This volume, and a companion volume, DON'T DREAM, collect all the science fiction and weird fiction of Donald Wandrei, generally remembered today mainly as co-founder of Arkham House and walking companion of H. P. Lovecraft.

Somehow I missed the first edition of COLOSSUS. This 2nd edition has two extra, previously unpublished stories and some interesting photos.

First the bad news: I don't know what kind of poet Wandrei was, but as a writer and plotter of prose fiction, he had some severe limitations. Almost all of his sf was published between 1930 and 1936, and it is archaic even by the standards of that day. He has three basic story ideas, which he uses over and over: (1) something from outer space plays havoc with human society. (2) Uncontrolled scientific curiosity plays havoc with humanity and the earth itself. (3) A lovers' triangle becomes displaced in time, space or both.

His best known story, "Colossus," is an example of type (3). It is also Wandrei's worst written story, in fact one of the worst written sf stories I have ever read, and I speak as a reader of "The Blind Spot," by Austin Hall and Homer Eon Flint. Typical sentence: "His accumulated hopes, tragedy and undertaking of the day were above rational analysis." Do what?

There are no real neglected gems in this collection; in fact, I had to force myself ot keep reading. Wandrei seems at his best when he can throw plot, characterization and dialogue (none of which he can handle) to the winds, and spin wild prose poems describing the breakdown of "space, time, matter, energy and consciousness." This makes "Finality Unlimited" (he wasn't much for titles either), "A Trip to Infinity," and the previously unpublished "If---" the best stories in the book.

Wandrei ceased writing sf just before the dawn of the Golden Age of Science Fiction in 1939. He tried to make a few sales to John W. Campbell's ASTOUNDING, but his archaic output had no hope of publication in a magazine newly emphasizing realism in science and characterization.

Here is a very minor talent. He shouldn't be forgotten, but don't go into this volume expecting something wonderful. If Wandrei is remembered only as a publisher and friend of Lovecraft, maybe that is only justice, and his just due.

Arkham House co-founder, friend and correspondent of H.P. Lovecraft, and a highly respected writer for the pulps in the late 20s and 30s - Donald Wandrei was considered a poet and visionary by HPL and Clark Ashton Smith. His stories of alien intrusions and universe shaking cataclysms are somewhat dated to those who are only used to the psychologically driven fiction of more modern years. His unique visions were considered groundbreaking when first published and are still highly entertaining decades later. This is first of all an enjoyable read as well as a fascinating look at the beginning of modern science fiction.

Kit's Home Run was not quite what I expected it to be. It seemed like a run down of the books, spending too much quality time going over the facts about what happened to Kit. Then Pleasant Company decided to recycle some of the graphics from "Kit Saves the Day." While to book is cute, I was somewhat disappointed. This is supposed to be a short story, an extension of the six other Kit books. Instead, it seemed like a run of the mill mass-produced series book, rehashing facts as though readers were not already acquainted with Kit and her family. Anyone who has read "Meet Kit" knows what happened to Kit and her family, and anyone who read "Kit Saves the Day" will notice that several of the graphics were recycled. Put bluntly: the book could have been more original. Several of the others seem to be better..but perhaps that is because they actually came from American Girl magazine, and before Mattel took Pleasant Company over...

This is another in the American Girls Short Stories series about Kit Kittredge, a ten-year-old girl living in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is 1934, and Kit wishes that she could go see a Cincinnati Reds game like she and her father used to before the Depression began. When she's hurt during a neighborhood game, Kit finds a way to help someone else!

I am a fan of the Kit books, but must admit to feeling somewhat disappointed by this one. A part of what I like best about them is the life lessons that they teach, but this one is a little thin on the lesson part. But, that said, my daughter loved the book, and we both liked the illustrations. The final chapter was a look at baseball in 1934, and a project for personalizing a baseball cap, which my daughter is already planning out right now. So, overall I would say that this is a very good Kit book, but certainly not one of the best.

A smart-alecky adolescent wants to prove that if God is almighty as Jews claim, He could have impregnated Mary with Jesus. Thus, in his mind, and apparently from the author's perspective, the Jews are to blame for inter-religious strife arising from their bigoted refusal to give creedence to fundamental Christian precepts.

The Gentiles who read the story consider it a noble proclamation for religious tolerance. But the blood that spilled in the two thousand years since the death of Jesus has been the blood of Jews, hideously, brutally murdered by Christians believing they were doing the word of their lord. Roth attempts to create a totally false impression that he alone among the Jews is sufficiently wise and broad-minded to preach respect for tenets of other religions. But in fact it has always been a first principle of Judaism that any religion teaching belief in one God and charity and requiring just dealings among mankind is a valid religion. {These are the laws that the Jews' God imposed on the sons of Noah.) Christianity, by contrast, historically has deemed itself the one true faith, and many non-believers suffered awful deaths as a result.

