ever seen. His vision has colored my world indelibly. If only I could, I would demand that you read this.

Now he's hit his stride
In this volume Sturgeon is beginning to hit his stride.Some of these are among the best short stories in SF (e.g. Microcosmic God, Shottle Bop).

In the earlier stories, Sturgeon was still trying to find his idealvoice.Much of the prose was forced, and some rather simple plot devices(especially irony) were common.In this volume, though, he is coming intohis own.

Brilliant!
The best part of this collection is that he only got better later . . . this is only the second volume and just about every story here is a keeper and the really great ones will stick in your head forever."TheMicrocosmic God", "Cargo", "Jumper" and all thattype are nothing less than entertaining and at the same time showing youSturgeon's highly sensative glimpses into the human heart.This guy caredabout everyone and understood what made people tick, while some of hisstuff might be considered formulaic still at this point, he can't be agenius everytime out and seeing everything in the proper order and contextallows you to see his evolution.This entire ten volume series is ablessing, there aren't many writers who we get the chance to see themdevelop and there aren't that many who deserve this chance, all in allSturgeon is at the top of the list.Cheers to whoever thought of thisidea.Make sure these always stay in print!

One of the all-time best short stories!
Okay, I have never read this book, but I would like to comment on the short story, Microcosmic God as it has always been one of my favorites.My dad told it as a bed time story when I was younger and I've actually readit several times since then.The story involves a brilliant scientistnamed Kidder, who has absorbed the sum total of man's knowledge and isfrustrated by the fact that he will not live long enough to witness futurebreakthroughs in technology.The logical solution of course, is for him tocreate his own race of beings (called Neoterics), with a faster metabolismand shorter lifespan (about 12 days, I think), so that he can observe theirevolution and eventually learn from their discoveries.It is truly amazingthat Sturgeon is able to pull off this level of scientific arrogance in arealitively succinct and believable manner (after all it is a SHORT story). Can the creation of intelligent life possibly be so simple?Hardly, but Iwas willing to swallow the premise, because the idea is fascinating and Itruly wanted to know how it would turn out. I can easily understand whyKidder would go to such lengths in order to glimpse the future of mankind. Of course, the story also includes an evil banker, Conant, who wants toexploit Kidder's inventions (such as a pill that cures the common cold) forprofit, but by far the most absorbing aspect of the plot is the Neotericsthemselves.Kidder keeps them in a large covered atrium (they areextremely small) and observes them through a magnifier. While human rightsactivists would obviously protest Kidder's treatment of the Neoterics (inone instance he lowers the roof of the atrium steadily over a period oftime, causing widespead distruction and panic, and waits for them to createa support system out of tinfoil) one can't help being impressed by theirresourcefulness and the collective way they respond to every threat. Kidder creates a written language for the Neoterics and beginscommunicating w/them.It is soon apparent that they believe him to be God. I don't want to ruin the outcome of the story, but I would definitelyrecommend this as a quick read for anyone, not just science fiction lovers.It explores the themes of faith and mortality in very original way. ... Read more

Product Description
This sci-fi and fantasy master, the only author to have won the Hugo Award, Nebula Award, International Fantasy Award, and World Fantasy Award. engages psychology, humanity, and stunning narrative in a volume of shorts that includes "The Silken-Swift," "A Way of Thinking," "The Dark Room," "The Clinic," and "The World Well Lost," as well as the title story. Included are 12 stories from 1953, considered Sturgeon’s golden era. "Intelligent, humane, tantalizing stories, every one of which evokes the sense of wonder." — Carl Sagan ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A little slice of perfection
It is hard to believe that this is the SEVENTH volume of Ted Sturgeon's collected stories and they are only up to 1953. Why would you want to own such a voluminous set? And why this particular one?

Simply: Sturgeon is one of the most provocative, innovative and beautiful writers in the English language and the title story of this volume alone is worth the price of the book. But once you're beyond one of the arguably greatest stories of the last 51 years, you'll find that Sturgeon has many more wonders in every volume of this series. For example, "Mr Cosell, Hero" is the most thorough demolition of the 1950's Red Scare (and it is set in outer space!). "The Clinic" predates classics like Flowers for Algernon, and gives us an alien perspective to boot.

Sturgeon's writing, as noted in many places, is about love as much as it is about anything. With each new volume, he inspires his readers to share that feeling. You may not end up with the full shelf of his work, but "A Saucer of Loneliness" is one you'll certainly want, need, desire and lust after.

If ANYTHING deserves 5 stars, this is it.
"A Saucer of Loneliness" is one of two stories most important in making SF considered a "serious" field (the other being RAH's "Stranger").Of the two, this certainly isn't the better, but it had more of an effect on me, personally.The end notes in this book note that it talked Spider Robinson, one current major SF writer, out of suicide, and it has more of an emotional effect that that could explain.
The rest of the book is still amazing.The second story has an interesting idea, but sloppy execution.The following, "The World Well Lost," literally made me fall out of my chair laughing, and includes the RS drive, which might be the most creative invention I've seen in years.Much farther on, with "The Clinic," you see the same type of emotional depth as you did in "Saucer," presented almost as well.Any one of those stories alone is worth the price of the novel.
For continuing fun after you've read it two or three times, I occasionally repeat parts of the "Koala" conversation out of "Wages of Synergy" without context.It makes my day to break up a serious revelation with "Koala..." "What does that mean?" "It means a great deal..."

Pure Sturgeon!
I first read Saucer of Loneliness in Sturgeon's E. Pleribus Unicorn.It instantly became my favorite and still is in this new book. Its always a pleasure to read his works. ... Read more

Product Description
First published in 1953, this most celebrated of Sturgeon's works won the International Fantasy Award, as has been touted as "a masterpiece of provocative storytelling" (The Herald Tribune). A group of remarkable social outcasts band together for survival and discover their combined powers renders them superhuman. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (47)

Not a novel at all, but merely a rehash of three stories.
This book is one of those all too common fraudulent conglomerations found in science fiction: stale stories reworked into a "novel." Simak gave us the "novel," City, composed of rehashed stories with tacked on intros. Now we get 3 of Sturgeons's stories rebranded into a slim and slick little softcover for four bucks a story. Such a deal.

Baby Makes Three, Morality and The Fabulous Idiot are the three stories here. Good stories they are. Good writing they are. But a novel they ain't.

