There seems to be a certain incredulity in the title and in the author's preface of Sturgeon Is Alive and Well …, so perhaps it's not surprising that one of the most powerful stories in it is that of a man trying to fight his way out of a bungled suicide attempt. Appropriately, it is the last story.

There are twelve stories all told, of which three may be familiar to you…. The others all appeared in men's magazines, and sometimes show it—by the time I finished the book I was a little tired of the heroine who lies down for the hero a few hours after they've met.

Of the nine probably unfamiliar tales, five, including "Suicide," are straight mainstream stories and very good ones; it's well past high time that editors allowed Sturgeon to show his potentials in this field. Another, "Crate," is a shipwreck-and-survival story...