E PLURIBUS UNICORN: A COLLECTION OF SHORT STORIES .. by Sturgeon, Theodore - 1953

New York: Abelard Press, 1953. Octavo, boards. First edition. Sturgeon's second collection of short fiction, preceded by WITHOUT SORCERY (1948). "Thirteen fine, emotionally intense stories, ranging from 'The World Well Lost,' probably the first serious and sympathetic treatment in magazine SF of homosexuality, to 'The Professor's Teddy Bear,' in the most horrific WEIRD TALES tradition; from the touching love story 'A Saucer of Loneliness' to a celebration of jazz musicianship, 'Die, Maestro, Die!' Sturgeon's forte was telling stories about people at the edge, and treating them with compassion and non-judgmentally even when they acted as shockingly as at the climax of 'A Way of Thinking.'" - Anatomy of Wonder (2004) II-1099. Includes "Essay on Sturgeon" by Groff Conklin and "Appendix: Science Fiction and Fantasy by Theodore Sturgeon in Anthologies." A major 1950s collection of short fiction. Barron, ed., Fantasy and Horror (1999) 4-148. Bleiler, The Guide to Supernatural Fiction 1559. Survey of Science Fiction Literature II, pp. 676-80. A fine copy in fine, bright dust jacket with light rubbing to black background ink at spine ends and front corner tips. A very nice copy of a book seldom found in decent condition. (#157844)