If you want to read Sturgeon, and read him you should, then get his collected stories A Saucer of Loneliness: Volume VII, The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon and skip this rip off.

gestalt!
bless you! lol... sorry, but you just have to read it for yourself... Freaks will love it and everything by Sturgeon...

getting drunk on words and ideas
It is sad that to the majority of people Sturgeon is foreever filed under "SF" label. He was certainly one of the greatest SF writers of the XX century - but he simply was one of the greatest writers of anything. And probably not just XXth, too...

In my mind I only compare him to another XX century titan - Thomas Wolfe. Sturgeon's writing leaves the same impression - the words roll and toss you like waves, sometimes creating a feeling that he had used 1700 more words than was necessary - but when you try to cut out one or three of them, it is impossible to do. Or something opposite happens - he writes about 10 words and by those 10 creates a huge universe of emotions and ideas. Both Wolfe and Sturgeon could write about incredible cruelty and incredible love with stark clarity that sometimes is more horrifying than any number of horrors other authors pile on pages.

How did it come to the point when one of the greatest authors of XX century is nearly forgotten? Just compare the number of reviews of his books with the number of reviews of some n-th boring book about some black elves, space wars, and other such trash. In a way, Sturgeon is himself responsible for that. Writing profound analysis of human emotions and souls under the label of SF.... how many modern readers of SF or fantasy ever suspect that there is more to it than blasters, space explosions or some morbid killer clowns nesting in morvid caves?

It is a pity that some of the most profound, gentle, deeply intelligent and compassionate literature is quietly slipping away into a forgotten corner of "SF classics"...

Group mind - the evolutionary leap
A lone man wanders between streets and alleys not knowing how to speak and think in words. He is at the mercy of the passers-by. He is an idiot. Two sisters and their father, who live in a old Victorian house located at deep inside the forest, never meet outsiders. Food and other goods are delivered to the gates of their mansion. Father's puritan views about sin restrain girls from reaching their puberty and their womanhood. One day the idiot, wandering in the forest, hears a call inside his head. A girl's call, words that he don't comprehend, because he doesn't know what language is, but which draws him closer like siren blowing in a horn. Meet the start if Homo Gestalt, group mind, where one person is not a whole, but group of persons.

The different people presented in the story are alone, they have no purpose, until they get together. At that point their various mind abilities, like telekinesis, ESP, mongoloid autistic computing-brains make them connect. There is nobody in the world to talk to, even if they are group, they are alone. The Homo Gestalt doesn't have purpose, like homo sapiens, individuals, do. This is the story of new evolution, mind's evolution.

Written in 1953, would you believe it? There is no other book like it even today. The book is slow to start and the 2-star reservations are understandable. This is the old school of science fiction, where ideas and their implications are far more important than the science. What does it mean if the *mind* mutates? What agonizing inner complications arise, when the evolutionary leap is something like a hive? What philosophical and sociological impacts the new race would revolutionize? The writing is heartbreaking at times, elegance in simplicity, captures the inner emotions and how persons perceive the environment. The pictures are vivid, unique, something dream like. It was hilarious to read how one of the Homo Gestalt group lay down on a couch at psychiatrist's office to psychoanalyze his mental blocks. The book is something that touches the core of humanity: the morality, the ethos; how the new Homo Gestalt does not posses it, but will require it to evolve.

Five (5) stars. This is one of those books that are, and continue to be, one of the classics. Considering the 2-star reviews it is important to note that this book is not for everybody; those who enjoy development of concepts and ideas, rather than development of plot and characters, are likely to find sparkling moments. In today's supply of SF, this book would be categorized as fictional future, more than science fiction. The books leaves you in a state where you picture an old maple tree at autumn in a gentle breeze, with leaves falling to the ground, in all colors imaginable. Delicate story. Great read for thinkers.

Wonderful old school sci-fi.
An excellent view of the progression of the Human as a species. As in real life, the extraordinary hides in the mundane. ... Read more

Product Description
By the winner of the Hugo, the Nebula, and the World Fantasy Life Achievement Awards, this latest volume finds Theodore Sturgeon in fine form as he gains recognition for the first time as a literary short story writer. Written between 1957 and 1960, when Sturgeon and his family lived in both America and Grenada, finally settling in Woodstock, New York, these stories reflect his increasing preference for psychology over ray guns. Stories such as "The Man Who Told Lies," "A Touch of Strange," and "It Opens the Sky" show influences as diverse as William Faulkner and John Dos Passos. Always in touch with the zeitgeist, Sturgeon takes on the Russian Sputnik launches of 1957 with "The Man Who Lost the Sea," switching the scene to Mars and injecting his trademark mordancy and vivid wordplay into the proceedings. These mature stories also don't stint on the scares, as "The Graveyard Reader" - one of Boris Karloff's favorite stories - shows. Acclaimed novelist Jonathan Lethem's foreword neatly summarizes Sturgeon's considerable achievement here. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

One of the Best Writers Ever.
Many years ago I read the story "Killdozer" in an anthology book of some sort, and never forgot the story.I didn't know anything about the author, and had no idea that he wrote many more stories beyond the one I had had the opportunity to read.Then I stumbled across this series of books in Amazon, bought one, read it, loved it, and now have all ten volumes in my collection.

So here's my verdict: Theodore Sturgeon was not just one of the best writers of Science Fiction; he wasn't just one of the best writers of short stories.He was, one of the best writers ever, period.While the stories are cloaked in the veneer of science fiction, they are in fact, stories of deep insight into the human condition.You cannot read these volumes and not be touched, moved, and inspired.Don't miss the opportunity to read some of these wonderful stories.And if you're truly inspired, get the short novel More Than Human.

The next volume has been announced
It's Sept 2006, and I just spotted the following listed on the Locus site, scheduled for June 2007 release.I suppose this is good news, though it means I'm going to have to buy another bookcase.

Sturgeon, Theodore * When You Care, When You Love: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon, Volume XI * (North Atlantic, cln, hc)

Wonderful collection
This latest volume is again an excellent addition to the series.I just wish we would be able to find out what's going on with the rest of the books:this was originally supposed to be a ten volume collection but since this latest volume only goes through 1960, there is clearly more material to be collected.Some of the volumes are of shorter length then others, which also puzzles me.Material isn't being left out to keep down the page count?

