This first volume includes a lot of non-fiction essay's Ellison wrote over the years. In them, Ellison leans into everything he considers wrong with modern society. Because of this, if you are new to Ellison, you may be easily offended. But don't worry, he isn't doing it on purpuse, he just doesn't care if he offends you. He would rather tell the truth as he sees it than worry about hurting somebody's feelings.

Ellison is a very refreshing take in modern America, where Republicans and Democrats have decided that the only difference worth noting between the partys is who is in power at that moment.

Of course, it doesn't hurt that Ellison is also one of the great writers in the modern United States.


Let's not get too upset about typos...   October 2, 1997
 3 out of 5 found this review helpful

I bought this book having read some other short "speculative" fiction by Ellison, and was disappointed to discover that only half of the volume is fiction, the other half being a series of non-fiction essays and articles. So, I worked my way throught the fiction, dreading turning the page into the boring non-fiction. But when I did... I was stunned, awed, delighted. Ellison's voice is that of an incredibly wise man. He has done more than just live, he has EXPERIENCED so much and so intensely that he can make us experience with him. From the seemingly trivial to the world-changing, Ellison's point-of-view from the heart of the story makes our emotions soar and plummet through the whole gamut of human experience. What comes through his writing is a sense of the man's awesome intelligence, sensitivity and down-to-earth level-headedness. After finishing An Edge in My Voice, I had to drastically re-evaluate my perception of Harlan Ellison as a writer. Despite his acclaimed skill with the short-story form (hardly challenged in recent decades by any writer in English), his superlative fiction is far outshone by the humanity of his non-fiction, whether amusing anecdote, thought-provoking philosophy or spleen-venting tirade. Everyone who considers themself a student of life should hear what this man has to say. So let's not get too upset about typos. Yes they're unfortunate, unnecessary, annoying, but some things are worth putting up with.


This book is great.   June 8, 2000
 2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Harlan Ellison is a credit to his species. This book contains a number of his short stories and essays were he attacks all that is evil in society. But beware this book will probably also offend many people. If you think gun control is simply a matter of using two hands or if believe that Jesus would not have wanted us to give up the Panama Canal then this book is likely to bother you. But that is what is so wonderful about Ellison, he makes you think. He invigorates the brain cells that atrophied from watching too many episodes of the Brady Bunch or Star search. Order this book immediately. "God reads Harlan Ellison and so should you."


Masterful rants from the angriest man in science fiction.   March 16, 1999
 2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Edgeworks 1 is a hybrid of Ellison's terse, punchy short stories and even punchier essays. While I'm a fan of science-fiction literature, I'll confess that I'm not terribly enamoured of most of Ellison's fiction; my main interest in this (and other volumes of his work) is the essays. Ellison's rants are scintillating and blindingly caustic-- they simultaneously make me convulse with laughter and fill me with righteous indignation at the world. "Xenogenesis", his extensive analysis of the very worst of science fiction fandom, is worth the price of the volume by itself. Ignore the typos, this one's pure gold.


An Edge on My Mind   July 8, 1998
 2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Woah. I must be denser than concrete because all I noticed was the great writing Ellison puts on the page. The articles I found to be thought provoking in the extreme. If Ellison is a "crazy uncle" than he's one who's fought the good fight against the evils of society so long he needs throwing in the booby hatch. "Xenogensis" is the scariest essay on the issue of Sci-Fi (and I use the term cynically. I hate that phrase) fandom I've ever come across in twenty years of reading. Now thats not to say all of the essays are grand and stimulating. Rereading the book I often find myself skipping his more dated pieces. But despite what you may think of the man, you have to admit this: he's passionate about the work, and he'll dare anything SAY anything to make you feel SOMETHING about issues you'd rather just slink away from. He's got guts, and his articles show it. I'm a bit new to Ellison (I've only the first 4 edgeworks books) but from what I've read the man has passion. Reccomended. END