Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Collected Stories -- Lewis Shiner

When I noticed that Subterranean Press was selling this book for $20, I ordered a copy immediately. Over 450 pages of great stuff. Gotta be the bargain of the month. Even at that, not all Shiner's short stories are included. Still, it's a great sampler. The stories from Twilight Zone were some of favorites from that magazine, and I also liked the work he did in the crime field, though there's not a lot of that. The stories here cover a wide range, so there's something for everybody to enjoy. I read "Lizard Men of Los Angeles" when it appeared in F&SF some years ago, and it concludes the collection. Shiner says it's his favorite, and it's a lot of fun.

One thing I like about collections like this is reading what the authors have to say about the stories, and Shiner says he likes that, too. So he includes notes about each one at the end of the book.

I haven't seen Lew in years, but I met him long ago at an AggieCon, and I remember sitting in the usual spot in the Memorial Student Center one night when he was talking about writing "Steam Engine Time." I like to think that I made a small contribution to that one. But don't let that stop you. Get this book while it's still available.

6 comments:

George said...

I just ordered this book! You're right: it's the bargain of the week. Lewis Shiner is an underrated writer.

Richard R. said...

So did I. Looking forward to reading it! It's on sale at the Subterranean site but not at A-zon or elsewhere, I see. Plus free shipping. A bargain.

David Cranmer said...

I will purchase a copy of this collection.

Anonymous said...

OK, just ordered it too. Thanks for mentioning this one, Bill.

Jeff

Unknown said...

I should get royalties!

Todd Mason said...

Well, of course, Bill. Or at least a click-through percentage from your site. Sad, though, that such a title doesn't insist but implies that he might not be writing too many more shorter stories...

or, appittie as wv puts it...