In any case, stories like "The Graveyard Reader" show the sensitivity and skill that only a master like Sturgeon can convey in a short story.If you're already a fan, you know this; if not, buy the book.Sturgeon truly was one of the finest American short story writers ever. ... Read more

Product Description
Featuring 17 stories from the late 1940s, "The Perfect Host" is the fifth in a highly acclaimed series that brings together all the short stories of one of the finest science fiction and fantasy writers of the century. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

NOT the anthology-- just one story, but a good one
Most of the reviews that appear for this book are of a paperback anthology of Theodore Sturgeon stories. The Kindle book is not that anthology, it is just the single story (albeit of novella length) called "The Perfect Host." That's the bad news; the good news is that is an __excellent__ story. It is more horror (or "dark fantasy," if you prefer) than science fiction, but, unlike most dark fantasy, it does not deal in familiar tropes like vampires or werewolves. In fact, I was more than three-quarters of the way through the novella before I had any idea of where it was going. The story is told in a series of chapters, each narrated by a different character. The narrators do not contradict each other (this is no "Rashomon"), but each of them tells their part of the story so strangely that you start to wonder which of them is crazy, or if they all are. At one point, author Theodore Sturgeon himself appears as one of the narrators, and even he can't figure out what is going on. The ending wraps everything up, in a surprising and chilling way.

Perfect Host
Classic Sturgeon. A multi-perspective horror mystery about possession that kicks into meta territory towards the end. This one will keep you up all night. Fun, powerful writing, plenty of twists, and an unforgettable finale. This version with some typos, hopefully to be corrected?

Bring more Sturgeon to Kindle
For some reason, the other reviews for this novella seem to be for other books.Like nearly all Theodore Sturgeon material, this one (The Perfect Host) is thought provoking with a bit of a twist.The lack of other Sturgeon books for the Kindle is one of my biggest disappointments in the Kindle library.This one gives you the flavor of his writing.You'll want more.

Love me tender, love me true
I now have all 7 volumes - all 7 available currently. But I only got volume 5 about a month ago, much later than 6 and 7. And the biggest problem I am facing now - how am I going to make it last till they print the 8th?! I read one story per week - though I die to gulp them down and make a feast of reading this book. Each precious tender love story - only one a week. Once in a week I sit down and switch the world off and read about love - because that is what Sturgeon have been writing about all his life.He takes you by hand and shows you that somebody's Eden is always somebody's else Hell; and makes you walk beside a quiet girl - quietly.. Or sit and listen to a slow dialogue of two cowboys near the fire - and at the last words to burst out laughing only to smile sadly and tenderly a minute later... Theodore Sturgeon makes you love life - and that is the best compliment I could pay any writer.

A literary slap in the face
As a writer, Sturgeon provokes one of two reactions in me: either to just give up since I know I'll never be able to equal that much quality for as long as I live, or to sit back down and write even more in an redoubledeffort to equal that quality.I tend to like the second myself and I thinkTed would agree, reading one of his stories you get a sense of wonder andenchantment, much as he probably felt writing it and to me it's like agaunlet being thrown down saying, "This is the best I can do, I knowyou can do just as good.Prove it."Ah but the quality here is notto be believed.Even if you discount the "undiscovered" story"Quietly" which is apparently a precursor somehow to More ThanHuman (it's a tenuous link, even the series editor admits it) there's stufflike the title story, one of the groundbreaking stories not only forscience fiction telling but the short story genre in general, there's alsoa neat creepy jazz story and a Western story and so much that when youfinish you sit back and think about all the good stuff you just read . . .and then realize that the five volumes that are to come are supposed torepresent his very best work.Argh, Ted, you don't make the challenge easybut I think it's one I accept.You want no less.Read them all already,what are you waiting for? ... Read more

Product Description
Theodore Sturgeon was a model for his friend Kurt Vonnegut’s legendary characterKilgore Trout, and his work was an acknowledged influence on important younger writersfrom Harlan Ellison and Robert Silverberg to Stephen King and Octavia Butler. Hiswork has long been deeply appreciated for its sardonic sensibility, dazzling wordplay,conceptual brilliance, memorable characters, and unsparing treatment of social issuessuch as sex, war, and marginalized members of society. Sturgeon also authored severalepisodes of the original Star Trek TV series and originated the Vulcan phrase “Livelong and prosper.”

This twelfth volume of North Atlantic’s ambitious series reprintinghis complete short stories includes classic works such as the award-winning titlestory, which won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards in 1971, as well as “Case and theDreamer,” a well-crafted tale of an encounter with a trans-spatial being that isalso a meditation on love, and “The [Widget], the [Wadget], and Boff,” a creativeexploration of the human ability to achieve self-realization in response to crisis.The book includes a new Foreword, an illuminating section of Story Notes, and a comprehensiveindex for the entire series. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Capper for my collection
As a lifelong Sturgeon fan, I have been snapping up the compilation book by book. It is fitting, somehow, that the finale carries as the title story one of my all time favorites. Bravo to the work that went into this compendium of the works of a great, but often overlooked author!

Sturgeon's late career resurgence
SLOW SCULPTURE is VOL XII of Theodore Sturgeon's complete short fiction and is a marked improvement over the previous volume. The collection starts out with "The Widget, the Wadget, and Boff", one of his greatest novellas. Written in the mid-1950s, this long and excellent story focuses on the inhabitants of a boarding house who are being studied and manipulated by aliens in an experiment to test the limits of human consciousness. The rest of the stories represent Sturgeon's last concentrated burst of creativity which occurred during 1970-1971, following a period of several years of relative inactivity due to writer's block. The title story "Slow Sculpture" may well be Sturgeon's last true masterpiece, an exquisite story about the meeting of a solitary disillusioned genius and a woman with a deadly illness. Sturgeon's use of the art of bonsai as a central metaphor for human relationships is ingenious and affecting. Other standouts include "The Girl Who Knew What They Meant", a story where a girl's unusual intuition turns out not to be such a great gift, and "Uncle Fremmis", a somewhat whimsical tale about a man with an unusual knack for fixing broken-down machines (and humans) by giving them a hard knock in the right place. Particularly interesting from today's standpoint is "The Verity Files", told as a series of interoffice memos wherein a pharmaceutical company attempts to suppress a cure for cancer mainly because it causes euphoria as a side effect and could be easily duplicated by competitors. This story is just as relevant today as it was nearly 40 years ago, given the ongoing debate about medical marijuana usage and the use of addictive painkillers. Other interesting stories include "Occam's Scalpel", wherein Sturgeon tackles environmental issues and warns about global warming decades before it became a catch phrase, and "Dazed", wherein he poses (and answers) the question of whether a certain amount of chaos is necessary to allow change in the world.

