A review by hazelsf
Keep the Giraffe Burning by John Sladek
2.0
This was very challenging to read, however, I did enjoy some of the stories and had to DNF 3 of them.
I love the idea of surreal science fiction, and I was attracted to this book for the strange rooted face on the cover, and the amusing description of the first short story on the front. However, I need for there to be something satisfying about the stories, whether it is an interesting character, view point, idea, or general feel of reading them. I didn't get this from most of the stories. 'The Elephant with Wodden Leg' was a lot of fun, with mad scientists trying to save the world and sinister cockroaches. I liked 'The Face' because it went in a direction I didn't expect. 'A Game of Jump' was odd, with its limited vocabulary making it wildly interesting to interpret the text.
The standout fivestar story for me was 'Poets of Millgrove, Iowa', It was written clearly enough for me to be immersed in it, the characters interesting and flawed, and the ending unexpected and wonderful.
I wouldn't recommend this to any but the most avid fans of surreal science fiction. That said, I am interested to read a novel or two to by John Sladek to see if they are more readable, because he is an amusing and unique writer.
I love the idea of surreal science fiction, and I was attracted to this book for the strange rooted face on the cover, and the amusing description of the first short story on the front. However, I need for there to be something satisfying about the stories, whether it is an interesting character, view point, idea, or general feel of reading them. I didn't get this from most of the stories. 'The Elephant with Wodden Leg' was a lot of fun, with mad scientists trying to save the world and sinister cockroaches. I liked 'The Face' because it went in a direction I didn't expect. 'A Game of Jump' was odd, with its limited vocabulary making it wildly interesting to interpret the text.
The standout fivestar story for me was 'Poets of Millgrove, Iowa', It was written clearly enough for me to be immersed in it, the characters interesting and flawed, and the ending unexpected and wonderful.
I wouldn't recommend this to any but the most avid fans of surreal science fiction. That said, I am interested to read a novel or two to by John Sladek to see if they are more readable, because he is an amusing and unique writer.