This was an interesting collection of early short stories by Thomas Pynchon. Though some of the stories were much better than others (I particularly liked "The Secret Integration" and "Low-lands") the introduction is the real gem of this collection. The introduction alone (which by itself I would give 4 stars) is worth the price of a used copy of this book. Pynchon is usually very guarded when it comes to interviews or any public contact so it was a nice surprise to find him so candid and generous here. He writes very honestly about what he thinks of each of these stories and where he thought they fit into his overall learning curve as a writer.

I recommend this collection to fans of Pynchon's novels or practicing writers.