What is most striking about these stories is the depth of emotion that burns through many of them, which contrasts markedly with the dispassionate irony and/or understatement which characterizes most recent fiction. Very few authors write in this manner today, which is unfortunate. When Sturgeon had something to say, he always said it with passion and conviction. He had a deep and abiding anger (although tempered with compassion) toward human behavior or societal values that he considered illogical, and he makes some very persuasive points in his stories. Although some of the stories may verge on preachiness, his sheer writing talent always keeps them entertaining, and his characters are superbly developed. At his best, Theodore Sturgeon was one of America's best short story writers, and anyone who appreciates great short fiction should be reading his work.

Not the final volume
Readers should know that, unlike what it says in the promo blurb, this is not the final volume--there will be at least one more, entitled Why Dolphins Don't Bite, intended for publication next year. That said, this is a great selection of stories that you can look forward to reading, or re-reading, with enormous pleasure.

... Read more

Product Description
Including four never-before-published stories, a chronological treasury of Theodore Sturgeon's acclaimed stories, written between 1941 and 1946, includes fifteen major works, such as "Medusa," The Hag Sleen," "Killdozer," and others. IP. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Ted Sturgeon was one of SF's best writers
Theodore Sturgeon is the best writer of short story science fiction.In a field such as science fiction, one of the few places where short stories continue to be regular features of the literary landscape, this is a high honor.This is a simple statement of fact. Ask any of the Giants, the other great short story writers of the field: Ray Bradbury, Harlan Ellison, Robert Silverberg, etc.They would each be more than willing to acknowledge Sturgeon as the best.Isaac Asimov wrote of his high opinions of Ted Sturgeon's body of work in his own autobiography.

I have always recommended the works of Sturgeon to people who want to get a feel for a more literary style of SF.Some people don't get Isaac Asimov or Arthur C. Clarke because they aren't normal "literary faire" to them.This is, at times, due to these people being educated beyond their own intelligence, but well... it is something that SF has had to deal with from the uninitiated.But Sturgeon is some one, along with some other SF luminaries like Ursula Le Guin and Harlan Ellison, even these so-called literary snobs have to recognize as a great writer. As a general rule, any English teachers who don't see SF as real writing will acknowledge Sturgeon as a great writer.

This book is part of a series of the complete short stories from Theodore Sturgeons career.It contains a few of his best and most famous short stories: "Medusa", "Killdozer!" and "Mewhu's Jet".It also contains a few of my own personal favorites with "The Bones", "Blabbermouth" and "Memorial".

Most of all, what we have with this book is a collection of where Sturgeon was at as a writer right before and during World War Two.WW2 was, naturally enough - as with all the other writers of his generation, the major factor on Sturgeon's later work... especially the effects of the atomic bomb and how it might affect later society - only at a more personal level than people normally think about.SF writers are rarely all about technical things... the technical and scientific aspects of issues are important to SF people because they are important to society.But Sturgeon was always affected at the level where science and technology interact with how we are friends and lovers with each other.You start to see that streak, which later cumulates with critical mass in his novel "More than Human", early on here with the story "Memorial".

Even those stories contained here, that would be by others considers to be not of the first rank, such as "Ghost of a Chance", "The Hag Seleen", "Abreaction", "Poor Yorick", "Crossfire", "Noon Gun", "Bulldozer Is a Noun", "August Sixth, 1945", and "The Chromium Helmet"... they are all, at the very least, very good stories.They're all still worthwhile reads today.

What is truly nice about this collection of his short stories, which North Atlantic Books has so kindly been putting out with the fine editorial over site of Paul Williams, is the story notes at the end of the book.Williams has dug into the background of each story, and come up with a lot of interesting lore about the fine author.Especially of interest in this volume is the alternative original ending to "Mewhu's Jet".

The book also has quips and quotes in the notes from Sturgeon on his own stories and his writing and how and why he wrote some of them, as well related notes from folks who Sturgeon talked to about writing and the specific stories over the years.Most important are some comments from John W. Campbell, Jr., the editor of Astounding Science Fiction back in the 1940's (up until 1971, as a matter of fact).

Campbell is probably the single most important influence on all Science Fiction, and Sturgeons interactions with him were very important to his development as a writer.Sturgeon later passed Campbell by, like many other writers, but he always remembered where he had come from.Science fiction, unlike a lot of other fields in English literature, has always remembered it's past, and Sturgeon was no exception.

Unfortunately, the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA) does not make people Grand Masters of the field posthumously.This has lead to Sturgeon never being inducted and hailed as a Grand Master because he had the misfortune to die before they got around to honoring him.This over site, along with those of Philip K. Dick, E. E. "Doc" Smith and John W. Campbell, Jr. and a few others should be a major issue to those who remember and revere the memory of Ted Sturgeon. This is something that the SFWA should correct at some point.Sooner is always better than later.

If you are into good shorts, then this is a very worthwhile collection to own and read.

The streak continues
This is the third volume of the serieis and I'm reading the fourth now and I have to say that if you have ANY passing interest in science-fiction, literature, basically anything related to writing and the art of the shortstory, you owe it to yourself to hunt down these volumes, they're about thebest service the publishing industry has done for one of its writers inyears.You won't get genius each time but each volume has its own gems totreasure.This one has of course the masterful Killdozer among otherthings, the stories are branching out more here, most are touching in someway but all are at the very least entertaining, my favorite might just bethe unpublished "August Sixth, 1945" which distills brilliantlythe thoughts of a generation realizing the power they had with atomicenergy and coming to grips with just what it meant.You can see a shift inhis stories at that point and especially with the later "Thunder andRoses", as with most science fiction writers, the future was now andit wasn't all rosy and they felt they had a duty to show that it could begood that the shining stuff they showed in their stories could come true. Sturgeon believed that because he believed in people and he loved everyoneand nothing shows that better than his stories.Read them and you come toknow the man.And he's worth knowing.

