Rating: 
Summary: Buyer Beware
Review: A word of caution to science fiction fans. Though the premise of this novel would appeal to any science fiction buff the book contains the authors personal exploration of his own homesexual character. Though I have nothing against the author for this exploration I would prefer not to be included in this journey and would have appreciated some forewarning of the true nature of the book. I prefer my science fiction to be about science fiction and not alternate lifestyles. Buyer beware.
Rating:
Summary: Belodona; what a gas!
Review: the novel ?? is dhalarghen A BIGONE.a BOGUS dslyctic cypher dicifer decibal DROLL thriLL RIDE /afflictioon/dicktion during nixon; drifter [its very earthy early seventies soaked]It takes place somewhere/anywhere after MANSON KILLED OFF THE HIPPIES .The book opens with images of astronauts clocks and broken glass, its alot of smoke and mirrors spit and spat out punying it overwrought self into bemusement indeed. INTO the zoo, into oz into the KIDDS OR IS IT THE kid,[ PSYCEDELIC popsicle fragment] MIND must i be kidding [pastche pasted floral wasted fragmented psyche] we go.LIKE a mundane watching of existence like a seventies made for television rerun running endless EYES sewn wide open with no blinks permited so Delanys plague journal explains reading can be writing. so it goes on and on ..carening indeed bologna
Rating: 
Summary: Epic Journey
Review: Samuel Delany has been a constant companion for me throughout my science/speculative fiction reading years (20). Dhalgren is an impossible world filled with brilliant characters and an acrid, gritty grime maze of emotions, deep prosaic ambulations and incredibly provacative situations. The reader can lose themselves in the smoke filled world of Bellona...taste the humidity in the pre-dawn hours...hear the buzz-scritching of street lamps as shadows dance and play underneath their feet. Join Kidd as he pieces together seemly incoherent shreds of his existance. Run with the scorpions in their colorful shrouds. Wonder at the oblivous family that lives in denial of their surrounding world. All this and much more..in Delany's multi-colored strands of language. This book is a keeper...like a jewel to hide away..and occasionally revisit. Powerful, Taboo, Breathtaking, Surreal....
Rating:
Summary: Race, sex, power
Review: I'm suprised that after reading all the other reviews, no one mentions how central race is to this book, especially given Delany's decision, as a black author, to deliberately write about the black characters from the perspective of an outsider. There is a lot going on in the book, but for me, the central conceit seemed very clear (SPOILERS FOLLOW), although brilliantly unorthodox: The disaster that creates Bellona (a post-apocalyptic city) is the coming together of two equal and opposite forces - a black man (George) and a white girl (not a woman-- June). Each has an stereotypical aspect: George is the sexually insatiatiable rampaging black rapist, June the helplessly vulnerable innocent white victim. But each has a more hidden aspect that runs counter-stereotype. George is a hero who saves children from a burning building, while June is a hypocrite who murders her own brother to cover over her appetites. They come together in an act that appears to be rape, but which may actually be an piece of playacting created for the pleasure of the participants. This transgression is what warps time and space in Bellona, setting off a series of events in which a white sniper kills black children, the black residents riot and burn the city, anarchy sets in and people flee, armed gangs take over the streets, middle-class residents take refuge in fortresses of delusion, June stalks George in a combination of attraction and repulsion and the entire cycle repeats over and over, endlessly. In this way the book is a psychological portrait, not only of the Kid --a racially and sexually ambigious artist --but also of the American city --a racially and sexually-obsessed powder keg --during a certain moment in history.
Rating:
Summary: Worth the effort.
Review: I read so many of the negative reviews on here, many of them centered around how 'impenetrable' and boring this book is. I've read it through twice now, the second time forcing myself to read it slowly and carefully, parsing every sentence and element that I could. I enjoyed it the first time, and became awed the second. This was my second 'classic' piece of science fiction I'd stumbled upon without having heard of it (The first being "A Fire Upon The Deep") beforehand. I remember clearly when I started reading thinking, "Uh-oh" as the density of the prose and breadth of vocabulary used is obvious from page one. I'm not sure if experiencing it unitiated was better or worse than if I'd know about it in advance and how good it supposedly was. I might've been disappointed, as some who've given reviews were. But I urge anyone to read, and if you've read it and felt it boring to re-read this book. Ths absolute, overwhelming impact it had on me was discovered only after studying it as much as reading it. I don't have any more answers about it's mysteries than anyone else, but I have a greater appreciation and fascination for them.
