Dive into the Fascinating Contents of the April 1956 Issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
Are you ready to embark on a journey through time and space, exploring the captivating contents of the April 1956 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction? Picture this: it’s the mid-20th century, and the world is teeming with futuristic fantasies and otherworldly adventures waiting to be discovered within the pages of this iconic publication.
As you delve into this renowned digest-size magazine, you’ll uncover a treasure trove of short stories, cover art masterpieces, and visionary articles penned by esteemed authors such as Robert Bloch. Each turn of the page reveals a new realm of imagination, transporting you to distant galaxies, uncharted dimensions, and realms where the impossible becomes reality.
Join us as we unravel the mysteries and marvels that lie within the April 1956 edition, from tales of space exploration to mind-bending science fiction adventures that will leave you in awe. Get ready to lose yourself in a world where the line between reality and fantasy blurs, and where every story is a portal to infinite possibilities.
Some Reflections on Robert Bloch’s I KISS YOUR SHADOW short story
The horror stories Bloch has written can take the form of threatening to destroy the entire world versus shattering only one person’s life; believable fiction intertwined with the otherworldly atmosphere; the stories that arrive setting the reader’s mind; as well as the disturbing of the mind.
Bloch learned to be a better writer by exposing himself to a lot of literary experiments when he was older. Some writers arrive at a point where they find a pattern they like, and they repeat it over and over again without changing it. He tried to do something new but it didn’t always turn out to be good. “I Kiss Your Shadow–” is not bad but it seems like Bloch forced himself out of his groove and thus, it could be the reason for the standard in the writing.
The story is narrated by a man whose incredibly bossy sister married a poor man with the purpose of reforming him. The wife’s push was going well and in a sense he had started learning to live right when she was killed in a car accident, with him behind the wheel. Afterwards, he told the narrator that she comes back to him every night or at least her shadow does.
The narrator referred him to a psychiatrist which imbeks–the narrative, but it helps to keep it in the explanations. “I Kiss Your Shadow-” was first published in April 1956 in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in just three years before Psycho. I do not know whether Bloch’s experimentation with the plot of the story has enhanced Psycho but I believe that Alec Guinness was main protagonist of Psycho as a result of it.
The police arrive at the scene and the husband, having admitted the truth of his wife’s death, tries to tear open the ground to get to her grave; he instantly gets killed by a lightning strike; a baby is found in the coffin of the wife to whom the narrator talks each night when looking for eerie live shado
It would be an overkill but none of the outcomes has much of an impact. The conclusion is convincing to some extent, yet it is not among Bloch’s best. Imagine him checking the manuscript and saying, “What if I turned this into a psychological thriller about a guy who really is his wife’s brother in disguise?”
I dare say he might have felt the story was a bit rough right after the writing but with minor tweaks, it could have been designed to perfection!
Maybe I’m exaggerating. I am afraid I have only pointed out that the story sounds like the same Psycho. This is a piece that cannot be missed by the fans of Bloch.
