March 12 is the birthday of Harry Harrison (1925-2012). Harrison was a major figure in the field while he was alive. Sadly, he has fallen into obscurity these days.
He wrote a number of science fiction series, some serious, some humorous and satirical. In addition to being a prolific writer, he was an accomplished editor. Among his editorial credits are The Best SF, coedited with Brian Aldiss (1967-1975), the original anthology series Nova (four volumes, 1971-1974), The Astounding-Analog Reader (two volumes, coedited with Brian Aldiss), and Astounding: the John W. Campbell Memorial Anthology. He also briefly edited Amazing Stories and Fantastic in the late 1960s.
His fiction, though, was where Harrison really shone. His best known series centered on Slippery Jim DiGriz, also known as The Stainless Steel Rat. DiGriz is an interstellar crook. I’ve not read these yet. (Looks at stacks of boxes waiting to be unpacked.) The series began, from what I understand, as a series of short stories in the magazines, but soon expanded to novels due to their popularity. I’ve wondered if Harrison kept writing them for the money. (There’s nothing wrong with that.) My undderstanding is that the later ones aren’t as good as the initial books. As I said, I’ve not read them, so I don’t know.
His second best known work is probably the novel Make Room! Make Room!, which was the inspiration for the film Solyent Green. I’ve read the book and seen the movie, and I didn’t see a lot of resemblance between the two. The story concerns overpopulation. Remember, this was written in the 1960s. The movie version starred Charlton Heston. It was a warning about the dangers of overpopulation. That was a big theme then in science fiction.
Harrison’s short fiction is where I’ve read the most of his work. He started wrting in 1951. Or rather, I should say that was when his first story was published. In 2001, a major retrospective of his work, 50 in 50, was published. Most of his best short fiction can be found in this volume. I took a copy with me and read it while we were in Kazakhstan. It was a trade paper edition, and I left it with the consulate in Almaty. I had a hardcover at home. Pocket Books published The Best of Harry Harrison in 1976. The contents of the two books overlap, but there are some stories in The Best of Harry Harrison that aren’t included in 50 in 50, which was a much longer collection.
Harrison wrote satirical science fiction, Bill the Gaglactic Hero being the most prominent example of this subgenre, but not the only one.
He also wrote straight adventure science fiction, such as the Deathworld series and the To the Stars trilogy. I read the first volume of this series when I was in eighth or ninth grade and never got around to the rest of the series. I picked up a paperback omnibus at a Friends of the Library sale a couple of years ago and am wanting to read it. *sighs and looks at boxes*
In the 1980s Harrison wrote the Eden trilogy. This one is about a parallell timeline where the dinosaurs didn’t go extinct because there was never a collision with a large asteroids. Two species, one lizard, the other similar to humans, have evolved on different parts of the planet. It was critically acclaimed at the time. I’ve not read it, so I can’t say much beyond this.
Harrison’s last series was The Hammer and the Cross, about the conflict between Christianity and the Norse pantheon. It was also critically acclaimed. I’ve not read it, but from what little I know about it, it wouldn’t be my cup of tea.
Harrison’s work is pretty much out of print these days. I’m not sure how readily available his work is in electronic format. But he’s another writer who deserves to be remembered.