A once famous author slowly vanishing.
Stories by Sturgeon inspired movies, episodes of Star Trek, & even theNew Twilight Zone. I'm not a Sturgeon fan, but I'm baffled by how an awardwinning author (indeed an author with an award named for him) who had linksto the media is disappearing. Talking about the author is Very relevantsince this & other such collections are about keeping his work inprint.Anyway this a mixture of fantasy, SF, horror & Mainstream. Thestandouts are said to be the title peace (Killdozer! is mentioned a lot inMST 3K's early seasons) "Abreaction", "The ChromiumHelmet", & "Mewhu's Jet". This collection gives you agood feel of this stage of Sturgeon's career. If you like Sturgeon or justhave an interest in older science fiction & fantasy this is worthtrying out ... Read more

Product Description
Sci-fi master Theodore Sturgeon wrote stories with power and freshness, and in telling them created a broader understanding of humanity — a legacy for readers and writers to mine for generations. Along with the title story, the collection includes stories written between 1953 and 1955, Sturgeon’s greatest period, with such favorites as “Bulkhead,” “The Golden Helix,” and “To Here and the Easel.” ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The Grand Master Returns
A memo to NorthAtlantic Books: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for publishing the collected stories of Theodore Sturgeon.I have been a devoted fan of his (and here I call your attention to the derivation of the word 'fan' from 'fanatic') for more than 40 years now.To see his works available in this fine edition is not only a nostalgic thrill, but a pleasure.
I am such a Sturgeon addict that I find it hard to critcize any of his work negatively.Volume 8 give no reason to do so, but this in not to say that every tale is equal in quality.Superlative levels of creation and craftsmanship can be expected of no writer; but I leave your opinions to be drawn by yourself.
For what comes through this volume is Sturgeon's view of humanity, view of fear and evil in the world (and beyond, of course, but we know that his s-f work is metaphorical for the human condition any way), his incredible optimistic hopes for the success of the human spirit.It's what all his work is infected with, even when he is at his darkest.
If you are acquainted with Theodore Sturgeon, go ahead and splurge in time and funds get in touch with an old friend.If you are unacquainted with him, splurge and make a new friend.You'll not be sorry. ... Read more

Product Description
Thunder and Roses is the fourth volume in The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon. Included in Thunder and Roses are 15 stories, with major works like "Maturity," "The Professor's Teddy Bear," "A Way Home," and the title story, in addition to two works never published before. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Genius in ascent
The first two volumes in this series are fascinating looks at Sturgeon's development, well worth reading for those who are already fans of his.The third is where Sturgeon really starts to hit his stride, though, and this fourth volume is the first that I can wholeheartedly recommend to those previously unfamiliar with his work.Not every story here is superb; some are a bit dull, and some are overlong and predictable.But there's enough excellent material here to make it a solid introduction to Sturgeon's work, and the fascinating end-notes on each story by Paul Williams will make you wonder why other authors' complete-works collections can't be as thoroughly researched or as interestingly annotated."Maturity," the first story here, is a masterpiece in the old sense of the word: it marks Sturgeon's transition from journeyman to master, while prefiguring _Flowers for Algernon_ (and predating it by a good 20 years).Other high points of this collection include the non-fantastical "A Way Home," the horror story "The Professor's Teddy Bear," the hilarious "Tiny and the Monster," and "Thunder and Roses," which is still relevant after 55 years.

Brilliant!
Four volumes in and no clunkers yet, this guy had something special . . . and his Hugo and Nebula winning short story is still about thirty years away.Wow.If you've been following along all this time let me just saythat this volume will give you more pleasures than any writer had any rightto give you, most writers have a couple truly amazing short stories withinthem and while not everything Sturgeon wrote was genius the sheer amount ofgood stuff here is simply astounding."Thunder and Roses" has tobe one of the most humane stories ever written and others like "Thereis No Defense" or "The Professor and the Teddy Bear" (if itdoesn't scare you, you must not have a pulse) stand up remarkably well. Again, you owe it to get every volume of this series and save it for thegenerations to come, we have so few literate writers these days and thosefew that we have deserve to be remembered and enjoyed.Sturgeon is one. Read him.

Yet another alltime GREAT
This guy knew how to write about love, in all of it's phases, yet never or rarely descended into mawkishness. And a lot of his considerable output is classic. Buy it if you have to skip lunch for a week. If you've never readSturgeon before, you're in for a treat, language of a grace and power torival Bradbury and a way of moving along jauntily that compares with HenryKuttner (Lewis Padgett) and Alfred Bester. ... Read more

Product Description
Theodore Sturgeon was a genuine American master.Praised, revered, and even envied by the likes of Bradbury, Vonnegut, and King, his short stories contain some of his best work.

In "Thunder and Roses," soon after a nuclear Holocaust, a starlet gives one final performance during which she makes an odd request of the few remaining survivors.In perhaps his most praised story, "The Man Who Lost the Sea," a man riffs on memory and experience on the way to the story's powerful conclusion.And in the Hugo and Nebula Award-winning masterpiece, "Slow Sculpture," a young woman with a lump in her breast chances upon a strange healer.With unrivaled emotional impact, Theodore Sturgeon's stories are funny, lyrical, surprising, and provoking. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

The Skills of Earth
Half of the stories happen to exist beyond ordinary sci-fi. It makes them the fairytales your children will read. Sturgeon has the music. Others may play virtuously on their instruments. He simply brings us to hear the beautiful tunes. Those which let us vibrate from inside and leave true memories.

"The [Widget], the [Wadget], and Boff" indeed appears in a slightly modified writing technique. Surgeon deploys enough "Synapse Beta sub Sixteen" to manage a double-threaded 'theater play' style beside his well-known plain though catching teller stream. It's spiked with subtle humor, and it's not without drama. All people experience a sound upgrade through the Bittelmans weaving tight bonds between them and making them somehow aware.

"The Skills of Xanadu" alone is worth an investment. The Xanadonian body covers, the belts, interconnect and amplify mind and "aura" between individuals. They thus develop mental networking, planet-wide coordinated acting and something like "the-presence-of-all-in-the-presence-of-one". This incidentally connects "The Skills" with "The Touch of Your Hand" as well as "More Than Human".

However it's not far from reality. Some of us seem to possess those skills. At first sight one could be reminded of the noosphere thinking of Teilhard de Chardin, the brain-computer-interface (BCI) already available off-the-shelf for your portables which will be linked by miles-reaching WirelessHUMAN transmitters, the nanochips such as "Soul Catcher" in the pipe, or the real time office software/hardware solutions. But there's more. Those who ever perceived something similar to "there's something we've found" will know. And everybody else will if she or he opens eye and, last not least, ear. Their first step could be buying Sturgeon's "Selected Stories".

Some gems amidst the standard sci-fi fare
This is yet another re-release of some of Sturgeon's classic science fiction.If you're already a fan, this volume contains several favorites.If you aren't familiar with the Master's work, this is probably as good a place as any to start.

