Barry N. Malzberg

A mixed bag of essays about science fiction, most originally published in 1980 under the title Engines of the Night. I think I read it then. Adds a number of essays written between 1980 and 2007. Interesting that looking back at 1980 from today is the same as looking back at 1950 from 1980.

The book is best when he's discussing specific authors, stories, and books, and Malzberg is telling stories from his own experiences. Some other of it comes across a little as whining about the lack of respect SF writers receive(d). One such story about Ted Sturgeon is really poignant.

Malzberg's a very sharp writer; I need to dig into some of his stories and novels, and there are plenty of great recommendations in this book I need to seek out.… (lisätietoja)

The narration by Rudnicki probably raises this review from 2 stars. It's a hard book to judge. The writing, even when dipping into the realm of pornography, is quite good. The narrator is obsessed with movies and has the ability to enter so much into them that he has relationships with the female stars; for the most part here, that means Sophia Loren, Elizabeth Taylor, and Brigitte Bardot. But he mentions a few others, including Marilyn (Monroe) and Jayne (Mansfield), whom he has fond, sad memories of. It's hard to say if this amounts to all that much in the end, but as a picture of the mid to late 1960s, it has its merits.… (lisätietoja)