A review by darththought
I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream, by Harlan Ellison, Theodore Sturgeon
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
He withdrew, murmuring to hell with you. And added, brightly, but then you’re there, aren’t you.
Full Disclosure I did not finish Little Maggie Moneyeyes the last story of this collection. I couldn't because that was the point where the blatant misogyny got the best of me. I could not finish
That being said, I will give Harlan Ellison one thing. He can write for the most part I enjoyed the first three stories of the collection even if they left me with a gaping hole of darkness in my chest. Where it started to all go wrong was around World of the Myth this was where the full misogyny was on display. Victim blaming, and the like. I can forgive some things I forgave a lot for this book because I wanted to enjoy it. And hell I enjoyed the titular story and the two stories after it Big Sam was My Friend was a heart wrenching but all too familiar tale of how money can drive us to forget our morals.
Eyes of Dust was.... OK a little too bleak but i got the point he was going for, that is one thing i can say about the author I get why he writes what he writes, however i can not in good faith say that I enjoyed the stories after that it just went down hill and i could not finish the last one
I would not recommend the full book, I would recommend the titular story and if that was all I was reviewing this review would have been glowing, but it is not because I wanted to read all of them
I will also say if Mr. Ellison was still alive I'd probably have a drink with him, because outside of his stories in the little in betweens I could see a genuine if very cynical human.
Full Disclosure I did not finish Little Maggie Moneyeyes the last story of this collection. I couldn't because that was the point where the blatant misogyny got the best of me. I could not finish
That being said, I will give Harlan Ellison one thing. He can write for the most part I enjoyed the first three stories of the collection even if they left me with a gaping hole of darkness in my chest. Where it started to all go wrong was around World of the Myth this was where the full misogyny was on display. Victim blaming, and the like. I can forgive some things I forgave a lot for this book because I wanted to enjoy it. And hell I enjoyed the titular story and the two stories after it Big Sam was My Friend was a heart wrenching but all too familiar tale of how money can drive us to forget our morals.
Eyes of Dust was.... OK a little too bleak but i got the point he was going for, that is one thing i can say about the author I get why he writes what he writes, however i can not in good faith say that I enjoyed the stories after that it just went down hill and i could not finish the last one
I would not recommend the full book, I would recommend the titular story and if that was all I was reviewing this review would have been glowing, but it is not because I wanted to read all of them
I will also say if Mr. Ellison was still alive I'd probably have a drink with him, because outside of his stories in the little in betweens I could see a genuine if very cynical human.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Violence