Quicker Than the Eye

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Quicker Than the Eye
dust-jacket from the first edition
Author	Ray Bradbury
Cover artist	Bernie Fuchs
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Fantasy and Science fiction short stories
Publisher	Avon Books
Publication date	1996
Media type	Print (Hardback)
Pages	262 pp
ISBN	ISBN 0-380-97380-4

Quicker Than the Eye (ISBN 0-380-97380-4, 1996 Avon Books) is a collection of short stories by Ray Bradbury, representing something of a comeback: a new collection, nearly a decade after his last one.

[edit] Contents

• "Unterderseaboat Doktor", which features, as a psychiatrist, a former submarine captain in Hitler's undersea fleet, making connections between sub-marine and sub-conscious.
• "Zaharoff/Richter Mark V", a speculation on why so many major cities are in such dangerous locales.
• "Remember Sascha?", a poignant fantasy of parenting.
• "Another Fine Mess", an homage to Laurel and Hardy; a sequel to The Laurel and Hardy Love Affair.
• "The Electrocution", a glimpse into a very Bradburian carnival.
• "Hopscotch", a parable of first love.
• "The Finnegan", a tall tale in a Victorian mood.
• "That Woman On the Lawn, a moving tangential episode in the same "universe" as Something Wicked This Way Comes.
• "The Very Gentle Murders", a fantasy of marital strife.
• "Quicker Than the Eye", which visits another carnival act.
• "Dorian In Excelcus", which pays homage to Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray
• "No News, Or What Killed the Dog?", inspired by a Victrola recording.
• "The Witch Door", a fable of haunting as temporal displacement
• "The Ghost In the Machine, exploring the spirit of invention.
• "At the End Of the Ninth Year", an affecting tale of marriage and communication.
• "Bug", a parable of the transforming power of confidence.
• "Once More, Legato", a whimsical exploration of where ideas come from.
• "Exchange", another moving visit to Green Town, Illinois; a tale of the power of books.
• "Free Dirt", a "what if?" tale.
• "Last Rites", a genuinely original time-travel story, terrifically moving and haunting.
• "The Other Highway", an allegory of the parallel universe of bypassed roads.
And a true treat for Bradbury's fans:
• "Make Haste To Live: An Afterword", in which the author writes of writing and the back-stories of some of the stories in this collection. A brief glimpse at "the man behind the curtain."