"Thunder and Roses" takes place after a devastating nuclear first strike, and features a beautiful entertainer's plea to prevent a terrible retaliation.The survivors' despair is movingly portrayed, but doesn't get in the way of the story's main point: can mutual destruction be justified in the context of basic human values?"The Golden Helix" shows a space expedition marooned on an unknown planet learning that despite their trials, life manages to go on.In "Mr. Costello, Hero" a smooth talking blackmailer sells his snake oil to a burgeoning society, while in "The Skills of Xanadu" an arrogant scout who dreams of conquest is baffled by the simple folk of edenic Xanadu.

Some of the longer tales are less to this reviewer's liking: "Killdozer!" features lots of action and focuses on the technical aspects of heavy machinery at the expense of clever plotting and ideas, while "The [Widget], the [Wadget], and Boff" loses its momentum by following the various residents of the boardinghouse and their subplots instead of advancing the (rather weak) main story.Still, neither piece is completely without entertainment value.

Women are often in danger in Sturgeon's stories, but at least they aren't ignored altogether as is too often the case with classic sci-fi.And there are several stories, including "The Sex of Opposite" and "Slow Sculpture", where a woman shares the lead with a man.Best of all, "Bright Segment", which shows a lonely man trying to care for a wounded stranger, and the monologue of "The Man Who Lost the Sea" feature not only completely unexpected endings (reminiscent of O. Henry), but also a searing emotional intensity that almost seems to transcend the genre.It's on the basis of stories like these that some claim that great science fiction can be great literature.

The Best Book Ever Written.
Perhaps the above is an over statment, but as far as I'm concerned this book should have #1 sales rank. You will not be dissatisfied with this book. If you are skeptical simply read through the first story "Thunder and Roses," it explores an old theme, nuclear war, but the way that Sturgeon presents it is simply unforgetable. If for nothing else, this book should be purchased for the story, "The man who lost the sea." As far as I'm concerned it is the crowning achievement of Western Civilization, once again, an over statment, but it is the most thought provoking, interesting, and wonderful story that has ever been published. Don't be discouraged from reading his stories because he is science fiction. He transcends the boundaries from sci-fi, to drama, to suspense, to humor. He is an incredible writer who just happened to be writing about technology.

Highly recommended from a "so-so" fan
I've never enjoyed Sturgeon's novels, but his short stories are another matter.It's about time that his best were collected again, this time around by Vintage Press, and they do a great job.Actually, it's a shame that this is a more expensive trade format, but this is happening more and more with the truly meaningful sci-fi, while the latest waves of absolute crap clutter the mass-market shelves.Anyway, every story in this collection evokes a "whoa!" upon completion, and it's definitely a good investment for someone who enjoys more meat in their reading.

This book includes Thunder & Roses; The Golden Helix; Mr. Costello, Hero; Bianca's Hands; The Skills of Xanadu; Killdozer!; Bright Segment; The Sex Opposite; The Widget, The Wadget, & Boff; It; A Way of Thinking; The Man Who Lost The Sea; and Slow Sculpture.If you want to read some truly remarkable stories, make this your next purchase. ... Read more

Product Description
Baby Is Three is the sixth volume in the series devoted to the complete works of one of science fiction's titans. Like others in the series, this one includes extensive notes and background information on each story by editor Paul Williams. The early 1950s, during which this material was written, was the beginning of Sturgeon's greatest creative period. The title story for this collection was later expanded into the International Fantasy Award- winning novel More Than Human. Sturgeon's whimsical, sardonic sense of humor lifts his work out of the mundane realm of genre science fiction. This wide-ranging collection shows precisely why he has been cited as a primary influence by authors as varied as Stephen King, Ray Bradbury, and Carl Sagan. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Classic '50s Sci-Fi
This is Volume VI of Sturgeon's short stories.Most of these are close to novella length.Sturgeon was one of the great, classic writers of mid-century science fiction, and these are fine examples of his craft.In these stories, he chews over his ideas of what humans might be capable of in terms of interpersonal relationships.What if we formed triads instead of couples?What if several individuals, each with unique abilities, were joined together into one vast meta-being, coordinated by a central mind?The tone may seem dated at times - often resembling the hard-bitten prose of tough-guy detective stories of the same era.(Indeed, one of the tales in this book is both science fiction and detective story.)Interesting ideas, presented in a time when ideas weren't supposed to be interesting (the Fifties were a tough time for imagination).Give them a read.

He was a giant
Ted Sturgeon was a nudist, a wild man, a tortured soul who reinvented himself and turned around to help the rest of us reinvent ourselves. It's a pleasure to watch his mind work, and a pleasure to see his stories stillrunning wild and free without him. But his stories may upset you and makeyou wonder about things you've always taken for granted. His were the realdangerous visions, and his tears are mixed into his work. Reading Sturgeonis like grabbing a live wire, except being shocked never made me bellowwith laughter.

Psychologically Savvy Sturgeon's Success in Sixth
Baby Is Three is the wonderful sixth volume in the Sturgeon collection.The collection is organized chronologically by story creation date. Having read and enjoyed the first five volumes, it was hard for me to imagine thatI could possibly likeBaby Is Three even better.But I did!Sturgeon'swriting shows an impressive maturity of idea and flow in this volume, andPaul Williams' story notes kept me flipping to the back of the book to readabout what was happening in Sturgeon's life at the time he penned eachstory.As a psychologist who is also a science-fiction fan, I enjoyed theintra- and interpersonal dynamics within each story, as well as theopportunity to understand and deconstruct the context in which Sturgeonwrote the stories, as offered by Williams' story notes.A bonus: two ofSturgeon's own short, autobiographical pieces are included atthe end. For those who love science fiction that is thoughtful, playful, andpsychologically based, Baby Is Three is a must-read.And for those whohave read Sturgeon's well-known More Than Human, Baby Is Three will add toyour understanding and appreciation of that tale, as well.

