From the first moments when you read Gene Wolfe, the quality, maturity, and craft of his writing is evident. His writing slows a reader down; you can't race through him. His work must be digested, processed, and reflected on. In some cases, the writing is so excellent, you'll want to read it out loud just to hear the effect of his words. This is a great introduction to a master. ( )

Awesome

Obviously, I loved it. My favorite was The Eyeflash Miracles. Absolutely stunning story on every level.

Here were my other standout stories:


“The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories,” copyright © 1970 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Orbit 7.

“The Fifth Head of Cerberus” copyright © 1972 by Damon Knight; first appeared in Orbit.

“The Death of Dr. Island,” copyright © 1973 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Universe 3.

“Forlesen,” copyright © 1974 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Orbit 14. “Westwind,” copyright © 1973 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Worlds of IF. “The Hero as Werwolf,” copyright © 1975 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in The New Improved Sun.

“The Eyeflash Miracles,” copyright © 1976 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Future Power.

“The Detective of Dreams,” copyright © 1980 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Dark Forces, edited by Kirby McCaul

“On the Train,” copyright © 1983 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in The New Yorker. “From the Desk of Gilmer C. Merton,” copyright © 1983 by Gene Wolfe

“Death of the Island Doctor,” copyright © 1983 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in The Wolfe Archipelago by Gene Wolfe.

"Bed and Breakfast,” copyright © 1995 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Dante’s Disciples.

“The Tree Is My Hat,” copyright © 1999 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in 999.

“A Cabin on the Coast,” copyright © 1981 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Zu den Sternen, edited by Peter Wilfert (Munich: Goldmann Verlag, 1981). ( )

A man who can write about the future in the elegant idiom of the past--I like that. But Ursula LeGuin was too generous calling him "our Melville." His command of language is great, but his metaphysics are not up to the job. All the contriving doesn't really add up to any deeper vision of life, past, present or future. So, ultimately most of these stories seem like vivid, elaborate, empty boxes. ( )

As I suspect many do, I came to Gene Wolfe via the [b:The Shadow of the Torturer|60211|The Shadow of the Torturer (The Book of the New Sun #1)|Gene Wolfe|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1329650008s/60211.jpg|762497]. I was late to the party, but I liked the book well enough that I picked up the rest of the series, and eventually several of his other books. Most of them have left me with a similar feeling - that this is a very competent author, but that the stories miss the emotional connection that carries a story beyond technical skill.

When I saw this on sale, I picked it up. I figured that there had to be something there, that the high technical skill I saw might have greater narrative impact if only I saw enough of it.

I'm afraid it didn't. I had the same reaction to these stories as I've had to most everything else by Wolfe. That is, the sentences are well written, the plots are decent, there's depth of meaning and intent, and yet it doesn't strike any emotional chords with me.

Wolfe is a renowned author, and clearly he knows what he's doing as a writer. But I can only say that after extensive testing, it doesn't work for me. You won't be sorry if you read this book; it's not a waste of time. But it may not change your life, either. ( )

I have read every word of this book and have been very surprised to find that I wasn't blown away by any of the stories and really didn't like most of them very much.

Since the mists of time when I read the Fifth Head of Cerberus (novel form) I have thought I liked Gene Wolfe's writing. He is undeniably intelligent and his craft is excellent. But stacking all of these stories next to one another has forced onto my awareness that there isn't much human feeling in his work. His characters have feelings, a little--mostly muted, which is fine--but I don't feel much in response to them. The most clear sensation I had, after admiration of his prose, was awareness of the unpleasantness and even dreariness of his worlds. ( )