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Things That Never Happen (Hardcover)

by M. John Harrison (Author)

3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

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Product details

Hardcover: 449 pages
Publisher: Night Shade Books (Dec 2002)
Language English
ISBN-10: 1892389266
ISBN-13: 978-1892389268
Product Dimensions: 22.8 x 14.5 x 3.6 cm

Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 2,792,879 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

EDGE magazine

"Short stories from an author whose tales create a resonance that is very real" --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

'Like all good literature, Harrison's stories are worth reading again and again; the more you read, the more you understand.' Iain M. Banks Over the last thirty years, M. John Harrison has been inspiring readers and writers alike across the world. His return to science fiction in 2002 with the magnificent space opera LIGHT was a monumental triumph, shortlisted for every major award in the genre. He combines brilliant storytelling with complex plots and evocative, mesmerising writing. THINGS THAT NEVER HAPPEN is M. John Harrison's definitive collection of short fiction, twenty-four dazzling stories of science fiction and fantasy; the perfect introduction to one of Britain's most brilliant writers. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Inside This Book (Learn More)
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover

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	64% buy the item featured on this page: Things That Never Happen 3.7 out of 5 stars (3)
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	9% buy Light (Gollancz S.F.) 3.1 out of 5 stars (35) �5.12

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Customer Reviews

3 Reviews

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3.7 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)

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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Food for thought, 3 Nov 2005

By A Customer

This review is from: Things That Never Happen (Paperback)

This collection is your chance to catch up with one of the best short story writers now writing in English. Those are tales that take genre tropes and shakes them until all the clutter falls away. Here are ghost stories, sword and sorcery and science fiction tales that have become something new, odd and different.
It is the sheer pity at the way human beings suffer without trying, or even wanting, to draw a moral lesson from it that makes the short stories noteworthy.Harrison is capable to shine a bright, hard light in the dark spots on the back of our souls. They are not about comforting the reader or providing a map of the world. Harrison respects the reader too much for that.
It is not the technique (even thought it is dazzling) but the humanity of this tales that will make them lodge in the back of your skull like a splinter of ice that refuses to melt...

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Things That Never Happen, 14 April 2008

By	David Brookes (Sheffield, UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Things That Never Happen (Paperback)

I picked up this collection of short stories expecting primarily the "new weird" that M J Harrison occasionally writes under, or perhaps some speculative fiction to accompany his popular novels. In truth there are as many mainstream stories here as there are weird, and although this wasn't what I'd hoped for it didn't spoil my enjoyment in the slightest.

The author is a master of people, able to decipher individuals to the point where he can construct characters that are real and fully rounded to the reader. It's astonishing that anybody can assemble characters so believable and place them in situations from the banal to the extraordinary, but keep them accessible and emotive.

The stories that stick out in my mind are mainly the ones with a touch of surreality to them: the first story in the collection is a wonderful piece reminiscent of P.K. Dick in which God returns; another is about a man who is crumbling apart so thoroughly that the environment begins to crumble with him; and there is a fantastic yet unhappy tale of a woman who wants nothing but to fly.

Throughout the whole collection is an aura of melancholy and quiet despair, although there is a lot of humour as well. The emotive content of the stories is what drive them and it's the uncanny ability of Harrison to charge every line with feeling is what makes this book unmissable.

It's difficult to judge a collection of short stories, but on the whole:

9/10

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4 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Drearyness, 1 Sep 2005

By	Ventura Angelo (Brescia, Lombardia Italy) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Things That Never Happen (Paperback)

This is the book that would suit the tastes of Marvin, the depressed robot of Douglas Adams' The hitch-hiker's guide to the Galaxy. If you'll feel dejected,depressed, gloomy, read this book and you'll know new bottoms of despair. All tales are grimy, settled in some hideous, hopeless world. Not only that, but they are dull, boring, and often you'll wonder if you've missed the point of the story, if indeed there is one. But even if there's one, it's not worth it. A total waste of time.

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