Psychologically Savvy Sturgeon's Success in Sixth
Baby Is Three is the wonderful sixth volume in the Sturgeon collection.The collection is organized chronologically by story creation date. Having read and enjoyed the first five volumes, it was hard for me to imagine thatI could possibly likeBaby Is Three even better.But I did!Sturgeon'swriting shows an impressive maturity of idea and flow in this volume, andPaul Williams' story notes kept me flipping to the back of the book to readabout what was happening in Sturgeon's life at the time he penned eachstory.As a psychologist who is also a science-fiction fan, I enjoyed theintra- and interpersonal dynamics within each story, as well as theopportunity to understand and deconstruct the context in which Sturgeonwrote the stories, as offered by Williams' story notes.A bonus: two ofSturgeon's own short, autobiographical pieces are included atthe end. For those who love science fiction that is thoughtful, playful, andpsychologically based, Baby Is Three is a must-read.And for those whohave read Sturgeon's well-known More Than Human, Baby Is Three will add toyour understanding and appreciation of that tale, as well. ... Read more

Product Description

Theodore Sturgeon's dark and foreboding look at the vampire myth was an instant classic when originally published in 1956. When George Smith is arrested for assaulting a senior officer, a military psychiatrist is assigned to the case. The secret of George's past is unearthed, and a history of blood lust and murder. Innovatively told through letters, interviews, and traditional narrative, Some of Your Blood effectively portrays the tragic upbringing of George Smith to his attempts at a stable life and the great love of his life to his inevitable downfall. Millipede Press is proud to present this masterpiece of macabre literature in a brand new edition.

Customer Reviews (13)

A short character study that's quick and to the point, much like a knife to the throat
Meet George. George is a fellow from about as far back into the woods as you can get, and boy is he a monster. His story probably won't take you much more than an evening to get through, but it'll be a damn creepy evening.

The novel is based primarily around the conversations between doctors and other officials concerning George's condition, followed by a short autobiography on the man. We learn more and more of George's issues as the conversations progress, and it's capped with a resolution that's much like a punch to the gut. It's unsettling stuff, but I'm not going to spoil a thing.

From what I've gathered, Sturgeon was much more prevalent in the science fiction field than he was in psychological horror. Some of his classic offerings, such as the labyrinthine "More Than Human" remained in print while "Some of Your Blood" tumbled into general obscurity. I find that almost criminal, but what can you do. Millipede Press released a hideously over-priced version of this tiny novel awhile back, but you'll more than likely have to special-order it from the bookstore nonetheless.

Not only is "Some of Your Blood" as chilly as a meatlocker, it's also an effective and thought-provoking character study that's bound to linger with the reader for a good deal of time. Read it and weep.

Disturbing and Unconventional ...
The take on vampirism was indeed unique, one of the best I have read, but that wasn't what struck me most about the "story." This was as far from traditional storytelling as one can get, and would probably have lesser experienced literary critics up in arms. There is only one traditional scene to speak of and that doesn't appear until the very end of the book, which is only 143 pages in total. Dialog is practically non-existent for the exception of two interviews between patient and psychologist, and the remaining narrative is completely exposition. As far as character arc goes, well, don't look for growth here. The monster is created and subsequently remains a monster.

There are a lot of different telling techniques used here to great effect. The book begins with a series of letters back and forth between a couple of Army psychologists who have initially conflicting views on a patient by the name of George Smith. Smith was thrown into lock-up for punching an officer who had become alarmed by a letter Smith had attempted to send home to his girlfriend. The book then flows into a third person narrative of George's life, written by George as instructed in the course of this therapy. The corn-pone dialect was bothersome to read but appropriate. Everything seems pretty standard fare for an abused backwoods undereducated -- possibly mentally retarded -- child. But ... nothing should be taken at face value here. Intuition plays a huge role in this story. The intuition of one psychologist who wouldn't give up digging until George's pathology, in all it's horror, is finally laid bare. We don't even know what the letter to his girlfriend said until the very end of the book. Every move each character makes is based on gut instinct. Everyone is speaking in code, hiding and yet revealing their intent at the same time. This is what gives the book its brilliance, not the gripping action, of which there is almost none, but the characterization. The style is very reminiscent of Stoker's Dracula, and George Smith was nothing less than Frankenstein.

Put all your notions of storytelling aside and pick this one up. Its nature is entirely subliminal versus visceral, and it strikes to the core. Very frightening, and yet in the end, disgusted, our sense of humanity shattered, we can't help but feel for George.

Dated, but Chilling
The book is written in fragments, semi-epistolary. I struggled through the first third because it was a narrative written by a semi-literate man. (the grammar was atrocious)

I'm glad I did. Since I've started writing, I've scared myself with what my mind was able to conceive, but only on rare occasions. Horror fiction doesn't scare me as it did when I was a child--it doesn't make me look around and put the book down and hope everything is going to be okay.

I felt that way again in a couple of places while reading Some of Your Blood. Without setting off too many spoilers, let me just say the end of the book struck me like no other since I Am Legend (the novella of course--not that joke of a movie); it was just that good.

Some of Your Blood isn't for the casual horror fan. I understand why it isn't more widely read. The Freudian psychology used throughout is a bit dated.I'm not even sure some would consider it horror in the popular sense of the term. But if you like to think--if you like a book that makes you go back and reread some passages because of their sheer power, go for it. Be patient. This one avoids cheep scares for deeper, longer lasting discomfort. I promise that you'll think about it after you're done reading.

something about George..
'Some of Your Blood' is a very interesting and creepy novella by Theodore Sturgeon.The story is basically told through mail correspondence between a military psychiatrist and his colleagues.The topic?A fellow identified as George.George is twisted, backwater monster.Through very clever writing the author reveals George's true maladies bit by bit.In the end we understand he is a bit ghoulish, and very dangerous.

Although the plot by itself is unique, .. I think it would make a great horror movie .., I think it's the author's narrative and characterizations that shine through.I have read a few short stories by Theodore Sturgeon before and have been impressed.This longer work is the best I've read from him.Thankfully he was a prolific writer; I plan to read a lot more of his works.


Bottom line: a unique, nightmare-ish story that is somehow believable.Recommended.

eilath giladi
Although it belongs to the old SF books (or maybe because of that) it is a well-written and interresting book. I liked the idea presented as a new way to understand vampirism. I'd give it 4.5 stars if that was possible. ... Read more

Product Description
Winner of the Hugo, Nebula and World Fantasy Life AchievementAwards

"One of the masters of modern science fiction."--TheWashington Post Book World

Eight-year-old Horty Bluett hasnever known love. His adoptive parents are violent; his classmates arecruel. So he runs away from home and joins a carnival. Performingalongside the fireaters, snakemen and "little people," Horty isaccepted. But he is not safe. For when he loses three fingers in anaccident and they grow back, it becomes clear that Horty is not likeother boys. And it is a difference some people might want touse.

