The Best of Gene Wolfe: A Definitive Retrospective of His Finest Short Fiction

Who’s your favorite writer? Ask an author, or any bibliophile, and you’ll likely watch them struggle to even come close to a final answer. After half a century, I’ve read so many books I’ve forgotten all but the best and worst. For me, Gene Wolfe is as good as it gets. Sci-fi that transcends all expectation and stands toe to toe with anyone in any genre, “literary” or otherwise. If you’re looking for a light read, pass him by. If you want to be challenged and blown away by shear originality of character, thought, and plot twists that leave you stumbling in admiration, this is your guy.

I brought this book of short stories to the beach, as I am a decades long sci-fi fan and it was so highly recommended by other respected authors I enjoy like U. LeGuinn and Gaiman. I found the stories dated and just boring I am sorry to say. Not for me.

An excellent collection of short stories you will be thinking about long after you finish the book. Seven American Nights is possibly the best thing I've ever read.

I have never read a collection of stories with greater variety. All are fascinating! His writing is evocative and brilliant.

I thought it contained the fifth head of Cerberus but it only contains the first third.

While the printing press is a marvel of mass production, the Kindle puts it to shame. As a result, the countless hours of enjoyment Gene Wolfe has provided to me over the years are completely out of proportion to the paltry sums I have paid for his books. Mr. Wolfe is certainly the finest writer of the latter half of the 20th century to grace the science fiction genre. Actually, he's probably the best writer of the last half of the 20th century, period. Nothing lasts forever, I suppose, and Mr. Wolfe's illustrious career is perhaps approaching twilight. Still, it saddens me to see a Gene Wolfe collection, even as wonderful as this, titled a retrospective.Mr. Wolfe is a wildly prolific short story writer. In fact, he loves the form so much that he cannot refrain from inserting short stories into his full length works. So while "The Best of Gene Wolfe: A Definitive Retrospective of His Finest Short Fiction" is a marvelous collection spanning much of his career, with award winning stories selected by the author, it's a volume or two short of being definitive.Mr. Wolfe's work is densely alliterative, and much informed by his faith. For the church goers among us, "La Befana," "Westwind" and "The Eyeflash Miracles" are delights. Throughout his career Mr. Wolfe has displayed a fascination with forms and aberrations of memory and consciousness. Mr. Million, the unbound simulation of "The Fifth Head of Cerberus," Nicholas of "The Death of Dr. Island" and Baden of "The Tree is My Hat" are cases in point. Mr. Wolfe has a fondness for the cadences of myth and fable; "The Boy Who Hooked the Sun" is a fine example and a terrific story for young readers. (My kids enjoyed many a Gene Wolfe short story around the campfire as they grew up.) Mr. Wolfe is known for his use of first person active voice, and has made the literary device of the unreliable narrator famous. His protagonists are often impaired in some way, but nonetheless noble and likable. Sam of "Has Anybody Seen Junie Moon" is a type specimen Gene Wolfe protagonist. Mr. Wolfe evinces a genuine affection for humanity in general, and his characters in particular (even the villains). At his best, Mr. Wolfe evokes a wistful, bittersweet, almost elegiac tone in celebration of the beauty and foolishness of the human condition. "The Death of the Island Doctor" is a gem of story that chokes me up with happy tears every time I read it. Eventually all who are blessed discover that Dr. Insula had not been mistaken about the island after all.Of course, there must be at least a second, and hopefully a third volume to complete the "retrospective." So I'll cast my votes now. As mentioned, some of Mr. Wolfe's best short fiction is embedded in his novels. I'd like to see "Melito's Story - The Cock, the Angel and the Eagle" and "Foila's Story - The Armiger's Daughter" included. Both are from " Citadel of the Autarch " and are simply marvelous fairy tales. "The Tale of the Student and His Son" from " Claw of the Conciliator " is the most wonderful transmogrification of the legend of Theseus imaginable. Finally, Mr. Wolfe has written some marvelous military short fiction. "The HORARS of War" gets my vote.

In this book you will find some of Wolfe's best work in short fiction and some of the best short fiction of the last 60 years. Novellas such as "The Fifth Head of Cerberus" and "Seven American Nights" showcase Wolfe's style and diversity as well as his incredible imagination. Shorter pieces such as "The Tree is My Hat" and "The Death of Doctor Island" range from psychological horror done in a journal format to the mysterious, literate SF that has become Wolfe's trademark. Whether you are new to Wolfe or a long time reader, this collection will please you. And for those who enjoy discussing Wolfe's work, visit my Wolfe forum, Useful Phrases. The url is: [...]

Interesting read. Some of the short stories seem incomplete and not well thought out. More like ideas then well crafted stories.But there are several that are very well done. In the better stories his words paint pictures in your mind that are haunting and unforgettable.I've read several of his novels, some of which are rather ponderous, though always interestingly verbose!The better of these short stories express the interesting prose without becoming dragged down by it.

Obviously, I loved it. My favorite was The Eyeflash Miracles. Absolutely stunning story on every level.Here were my other standout stories:“The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories,” copyright © 1970 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Orbit 7. “The Fifth Head of Cerberus” copyright © 1972 by Damon Knight; first appeared in Orbit.“The Death of Dr. Island,” copyright © 1973 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Universe 3.“Forlesen,” copyright © 1974 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Orbit 14. “Westwind,” copyright © 1973 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Worlds of IF. “The Hero as Werwolf,” copyright © 1975 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in The New Improved Sun. “The Eyeflash Miracles,” copyright © 1976 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Future Power. “The Detective of Dreams,” copyright © 1980 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Dark Forces, edited by Kirby McCaul“On the Train,” copyright © 1983 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in The New Yorker. “From the Desk of Gilmer C. Merton,” copyright © 1983 by Gene Wolfe “Death of the Island Doctor,” copyright © 1983 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in The Wolfe Archipelago by Gene Wolfe. "Bed and Breakfast,” copyright © 1995 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Dante’s Disciples.“The Tree Is My Hat,” copyright © 1999 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in 999.“A Cabin on the Coast,” copyright © 1981 by Gene Wolfe; first appeared in Zu den Sternen, edited by Peter Wilfert (Munich: Goldmann Verlag, 1981).

This is my favourite book. If you are interested in the weird and wonderful, then Gene Wolfe is the man for you. I am a massive fan. This is proper literature, thought provoking, life affirming and deep. This is art.

If you like 'art' this may be for you. For me, it is in the frame for the worst SF I have ever read...