I'm re-reading this book after at least 40 years. In the interim, my only real exposure to Stanley Ellin has been through his classic story "The Specialty of the House" -- which received a nice dramatization in Vincent Price's BBC Radio Series "The Price of Fear". Amazingly, that was his first published story.

The Blessington Method is a mixed bag at best. The title story is clever--perhaps too clever, but has a nice, ironic ending. It is also extremely dated, already, given the 21st century's changing demographics and explosion of older people in our society. "Robert" is the most disturbing story in the book as a teacher two years away from retirement faces off against a sixth grader. Other stories are enjoyable, such as The 9 to 5 Man. Some are just silly, such as one about a flea circus. Ellin's writing style and subject matter takes us back to a mid-century world that seems far more antique than it actually is. ( )

Great short stories. Each with a twist. Reminded me of some of the great Roald Dahl short stories.

For some reason I found " The speciality of the house" his most famous short story ( not included in this book) , almost trying too hard to be stylish ( perhaps it was an unintended consequence of the desire to make the restaurant the center of that short story "refined"), but there was none of that in these stories.

As a result I will be trying more of Ellin's works.

Big Ship
17 May 2015 ( )

Brilliant short stories with style, emotion, humor, intelligence and, most importantly, intrigue. To find any short story these days at this age that can floor you with a "Twilight Zone" style twist is a rarity. So considering that at least 3 of these 7 can do so is altogether remarkable. From THE perfect crime to a degenerate corporation's thriving business plan to the broken hearts of a flea-circus troupe, this is a fantastic collection of stories that doesn't suffer from the usual throwaway filler that plagues the average short story collection. ( )