But his difference risks not only his own life but thelives of the outcasts who provided for him, for so many years, with aplace to call home. In The Dreaming Jewels, Theodore Sturgeonrenders the multiple wounds of loneliness, fear, and persecution withuncanny precision. Vividly drawn, expertly plotted, The DreamingJewels is a Sturgeon masterpiece.

"An intensely writtennovel and very moving novel of love and retribution."--WashingtonStarAmazon.com Review
Eight-year-old Horty Bluett is mocked by his classmates and abused by his adoptive parents until the day his father severs three of his fingers. He runs away, taking only a gem-eyed doll he calls Junky, and joins a carnival. Finding acceptance at last, Horty never dreams that Junky is more than a toy, nor does he realize that a threat far greater than his cruel father inhabits the carnival and has been searching for Horty longer than he has been alive.

Though less well-known than Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, or Robert A. Heinlein, Theodore Sturgeon (1918-1985) is even more important to the development of literary and humanistic science fiction. He received the Hugo, Nebula, and International Fantasy Awards, and the World Fantasy Life Achievement Award. The Dreaming Jewels (1950) was his first novel. --Cynthia Ward ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

Bugged Out Coolness
The Dreaming Jewel is a rare combination of surreal fantasy and page turning excitement. What makes it even cooler are the hip references Sturgeon makes to jazz and art. This is the first Sturgeon book that I have read and I look forward to more from him.

Mixed treasure: potent child's view, great idea, descent to pulp climax
A real mix this book. Some bits dated, other ones timeless. Some characters profound, others stereotype. Some plot elements original and striking, others almost TV episode predictable. I'm glad I read it though, and I'll keep an eye out for others by this guy.

I didn't really rate the motiveless villains in the book, much as Sturgeon made them quite ugly rather than just telling us they were nasty (particularly the odious judge). However Horty, especially as a child, is a powerful and touching character. This is particularly where he leaves, say, an Asimov behind.

Asimov's great strength, however, was his inspired ideas, and for much of the book the secret of the crystals is an intriguing background, a classically clever SF `What if'. However when the secret is finally revealed we get too many pages of straight exposition rather than having the idea integrated into the story. And much as where Sturgeon went with it showed the same sort of brave imagination Bear surprised me with in Blood Music, it still felt far too much like those nasty epic fantasy climaxes where the hero stumbles across his cataclysmic era saving powers with some random mumbo-jumbo that is supposed to make sense but could have gone any direction at all without reference to anything earlier in the book. This is lazy, and it further undermined the standard melodramatic action climax.

So in summary I really loved the first half of this book, but felt a bit let down as it forced itself into a less interesting conclusion. His child's view was a triumph, and the way the clever SF idea initially informed rather than overwhelmed the story really impressive. However the subtleties were eventually overrun by the idea and the Batman/Robert Jordan-Terry Goodkind conclusion.

juvenile style without complexity
I've only read one book by Sturgeon before and it was his collection of short stories in the book Starshine. I thought the 6 stories were "partly juvenile stories with no depth." My expectations of Dreaming Jewels were heightened due to some rather pleasant reviews. However, Dreaming Jewels followed the same juvenile ideas and/or writing style of the stories in Starshine. I'm not even sure if one could classify this into the genre of SF. If Sturgeon hadn't throw in some big science words, this book definitely would have been classed as fantasy. Carnies don't belong in sci-fi! Further, the plot twists are placed in predictable places in the story while the dialogue is simple and dry.

Life Is But A Dream
"The Dreaming Jewels" by Theodore Sturgeon is an interesting science-fiction novel which was first published in February of 1950 in "Fantastic Adventures".This was Sturgeon's first novel.It was nominated in 2001 for the Retro-Hugo award for novellas which were written in the year 1950.I am not sure why they re-categorized the story as a novella, as it is clearly of novel length.Unlike many stories from that era, this one does not suffer at all from age.That is probably due to it focusing not on technological advances, but rather ideas and character.

The story is centered on eight-year old Horton "Horty" Bluett who is sent home from school when he is caught eating ants.His adoptive parents punish him severely, his father, in particular, is so sever that he nearly severs three fingers from Horty's left hand.Horty also is very attached to a toy which he had from the orphanage.His attachment was so great that he nearly died when it was taken away.Horty runs away from home, and ends up meeting Havana, Bunny, and Zena who take him back to the Carnival where they work.

The early part of this story reads more like a fantasy or horror story than a science-fiction one, and indeed those who want hard science-fiction would do better of looking elsewhere.However, Sturgeon does an artful job of bringing the story back into the realm of science-fiction as it moves towards its conclusion.Sturgeon includes many interesting themes, such as communication, outcasts, and alien life forms, and creates a story which is largely unique.

Where is my Brother?
It's easy reading. Almost childlike. But the story is good. A very original concept. It's not a new book. And although the author is fairly well known, it's not a classic. There won't be a test (as far as I know, this book won't be a topic of conversation at a faculty luncheon). Still, I remember it fondly.

A boy, Horty, has problems with his parents. Horty gets caught "eating ants" (he's a geek). So, he runs away to join the circus. He takes his childhood toy with him: A jack in the box. "Jack" has only one eye, a glittering jewel. But Horty is in danger: The circus owner collects jewels. Why? The answer to that forms the foundation of the story (the jewels "dream").

I didn't analyse the story at the time. The cosmology suggested: Our parents are crystals?

This "myth" (along the line of Romulus and Remus) provides an icon (the twins) whose symbolic interpretation helps resolve the question (I assert) "Who is the king's father?".

This question is as puzzling, in its own way, as the question "Who created god". And although, if I remember correctly, Horty comes to terms with his own problems; still, I'm not sure if Theodore Sturgeon presents us with a king at the end of the story. He probably fails to establish a new icon. And, he surely fails to establish a new Greco Roman civilization. Too bad.

In the end, the story remains "just" a good story. Borrow it from the library or pick it up used. ... Read more

Product Description
The Golden Helix is a selection of Sturgeon's own favorites from among his many beautiful and unabashedly romantic fantasies. Each story is prefaced with a brief discussion by the author. "A master storyteller certain to fascinate all sorts of readers . . ."--Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Superb stories by a true master of the genre!
The title-story alone is worth the price of this book. The survivors of a crashed spaceship awaken to find their craft carefully disassembled, as if by an unseen hand.This is just the beginning, friends.Let me tell you, if you haven't read Sturgeon, you haven't read science-fiction. ASF ... Read more