The grand old man of American sf and fantasy proffers one more collection of his characteristically brief stories, consisting of about equal parts recent work and previously uncollected late-1940s and 1950s stuff. Old or new, they are remarkably of a piece. Most resemble theatrical sketches; they are shaped toward definite endings or points. In "The House," from 1947, a young woman accustomed to haute bourgeois domestic ease is dismayed by her less-pampered husband's choice of a rundown manse for their home--until a friend of his arrives, enthuses, and pitches into setting the place to rights; then the new wife realizes what building a home is all about. In "The Completist," dated 2003-04 but set in 1948, a wealthy bibliophile orates about his mania to his shipboard dinner companions but at last reveals the hole in his life that his collecting may be meant to fill. If the obvious forerunners of stories like those, which preponderate here, are O. Henry's neat concoctions, Bradbury's recent penchants for writing almost entirely in dialogue and for ambiguous and unresolved endings make him very contemporary. On the evidence of previous volumes as well as this one, perhaps it is best to consider Bradbury the foremost fabulist of his time, more Aesop than Cheever or Salinger; that is why, even when there is nothing fantastic or futuristic in his stories, they still feel like fantasy and sf ction about ought and might more than is.

<p>Bradbury on autopilot, mostly, mixing dashes of beautiful whimsy with gold-tinged nostalgia and the occasional sharp stab of pain.</p>

Adult/High School Bradbury's imagination exploits the preposterous with fantasy that offers a window into the human psyche.Stories range from the lighthearted, romantic tug-of-war in the title's namesake to more sinister, stomach-churning fare. Some of the characters are decent, while others are dastardly; they are confused, young, withered, or wily. Each piece has a haunting, TwilightZone quality. The author's introduction gives readers insight into his thought processes as he reaches into dark recesses, doles out social justice, and bandies about far-out plots like the President of the United States having to win back the country in a card game with American Indians.Unpublished tales from decades ago and those written in the 21st century all carry Bradbury's unmistakable edginess. Karen Sokol, Fairfax County Public Schools, VA