Again, Dangerous Visions

“So good it hurts” says Harlan Ellison of the Kate Wilhelm story “The Funeral” in Again, Dangerous Visions. It is that good. The book is an anthology that won the Hugo Award in 1972 and has been republished with a new forward by David A. Goodman in 2024. It’s a follow up to Dangerous Visions (1967). It was edited by Harlan Ellison, a well-known science fiction author. The 2024 version contains two introductions by Ellison, one from 1969 as he was compiling it, and another in 1971. It contains 46 original short stories, including pieces by Vonnegut, Bradbury, Le Guin, and many others.

Ellison is hilarious. His explanation of how Again, Dangerous Visions came to be is cleverly told. Each of the forty-six stories has an introduction by Ellison, and they are priceless. No authors that contributed to the first part of the series also contributed to this one; this is its own special collection. The goal of the series was to offer “unfettered writing” and to include works that would have otherwise been turned down by publishers because of editorial restrictions. Obviously, not all stories will be a hit with all readers, but this is a wonderful, unique anthology.