Roth wrote this story to broaden his readership beyond the small population of Jews in America -- who would find his charicatures of themeslves funny--so that he could sell his work to wider audiences. For Roth, the royalties he sought justified his trashing the truths about his people and supplying ammunition to those who would ridicule my brothers and sisters. I detest him.

I felt that this story illustrated creative thematic continuity. The plot is precisely orchestrated. The symbolism is clear and allegoric. Both Old and New Testament allusions flow between the lines. The theme is intense and unified. The setting is literal, yet transcends figurative meanings.

The narrator's point of view is dramatic. The theme is both illustrative and moving. The style is connotative of much deeper meanings. The diction is creatively suggestive. The characters are plausible and consistent.

I think this is a masterpiece! The conclusion is strong and symbolic. Throughout the story, Roth saturates and consistently reinforces his theme in a satire of religious hypocrisy. I give you ten stars for this one! **********

Patty Stroe

Found myself scanning to find an interesting plot. I must have missed something. I never could get into these varied stories. I've read Farmer's first five books in the series and I felt disappointed with "Tales of Riverworld." I hope someone else enjoys this book more than I did.

I am beginning to wonder if the previous reviewer actually read the same book that I did?

I found these stories to be amazingly good probably on my top three list of short stories.

I liked them all but my favorite has got to be(get name of story) Where Davy Crocket hoping to refight the Battle of the Alamo learns that there is no profit in revenge.

Also there is (get name of story) Where an actor pretending to be Robin of the Hood helps Julies Vern to recover his Utopia from Al Capone.

Now I realize that the two stories I've mentioned sound like a bad acid trip but you must keep in mind that all things are possible in Riverworld. Saint mingles with Sinner, Viking could fight Monguls, Elvis could run for president if he wanted to and these are just a few of the possibilities.

This is a very academic study of the phenomenon of world music. As such it provides interesting theories and also some important facts, but I doubt whether the average world music fan would derive much enjoyment from it. The author includes worldwide music from the folk, art and popular traditions and mentions that it can be sacred, secular or commercial. So far, so good, but with sentences like: "As we encounter world music, therefore, it is important to recognize the need to reckon with different epistemologies and ontologies if we are to understand what world music can mean in its virtually infinite varieties," I nearly fell of my chair laughing. In its defence, the book does include informative albeit short pieces on the 1932 Cairo Congress of Arab Music, the great Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum, Rai music, Leadbelly, Celtic music, the Eurovision Song Contest, Bob Marley, Manu Dibango from Cameroon and the musics of the various diasporas. Two maps are included: The Celtic Fringe in Europe and the Polka Belt in the USA plus there are illustrations, a bibliography, discography and an index. I picked up the book without properly checking the contents - it's great source material if you want to write a dissertation on music from different traditions, but not a text that reflects the rhythms of the rich variety of world music that is becoming more and more available to everybody in our current era of globalisation.

When I bought this book, I didn't realize it was in spanish, as it never said anything about a foreign language book. When I take a quick spanish course I will read it and let you know my opinion.

This book is a collection of mixed short stories for spanish readers. Not the best overall but includes some excellent stories. For a more complete collection I recomend The collected stories of Philip K. Dick, 5 volumes. But if you read spanish and want to get a tast of Dick's works this is a very good one.

THE BOOK IS VERY BORING AND NOT GOOD READING MATERIAL. I AM READING THE BOOK FOR A UNIVERSITY CLASS AND DISLIKE THE READING ALTOGETHER. THE AUTHOR NEED TO TO TRY TO DO AN UPDATED AND MORE INTERESTING VERSION OF THE HISTORY. HOW CAN I UNDERSTAND THE WEST INDIES AND VISIT THE SITE IF I CAN'T UNDERSTAND THE BOOK... VERY VERY DULL!!!!!!

This book offered so many fascinating insights into European and colonial history, the slave trade, the way nation states wage war, race relations--topics that are as relevant today as they have been over the last four hundred years. In the small stage of the West Indies you can see them all played out.

How Philip Young earned the respect of his colleages is a mystery to me. So is his reasoning in "Hawthorne's Secret: An Untold Tale." Cleary without any kind of grasp on Hawthorne's life or work, Young took scraps of "evidence" and then drew an unlikely conclusion, calling it Hawthorne's "secret." It's unfortunate that trees had to die for this bit of speculation.