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angus_mckeogh's review against another edition
4.0
I’d guess about 80% of this story collection was very good. Three or four stories were exceptional and a couple were either marginal or too weird to even follow in a short format. My first Harlan Ellison and the one word I’d use to describe his writing would be gritty.
tiffanymae2022's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
lcsmmn's review against another edition
3.0
[Nota Personal]: Se leerán los siguientes cuentos: "A Boy and his Dog", "The Deathbird", "Jeffty is Five", "The Beast that Shouted Love at the Heart of the World", "The Whimper of Whipped Dogs", "I Have no Mouth, and I Must Scream", "Croatoan", "Santa Claus vs. S.P.I.D.E.R", "Try a Dull Knife".. Algunos están en esta antología y otros no, pero son los que me interesan de este autor.
A Boy and his Dog (4/5)
The Deathbird (4.5/5)
Jeffty is Five(4/5)
The Beast that Shouted Love at the Heart of the World (5/5)
The Whimper of Whipped Dogs(2/5)
I Have no Mouth, and I Must Scream (3.5/5)
Croatoan (3/5)
Santa Claus vs. S.P.I.D.E.R (1/5)
Try a Dull Knife (3.5/5)
A Boy and his Dog (4/5)
The Deathbird (4.5/5)
Jeffty is Five(4/5)
The Beast that Shouted Love at the Heart of the World (5/5)
The Whimper of Whipped Dogs(2/5)
I Have no Mouth, and I Must Scream (3.5/5)
Croatoan (3/5)
Santa Claus vs. S.P.I.D.E.R (1/5)
Try a Dull Knife (3.5/5)
chickienuggies's review against another edition
2.0
+2 points for toad mention
+2 points for "papyrus man"
- 2.5 points for being confusing and losing me.
1.5/5 stars. I didn't like the plot, the style or the characters. I was really hooked at the beginning which is rare, with the whole backstory of Sterog. But it just completely lost me starting at the paragraph about the Crosswhen. There's just a dragon, two random guys with no personality, some painting and a draining or whatever but it just all felt like middling mumbo jumbo that only vaguely resembled a coherent plot. I get the whole concept now, and there's probably something more that can be taken from this story, but it didn't motivate me to figure it out. It seemed like way too much of a hassle and I didn't think it'd be worth the effort. It do be... different. And weird. But that does not make me think it's good.
+2 points for "papyrus man"
- 2.5 points for being confusing and losing me.
1.5/5 stars. I didn't like the plot, the style or the characters. I was really hooked at the beginning which is rare, with the whole backstory of Sterog. But it just completely lost me starting at the paragraph about the Crosswhen. There's just a dragon, two random guys with no personality, some painting and a draining or whatever but it just all felt like middling mumbo jumbo that only vaguely resembled a coherent plot. I get the whole concept now, and there's probably something more that can be taken from this story, but it didn't motivate me to figure it out. It seemed like way too much of a hassle and I didn't think it'd be worth the effort. It do be... different. And weird. But that does not make me think it's good.
ogreart's review against another edition
3.0
Ellison's got some stories in here that make me think and feel. Others, not so much. There were even a couple I'm not smart enough to comprehend yet.
dantastic's review against another edition
2.0
The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World is a collection of short stories by Harlan Ellison. I mostly picked it up to read A Boy and His Dog, to experience the post-apocalyptic story as it was originally intended and to see if this version was as rapey as the movie starring Don Johnson. Here are my thoughts on some of the stories contained within.
The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World: I have no idea how to summarize this story. I'm not sure what it was actually about. Something something time travel, releasing insanity across the multiverse, possibly an allegory of Lucifer's fall. I'm still trying to digest this one.
Along the Scenic Route: When another motorist insults him on The Freeway, George challenges him to a duel. Which of the drivers and his tricked out vehicles will come out of the confrontation the winner?
This dystopian death race was a pretty cool story, two men and their weaponized cars battling it out.
Phoenix: Travelers cross a red desert, searching for a lost city that has risen from the sands.
This one was interesting with a Twilight Zone ending. The concepts were a little out there but it was a pretty satisfying read.
Asleep: With Still Hands: Deep beneath the Sargasso Sea, a team of men go to slay The Sleeper...
This was a bizarre tale of the dead and dreaming Sleeper and the world he protected. Ellison sure knows how to do endings, even if I thought this story wasn't that great.
Santa Claus vs. S.P.I.D.E.R.: Kris Kringle, greatest secret agent in the world, battles the forces of S.P.I.D.E.R. Can he stop their insidious eight-point plan in time to do his Christmas duties?
This was a cheesy, fun, spy spoof. At least it was, until a rapey moment near the end. 90% enjoyable, though.
