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Rating: 
Summary: By Another Man's Bootstraps
Review: First, it should be said that if you discovered this jumped-up fan tirade to be linked in any way to REAL books by award winning writer Harlan Ellison you have been led astray. But since the link to Harlan's work and Priest's is probably established by Priest and his associates pressing on this link repeatedly in their free time you will have this.
An unsuspecting reader should also know that when pressing the name Christopher Priest one is presented with links to a number of comic book TPB's by a different Christpher Priest. Here we have an example of a person achieving marginal notice by riding on the coat tails of not one, but TWO different (and far better) writers.
If you enjoy long winded and meanspirited tirades that bleat on for pages about slights and literary misdemeanors that could be covered in a few sentences - this is the screed you've been waiting for. If, on the other hand you'd like to read a good book - fiction or non-fiction - in just about any genre imaginable - try one of the 70 or so books Harlan has published in the last 45 years.
This book is published in the United States by Fantagraphics. This is appropriate as Fantagraphics also publishes the Eros line of XXX rated comics in order to stay afloat these days. Fans of self-abuse will be right at home with this title or any of the other books in the one-fisted Fantagraphics catalog.
Rating:
Summary: MEANSPIRITED JEALOUSY
Review: After reading this I have to say that Ellison is no better than the Hollywood executives that sit on properties so no one can buy them. Imagine all of the great stories we will never see because Ellison won't publish this 3 volume anthology. I hope that I am proven wrong. But I have to say it's a crime that we never got to see the stories in this book. Ellison if you are reading I say put up or shut up and get this book out before it's too late!
Rating: 
Summary: Wait for the limited hardcover, signed by Ellison
Review: I felt like I was prying into other people's personal business when I read this. Of course Mr. Ellison hasn't tried to come to his own defense in this matter. He clearly has a deep understanding of the meaning of "futility." Part of the difficulty in getting LDV to see print has been the provincial attitude of publishers, who see writing not as art, but product. Unfortunately, they don't see anthologies of short stories as a particularly marketable product. A multi-volume anthology of short stories is a tough sell. Mr. Ellison has obviously tried over the years to get this one sold, and it is apparent that he has been jerked around extensively by a wide variety of yokels. The only thing Priest's book really accomplishes is to absolutely demolish any minimal chance LDV may have once had of seeing print. What publisher would take on a project with this kind of a reputation? On-line publishing may still be an answer, but imagine getting all those authors (or their estates) to sign contracts - it may be too much to expect of Mr. Ellison, who is no longer the "angry young man" of the SF world. The only redeeming quality of this book is that the writing itself is compelling, reminiscent, almost, of the work of a young Ellison.
Rating: 
Summary: A Fascinating Case Study
Review: In Chapter 3, "Why Does the Last Dangerous Vision Remain Unpublished?" Priest says that the book is out of control. In Chapter 4, he describes this statement as a theory and asks the question again: "Why. What is the real reason?" and then proceeds to ignore it by going on about Ellison's fame, integrity, salesmanship and tirades.Chapter 2 is a history of LDV from a contributor's perspective and I thought it was informative in that light. Chapter 1 is an introduction. Since when do introductions merit becoming chapters?!!!!! The rest of the book details how much civilization has lost by not having those stories which were committed to LDV. You would think Ellison is a concentrated form of the Talliban destroying Buddist statues. Frankly, I could've lived without Bradbury's poem in ADV. Out of 56 pages, really, only 18 pages have any relevance. How will it end? Stick around and find out! Me? I'm gonna go read something else! When LDV becomes available, and only then, will I give anymore thought to it, which is what it deserves.
Rating:
Summary: Get a Life
Review: Intellectually, this "book" is the SF version of an Entertainment Tonight "Cover Story." It is a thorough and in-depth analysis of something which is profoundly unimportant. When William Shatner said his now-famous line, "Get a life," he was talking to the kind of people who actually pay to read what's in this book. Move on, folks. There's nothing to see here.
Rating:
Summary: One-sided hatchet job by two self-described "Enemies"...
Review: Priest's contribution to TLDV was rejected 30 years ago by Harlan Ellison, and this one-sided hatchet job, published by another of Ellison's personal antagonists, Gary Groth, is the result. The fact that these two individuals went so far as to actually refer to themselves as the "Enemies of Ellison" (later "Victims of Ellison" but still something right out of elementary school) speaks volumes about both writer and publisher. It is ad hominem masquerading as journalism, and wasn't worth reading as a free download, let alone paying ... for it. If you want to be entertained, read the many many volumes of Harlan Ellison's stories and essays. If you want to know more about Ellison himself, there are far better and more objective biographies and critiques of the man and his work. For those previous reviewers who mentioned Stephen King's "lost story," consider this: It doesn't seem to have bothered King, who has gone on to have some modest success as a writer. Priest, OTOH, has built his entire ... career by attaching himself to Harlan's ankle like an angry Yorkie. Skip this book...
Rating:
Summary: Insightful Little Book.
Review: Really, I still think that after reading this essay it's a great loss that The Last Dangerous Visions never saw the light of day. Up to now, I mean. I hope it will be put together one day but chances seem small. Anyway, The Book on the Edge of Forever provides plenty of information, though a sad feeling may overcome you while reading it. Thank you, Christopher Priest, for this book.
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