Hi,


I 'be' new to this forum. and I have a question... Tonight before attempting to embark on a session of reading (it was going to be 'THE BEST GHOST STORIES OF H.RUSSELL WAKEFIELD), I got sidetracked, as is common with me, and I decided to check up various publishing details of Bradbury's short fiction. my eyes wandered to the wonderfully titled THE SCREAMING WOMEN when my brother entered my room (for no particular reason) and he noticed what I was looking up. Being a little bit of a Bradbury fan himself I just commented on how I thought 'Ray' missed an opportunity with this story with the ending being a bit of an anticlimax. It was then that I noticed that there was an anthology published that contained Rays 'prefered ending' I am guessing someone on this site can tell me which version is which and the most accessable way I can obtain both versions.

Thanks Muchly,

Paul







[This message has been edited by Paul White (edited 11-02-2004).]

Paul, the version of "The Screaming Woman" that was originally published in 1951, and which has generally been reprinted since, has the "happy" ending. Per Stuart Schiff's fine anthology, THE BEST OF WHISPERS (Borderlands Press/Whispers Press, 1994), Ray's preferred ending was far more downbeat. Ray speculated that the mix-up in which version got used at the time of the story's orginal publication occured in the editorial offices of the story's original publisher or in the offices of his agent. The only place I know where Ray's preferred, grim ending appears is in THE BEST OF WHISPERS anthology, copies of which can often be found on the Advanced Book Exchange (ABE) or, on occasion, eBay. I'd rather not say more about that alternate ending, so as not to spoil it for those that have never read it. Here is a link to the ABE website, in case you want to search for the book:


http://www.abebooks.com

[This message has been edited by Richard (edited 11-02-2004).]

Wow, thanks. I had no idea the grim ending had even seen print. The biggest problem with the upbeat ending is its entire reliance on coincidence to resolve the situation. I do agree the upbeat one is more appropriate for a kids' anthology.

Thanks Rich, but the prices seem a bit steep. Oh well, one never knows. I do want to read it. I ordered an anthology just for Bradburys THE MAIDEN , is it worth it?

[This message has been edited by Paul White (edited 11-03-2004).]

One of the nice things about the BEST OF WHISPERS anthology is that it is signed by all of the writers who appear in the book who were alive at the time of publication to sign the signature pages. The book includes the signatures of such fine living writers as Ray Bradbury and Connie Willis, but also writers who have since passed away, such as Hugh B. Cave, Roger Zelazny and Jerry Sohl. At the end of the day, however, the prospective buyer is the only one who can decide for himself or herself whether any book is worth the price.

[This message has been edited by Richard (edited 11-03-2004).]

Again...I didn't realize "The Maiden" was ever anthologized. Can't be too common. If you don't want to pay a small fortune for the (now probably unavailable) "Dark Carnival" reissue....

does anyone know how to contact ray i need to know for english class. i would like to ask him what he sees in the future