A Boy and His Dog: Vic and his telepathic dog Blood wander a post-apocalyptic wasteland, looking to get fed and get laid.
Yeah, the novella version was just as rape-oriented as the 1970's movie.
Closing Thoughts: I have mixed feelings on The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World. In a technical sense, Harlan Ellison is a very good writer. However, most of the stories within were a product of their time. Were the 1970's as rapey a time period as some of the fiction of the period leads me to believe. 2.5 out of 5 stars.
The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World: I have no idea how to summarize this story. I'm not sure what it was actually about. Something something time travel, releasing insanity across the multiverse, possibly an allegory of Lucifer's fall. I'm still trying to digest this one.
Along the Scenic Route: When another motorist insults him on The Freeway, George challenges him to a duel. Which of the drivers and his tricked out vehicles will come out of the confrontation the winner?
This dystopian death race was a pretty cool story, two men and their weaponized cars battling it out.
Phoenix: Travelers cross a red desert, searching for a lost city that has risen from the sands.
This one was interesting with a Twilight Zone ending. The concepts were a little out there but it was a pretty satisfying read.
Asleep: With Still Hands: Deep beneath the Sargasso Sea, a team of men go to slay The Sleeper...
This was a bizarre tale of the dead and dreaming Sleeper and the world he protected. Ellison sure knows how to do endings, even if I thought this story wasn't that great.
Santa Claus vs. S.P.I.D.E.R.: Kris Kringle, greatest secret agent in the world, battles the forces of S.P.I.D.E.R. Can he stop their insidious eight-point plan in time to do his Christmas duties?
This was a cheesy, fun, spy spoof. At least it was, until a rapey moment near the end. 90% enjoyable, though.
A Boy and His Dog: Vic and his telepathic dog Blood wander a post-apocalyptic wasteland, looking to get fed and get laid.
Yeah, the novella version was just as rape-oriented as the 1970's movie.
Closing Thoughts: I have mixed feelings on The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World. In a technical sense, Harlan Ellison is a very good writer. However, most of the stories within were a product of their time. Were the 1970's as rapey a time period as some of the fiction of the period leads me to believe. 2.5 out of 5 stars.
moonpie's review against another edition
3.0
This was a good week for short stories and I wanted to give non-script-y Ellison a shot.
Honestly, I'm don't think of myself as a sci-fi reader, as I'm more into sci-fi in visual media -- hahahaha I just remembered Ellison hates the term "science fiction," sorry dude -- and these are older stories, so a lot of them read less fresh and dewy than they might have when they were originally published. I had a really hard time getting into them at first, maybe for one or both of those reasons.
There were some interesting premises and I genuinely enjoyed reading many of the stories once I got into Ellison's style and the older sci-fi feel; he likes to use uncommon words (like "sodality"!) a lot, so that gets him bonus points.
There's that, but then there's also this: (a) everything's terrible and miserable and always will be, forever, and (b) this is some Chock Full o'Misogyny bullshit. OH MY GOD, it would suck beyond the telling of it to be a woman in any of Ellison's speculative futures.
I kinda liked enough of the stories that I'd pick up another anthology, but I get enough of both (a) and (b) without actively tracking them down.
(two-and-a-half stars)
Honestly, I'm don't think of myself as a sci-fi reader, as I'm more into sci-fi in visual media -- hahahaha I just remembered Ellison hates the term "science fiction," sorry dude -- and these are older stories, so a lot of them read less fresh and dewy than they might have when they were originally published. I had a really hard time getting into them at first, maybe for one or both of those reasons.
There were some interesting premises and I genuinely enjoyed reading many of the stories once I got into Ellison's style and the older sci-fi feel; he likes to use uncommon words (like "sodality"!) a lot, so that gets him bonus points.
There's that, but then there's also this: (a) everything's terrible and miserable and always will be, forever, and (b) this is some Chock Full o'Misogyny bullshit. OH MY GOD, it would suck beyond the telling of it to be a woman in any of Ellison's speculative futures.
I kinda liked enough of the stories that I'd pick up another anthology, but I get enough of both (a) and (b) without actively tracking them down.
(two-and-a-half stars)
megapolisomancy's review against another edition
1.0
A depressingly large amount of old science fiction exhibits something of a misogynistic attitude, but rarely is it as skin-crawlingly blatant as it is here.
matthewn's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
2.0
Includes a few very good stories - the title story, "Santa Claus vs. S.P.I.D.E.R.," and "A Boy and his Dog" - but the rest of the stories are quite poor.
quincywheeler's review against another edition
3.0
Ellison always has amazingly creative ideas, and there are a lot of great ideas here. The last story is a total dud, though.