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Rating: The renowned Urania series has published a large number of anthologies, sometimes not classifiable as science fiction. Indeed, the 21 stories spread over the 2 issues cannot be pigeonholed into a specific literary genre. In any case, it is a valuable opportunity to read the remarkable writings of a little-known author.
The surreal covers, created by Thole, draw inspiration from "The Metamorphosis" by Kafka. The further literary value is enhanced by the presence of the famous novella, divided into two parts.
The stories by Disch often evoke Kafkaesque situations with ephemeral poetic touches, set in a dramatic scenario. Lonely and estranged individuals, trapped in atypical and desperate situations.
The stories reveal an underlying tension in the novelist, which admirable transmits to his distressed characters.
Sometimes horrific stories like “The Roach Lady”.
“The cockroaches fled from her apartment at the maximum speed their tiny legs allowed, and in single file for that matter. Had they heard her? Had they understood?”.
Or inescapable ones like “Beginning of April or End of March”.
Ruthless ones like “The Birds”.
“We hope... The sky collapsed. As the Concorde passed invisibly above her, Daffy plunged lifeless into the polluted ocean”.
Witty ones like “Enjoy Your New Head”.
In the emblematic “The Squirrel Cage”, even the writer inserts himself.
The haunting masterpiece “Descending” stands out. The protagonist is hurled into an endless nightmare.
“While sleeping, he dreamt of continuing the descent on the escalator. Upon waking, with his hand on the rubber railing moving at the same speed as the steps, he realized it was not a dream but reality... The escalator must have sunk underground for miles and miles...”.
There are also meditative, ethereal, almost unintelligible moments, as in the visionary “Asian Shores”.
“...from one dirt road to another, each invariably identical to the previous, without color, without contrasts, he began to envision a new Asia, not one of mountains and vast plains, but nothing but an endless expanse of derelict huts on the sides of denuded hills, an infinity of miserable monotony, of mute vastness.”.
An elegant and compelling read, recommended for readers in search of extraordinary stories.
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