Ash of Stars : On the Writing of Samuel R. Delany [Hardcover]

James Sallis (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

A critical appreciation of the acclaimed science-fiction writer and his works

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Mississippi (May 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0878058524
• ISBN-13: 978-0878058525
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,752,170 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating volume on a fascinating writer, July 28, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Ash of Stars: On the Writing of Samuel R. Delany (Paperback)

While one essay ("Debased and Lascivious?: Samuel R. Delany's Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand" by Russell Blackford) displays nothing more than its author's ignorance of the realities of contemporary urban gay life (wherein all of the social constructs Blackford dismisses as unrealistic and unbelievable actually obtain today), it is the exception in a volume that is otherwise fascinating, revelatory and worthy of its challenging subject.

Given that Delany is himself a formidable critic, writing about him in a way that is just as incisive as he writes about both himself and others is a particular challenge. This volume delivers in spades, especially in two essays successfully look in detail at Delany's criticism (by David N. Samuelson and Ken James), and in Kathleen Spenser's essay "Neveryon Deconstructed," which offers a fresh and invigorating approach to Delany's already self-deconstructing "Tales."

Highly recommended for anyoine interested in Delany's criticism or critical embroideries of his work that suggest new ways of perceiving those challenging works.