About this title: DEATHBIRD STORIES is a series of parables about dark gods, and the rewards and penalties for negotiating with them. Some of Ellison's best work--his most powerful and painful--is included here. Written during the late '60s and early '70s, the stories tap into the tumultuous zeitgeist of the period. "The Whimper of Whipped Dogs" is a response to the death of Kitty Genovese, whose brutal murder in 1964 New York City was supposedly witnessed by 38 people who did nothing to help her. "Basilisk" explores the pain and emptiness of the Vietnam War vet, wounded anew by people's utter incomprehension ...
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Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Description: Good. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Dell, New York
Date Published: 1976
Description: Good. No Jacket as Issued. Some wear to the wraps with small creases to the back cover. Stains to the top of the front top cover which has bled onto the top of the first few pages without affecting the text. First Dell printing. read more
Description: Good. 0440117372 Condition: GOOD. (Book may have one or a combination of the following characteristics: former library book, dust jacket missing, cover wear, name written inside cover, considerable underlining/highlighting, remainder mark, binding loose, binding slants, pages tanning / curling, etc. Overall, the book is in decent shape. This is a blanket description. Please e us if you require a specific, detailed description of the book condition. We will typically respond within one week of ... read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Dell Publishing
Date Published: 1980-10
ISBN-13:9780440117377ISBN:0440117372
Description: Very Good. PAPERBACK. Very Good-Condition. Binding tight, pages clean. Light edge-wear, with creases beginning at front hinge and bottom right corner of front cover. Inner covers tanned. Nice copy withal! read more
Description: Very good. No dust jacket. Near fine with faint stain on back cover. Pages clean and unmarked. Tight, square. 297 p. Audience: General/trade. Likely book club ed. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Collier Books/Macmillan, New York
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780020283614ISBN:002028361X
Description: Good + Tight spine, previous owner's name and date inside front cover. Illustrated wraps, edges rubbed, corners bumped, spine slightly creased. Text is clean and unmarked, pages yellowed. 295 Pgs. read more
Description: New. 0440117372 Brand New paperback, spine perfect-no creases, never read copy! Great Book. ** Satisfaction Guaranteed ** Orders ship same or next business day. read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Dell
Date Published: 1980
ISBN-13:9780440117377ISBN:0440117372
Description: Dillon, Leo & Diane. Very good. No dust jacket as issued. VG+ 346 p. 1980 paperback edition from Dell. VERY GOOD PLUS. Leo & Diane Dillon cover art. read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Pan Books, Ltd., London: Sydney
Date Published: 1978
ISBN-13:9780330251235ISBN:0330251236
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Paperback, tight and sound. Pages unmarked, text clean. No torn, stained or folded pages. Cover is clean with scratches and edge wear. Firm, solid book. Trade paperback, glued binding. 347p. This collection originally published: New York: Harper and Row, 1975; London: Millington, 1977. read more
Edition: First edition thus
Binding: Original Wraps
Publisher: Bantam,, New York, New York:
Date Published: 1987.
ISBN-13:9780440117377ISBN:0440117372
Description: Near Fine. 12mo 6 3/4" tall, 346 pages, wraps. A near fine, clean, solid first edition paperback (Harper & Row, 1st edition, 1975) with light shelf wear, binding solid, but paper moderately yellowed. read more
Edition: Book Club (BCE/BOMC)
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Bluejay Books
Date Published: 1983
Description: Used; Acceptable in Good jacket. Size: 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall; Slightly cocked; some edgewear to DJ; light foxing and water damage. Reissue for Science Fiction Book Club of Ellison's celebrated short story collection from 1975. Quintessential Harlan Ellison: Unpredictable, incredibly gifted, and--in a nutshell--weird! read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Dell
Date Published: 1980
ISBN-13:9780440117377ISBN:0440117372
Description: Dillon, Leo & Diane. Very good. No dust jacket as issued. NF. 346 p. 1980 paperback edition from Dell. NEAR FINE. Leo & Diane Dillon cover art. read more
Edition: 2nd
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Dell
Date Published: 1977
ISBN-13:9780440117377ISBN:0440117372
Description: Very Good- As issued No Jacket. Ellison's classic collection. Cover art same as Hardcover jacket(I happen to be lucky enough to have one in my collection). A couple of dings and scratches to back cover, slight spine curl. A nice copy of an increasingly rair edition(also out of print). read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Dell Publishing
Date Published: 1977
ISBN-13:9780440117377ISBN:0440117372
Description: Fair. (BOX 65) 1976 Dell ed. SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR, Harlan Ellison and dated 11/29/77. corner chip to front cover. some mild creasing and spine erosion. cover is clean and bright. pages very lightly browned. read more
Edition: Book Club (BCE/BOMC)
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Bluejay Books
Date Published: 1983
Description: Very Good in Very Good jacket. 8vo-8"-9" Tall. Clean, tight and unmarked book club copy in a jacket. Corners lightly rubbed. 295pp. Dust jacket, rubbed, tiny chips at corners, in new mylar cover. read more
The stories are supposedly connected God, gods, and religion. In reality, they cover lots of things: belief, power struggles, perception. I've liked a lot of Harlan Ellison's writing, but this collection was tough for me to get through. Most of the stories seemed like they had a singular basic point to make -- but the point is often trite, and the writing to get to that point was clumsy.
I know some people think these stories are dark, or insightful. I don't think either of those is particularly true. I suppose that this might be a good collection of stories as an introduction to someone that had never read anything with the same general topic, but since other books do a better job of it, why bother with this one?"
"Harlan Ellison is one of my favorite short story writers but his output can be inconsistent. Deathbird Stories is easily his finest collection. These works are unflinchingly cynical and brutally honest about the human condition yet it is apparent that the writer hopes that mankind will rise and find something about it that is noble. If there is one repeating theme it is that man must create gods for itself even though those gods always fail us. Ellison's warning that these stories should not be read in one sitting is good advice. Even one a night may be pushing it. But stories like "The Whimper of Whipped Dogs" , "Paingod" and "The Deathbird" will haunt you for a very long time."
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