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Stalking the Nightmare - Harlan Ellison Book Review

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Review Summary
This 1982 collection is not one of Ellison's strongest. It came during a quiescent period when he was struggling with health problems, so roughly half of the stories are rescued and updated from the 1950s -- much more classic sci-fi stories than much of his other work: hunting alien game, rescues and mysteries in mountain wilds, a desperate killer trying to escape incarceration in a future civilization, etc. However, the book also contains several essays which are dynamite: Ellison's wide-eyed commentary on the Voyager flyby of Saturn in November 1980, the saga of his failed "Starlost" series for Canadian television, his experiences with a traveling carnival after running away from home at 13, and especially "The 3 Most Important Things in Life" -- which are sex, violence, and labor relations (including the half-day he was employed by Disney Studios).
David Loftus, Resident Scholar


Detailed literary breakdown of Stalking the Nightmare
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - part earth & part fantasy world
Romance Yes
Romance plotlets: - love among disparate social classes
Spying & Investigations Yes
What is main char. doing? - rescue mission/escape from confinement
War or Invasion Yes
Major kinds of combat: - hand to hand - guns - magical battles
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book

Main Character
How sensitive is this character? - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence
Physique - average physique

Main Adversary
How sensitive is this character? - hard edged
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence
Physique - average physique

Setting
Terrain - Mountains
Earth setting: - 20th century - medium future 22-24th century
A substantial portion of this book takes place on a non-Earth planetary body: - humans in a futuristic society - humans in a contemporary society - primitive aliens - very controlled society
Takes place on Earth? Yes
Planet outside solar system? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
scientific jargon? (SF only) - some scientific explanation
How much dialogue? - significantly more descript than dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).
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