A Touch of Strange

I’m beginning to really like Theodore Sturgeon. I enjoyed More Than Human a while back and it had a number of themes in it that were rather progressive, and what I’ve read of his just seems to be very sensitive in general. This collection of short science fiction stories was much more uplifting than I thought it would be. So much of the sci-fi I read on a regular basis is very cynical in nature, and although these stories had some cynicism in them at times, that was not the overall theme of the work. Many of these will stick with me for a while, I think. In fact one of the pieces towards the end, “The Pod in the Barrier,” actually brought me to tears, which isn’t something that happens at all, really. Sturgeon seemed to have show more this talent for showing a very kind eye towards people while describing their plight through the eyes of someone who is incapable of understanding what they’re going through. You can sit there and hate the narrator for being an absolute idiot, and see what’s really going on in spite of the way they filter it through his or her lens.

The first piece in this book straight up surprised me--it’s a classic tale of corruption and subtle economic takeover, told by a complete idiot who has no idea of what’s going on. I expected a terrible ending, as that seems to be the norm for these types of stories, so I was shocked when it ended with the antagonist being thrown (kindly, mind you) into an asylum. It ends with a poignant scene of him talking to insects, completely unaware of how crazy he is. It's an image I still think back to from time to time.

In many of the stories the final reveal is a little unfair--Sturgeon hides information from us in order to keep us on the hook. I usually find this annoying and cheap, but these stories are so good that I didn’t mind at all. One of the stories that is really guilty of this concerns a man who lives among telepaths and has had his telepathic abilities taken from him, unbeknownst to us until the end, and grows into someone quite hateful. It almost seems cruel the way he ends up, but the overall message of the story is that cruelty is not normal, and this is so refreshing to find in any genre. Many of the underlying messages here are similar--abuse is not normal, cruelty is an aberration--and these are not utopian societies by any means. Too many authors seem to think that the only way to depict an end to this wrongness is to make everyone perfect, but that is not realistic.

I’m glad I read this one. I will need to seek out more by this author in the future, but I will have a lot to think about in the meantime. show less

Another strong collection from Sturgeon, although perhaps not quite up to the level of A Way Home. Sturgeon seems completely at home in the short story genre, more effective as a writer (to my taste) than his very famous novel More than Human. The short little title story was great, a humorous and affirming little fantasy episode. "The Touch of Your Hand" and "It Opens the Sky" were both brilliantly ambitious stories, that didn't quite fully realize their potential. "Mr. Costello, Hero" answers the burning question "what would happen if you let Karl Rove loose on a sparsely populated colony planet?"

I find it very interesting that so many of his stories feature emotional, and dare I say even "romantic" relationships between men and show more women, in an era when female characters in science fiction tales were usually non-existent, and when present existed largely to be saved by, protected by, and ultimately appreciate the hero. This is not to say that in Sturgeon's stories these relationships are idealized in any way; they tend to be rather quirky. But then, in my experience, this is representative of real life. show less

The man definitely broke new ground. These are more than a 'touch' strange - they are sometimes almost incomprehensible to me. But think - he first published these in the early 50s - providing the giant shoulders for Ellison, Silverberg, Crowley, etc to stand on. Even though I'm rating this only 3 stars, because I have to be honest and admit that I prefer my SF a little more straightforward, I highly recommend it, or at least one of Sturgeon's collections, to fans of SF who want to be aware of the history & legends of the masters of the classics.

What can I say? I'm a sucker for Sturgeon. Some of his stories can seem (and are) a bit corny at first and from this vantage point, and yet there is "a touch of strange" that lingers with the reader long after the details are forgotten; an opening to the mystery that undergirds human relationships and life in general. This collection has the story ("The Girl Had Guts") that purportedly supplied some of the inspiration for the movie, "Alien".

Sturgeon is 50-50 with me. He's either really good, or else unreadable.
He does appear to be a favorite of Stephen King though as that "author" has ripped off Sturgeon's "Killdozer" more than once...and probably made more money from it than TS would ever hope to see.

Interesting set of SF stories with twists. Of a period but not really to my taste.

Sturgeon is on one of the writers from the Golden Age of SF. These stories were from the 1950s and were average at best.

Mr Costello, Hero
The Touch of Your Hand
Affair with a Green Monkey
A Crime for Llewellyn
It Opens the Sky
A Touch of Strange
The Other Celia
The Pod in the Barrier
The Girl Had Guts