"From Harlan Ellison, whom the Washington Post regards as a 'lyric poet, satirist, explorer of odd psychological corners, and purveyor of pure horror and black comedy,' comes Strange Wine. Discover among these tales the spirits of executed Nazi criminals who walk Manhattan streets; the damned soul of a murderess escaped from Hell; gremlins writing the fantasies of a gone-dry writer; and the exquisite Dr. D'arque Angel, who deals patients doses of death..." (description from the book cover)
Overall review: **** (four stars)
Strengths:
- Variety of Tone. This collection of short stories provides a little bit of everything. It ranges from the lighthearted ("Working with the Little People"), to the bleak ("Croatoan), to the whimsical ("From A to Z in the Chocolate Alphabet"), to the cautionary ("In Fear of K"). Being short stories, the reader can choose to read what tickles his/her fancy.
- Variety of Genre. Ellison is a master of transcending genre. This work contains a fairly straightforward ghost story, as well as stories of pure science fiction, stories of fantasy, and stories that go just beyond the possible. The variety helps to keep the reader interested throughout.
- The Introductions. Not only did Ellison write an introduction to the whole collection, but he also wrote intros to each individual story. As these stories were originally written and published in magazines, he had time to reflect on them before they were collected. His comments often add insight, not only into the stories, but into the person who created them.
- Subject Matter. Harlan Ellison is a man of strong opinions who does not apologize for them. The contents of some of these stories might very well make readers uncomfortable. The first story, for example, deals not only quite bluntly with abortion (and this was first published in 1975, mind you), but with some unintended consequences thereof.
- Format. The stories in the collection are in no way related. There is no connecting thread among them. As not everyone is a fan of short stories, this collection might not please everyone.
- "Working with the Little People"
- "Hitler Painted Roses"
- "From A to Z in the Chocolate Alphabet"
- "Seeing"
