Strange Wine

1978

All new stories from the period 1975-77, when Ellison's prose powers were reaching ever higher levels.

The pleasures here are abundant. "Hitler Painted Roses," in which Adolph takes up a hobby -- in hell; "From A to Z, The Chocolate Alphabet," 26 sweet little fantasy hand grenades, in a gift box (also published as a Last Gasp comic book); and "Croatoan," what may well be the darkest, most disturbing tale ever from an imagination that specializes in exactly that.

If that weren't enough, Strange Wine opens with "Revealed at Last! What Killed the Dinosaurs! And You Don't Look So Terrific Yourself," an extension/summation of his Glass Teat essays and the best introduction that Ellison ever wrote to a collection of short stories.

Collector's notes

A 1979 French edition, Hitler Peignait Des Roses, was first in a series of Ellison editions in that language which included Gentleman Junkie, Dangerous Visions and Web of the City.

Contents

• Introduction: Revealed at Last! What Killed the Dinosaurs! And You Don't Look So Terrific Yourself
• Croatoan
• Working With the Little People
• Killing Bernstein
• Mom
• In Fear of K
• Hitler Painted Roses
• The Wine Has Been Left Open Too Long and the Memory Has Gone Flat
• From A to Z, in the Chocolate Alphabet
• Lonely Women are the Vessels of Time
• Emissary from Hamelin
• The New York Review of Bird
• Seeing
• The Boulevard of Broken Dreams
• Strange Wine
• The Diagnosis of Dr. D'arqueAngel