Rating: 
Summary: Great for English majors --
Review: But not for the average reader. What little story there is drags on and on. I got to page 600 and almost put it down. The characters do little that's interesting, and even the minutest interaction, like saying "Good morning," is described in excruciating, excessive detail. Even the sex (there's plenty there) got boring. The final chapter more than redeemed the book, but Delaney (or the editor) could easily have chopped 200 pages without losing anything but characters sucking their teeth (or whatever) too much.
Rating:
Summary: ultra cinematic
Review: "Dhalgren" should definitely be made into a film! The mise en scene of an abandoned City where time and space have become altered.. the roving gangs of freaks and weirdos.. the incredible writing and dialogue.. the style of the book being the journal of the lead character, Kid... The concept of a paradoxical "dis-logic", where nothing seems to correspond in the way we would expect, all makes for a thought-provoking work of great conceptual art. It is a mystery that continues to engage, even after you have read it. Once you find the "keys" to understanding it, you will see the brilliance of Dhalgren. It is one of the most fascinating books I have read.
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Summary: The Kid is good...
Review: Dhalgren is a masterpiece, a force of words so strong and heavy that it will weigh on your mind for years after the actual reading is over. Many negative reviews have cropped up lately for this novel, slicing my heart in two. Readers have complained of it being too graphic, too ambiguous. Hello, what do you think like is, PG and knowable? Existence is a mystery, much like Dhalgren. The fun comes in the actual living. In Dhalgren, people really live. Delany is at the top of his game here. Which is somewhat of an insult, because when isn't this guy at the top of his game? All his stuff is brilliant. In fact, I would argue that Delany is the future of America. What is he you say? He's layers upon layers carrying labels upon labels. He's black, gay, a father, ex-husband, writer, critic, pornographer, teacher. But he's even more than the sum of all those things because he carries them all so gracefully. Delany is simply one of the most humane authors I have ever had the pleasure to read. If humanity is too much for you (i.e. - too sweaty and sticky and full of inconsistencies and excitement) them stay away. Go back to the safety of Oprah and Clear Channel. But people who embrace life for the wacky, sick, lovely thing that it is will do good to spend some time with Delany. He knows you, believe me. Was this a great review of Dhalgren? Hardly. But it is my case for Delany, and you.
Rating:
Summary: ...uh huh, and so?
Review: I'll let the author write the review (p.755-756 in my copy) "...as one reads along, one becomes more and more suspicious that the author has lost the thread of his argument...that the position of the characters will have so changed y the book's end that the answers to the initial questions will have become trivial." Kind of a shame though, because the Kid character is rather interesting of himself...but in the end, we go nowhere, we get nowhere, and we're left suspecting that the author is pulling a big hoax on us...creating a totally meaningless whole from the sum of a bunch of trivial parts. I have to wonder why this book is considered brilliant and important, when in the end all I can say after reading 801 pages of this is, "...yeah, and so what?"
Rating:
Summary: Not what I expected...
Review: Those who have heard of Delany and wish to investigate his work should proceed with caution; there are several very graphic (and possibly offensive) sexual acts described in this book. And the quasi-autobiographical nature of the novel seems to suggest that "Kid", the protagonist in this story, is actually Delany himself. Certainly the main character's endless struggle with sexual orientation issues seems almost to suggest Delany was grappling with HIS OWN orientation issues at the time he wrote Dhalgren. Forget about the so-called "story" of the mysterious burning city... forget about the disjointed passages and the seemingly impossible to follow storyline. These things are all just window dressing... just a backdrop for what this novel is really about. What this book is about for me is Mr. Delany's own "coming out." It was only after reading this book that I realized it: Samuel R. Delany is gay. A quick search on the web confirmed it... but I was still surprised. Was I the only one of his fans to be so "uninformed" ? Dhalgren is considered a sci-fi "classic" by many, but I personally feel that Delany has written far better novels than this. His excellent book, "Triton" explores many of the same race-gender-sexuality issues that are discussed in Dhalgren, but in a much less personal (and graphic) way. It also has the advantage of having a genuine REAL STORY (interplanetary Civil War) and one of his best female characters, Spike... one of the coolest (and sweetest) feminists you will ever have the chance to meet. Also try "Nova" which has a fascinating action-packed storyline and many memorable characters. Dhalgren, by comparison has no real plot and no real likeable characters. It does feature Delany's beautiful, thoughtful prose... very poetic. But this can be found in any of his of better novels. Dhalgren is overly long and overly graphic... so busy wearing it's writer's "personal issues" on it's sleeves that it fails to tell a good story. Try some of his other books instead.
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