Customer Reviews

Iron Tears

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Why three stars? More Lafferty is always good, and appearances to the contrary, there is a lot more Lafferty, but you can never find it. Wildside Press has done us all a great service in (re)publishing the most unique sci-fi writer to ever wield a quill, but this book could stand some careful editing. Maybe it has since been edited, though, because my copy doesn't have an intro. by Michael Swanwick. If so, someone please note that in their review. My copy gathers fifteen stories by R.A.L., who seems to have written a million stories, other collections being Ringing Changes, Does Anyone Have Anything Further to Add and Nine Hundred Grandmothers. Lafferty in Orbit is a collection of stories that appeared in Orbit magazine, with an intro. by Damon Knight. My favorite Lafferty novel, Fourth Mansions, is out of print again, I think. But I just found Space Chantey, which ranks up there with Annals of Klepsis, Arrive at Easterwine and Past Master as his best. Not to Mention Camels is also pretty good. From what I've read, some readers liked The Devil is Dead, which was very memorable--hauntingly so--but I have no idea what it was about. Lafferty writes as if under the influence of a strong, vision-inducing drug, but it's more like the reader slips into a trance reading the story, and when you finish the story, you wake up. Lafferty delivers far more than bottom line sci-fi, and a few typos, while distracting, cannot blur his vision.

Gord Wilson (below) asks what happened to this. Well, the reprint edition doesn't include it. I asked Michael AWB if he could put the intro online, and he has: michaelswanwick[dot]com/nonfic/duck[dot]html

I haven't actually seen the book, so my rating (required by Ammie) is the average of the other 2 reviews.

Happy reading--
Pete Tillman
Swanwick Site Committee

As always, Lafferty is unique -- you're going to like some, hate some, and go away baffled from some.