This is a very diverse collection for a single author anthology. The range is particularly impressively given that this is not a career retrospective but covers just the few years from 1952 through 1956. "Second Sight" is a solid early entry to the Hoffman Medical Center "Psi High" stories, though not listed as such in the Internet SF Database. It makes for an interesting almost sequel to "My Friend Bobby", the best story in the book, on how telepathy can breed monsters on both sides of the parent-child relationship. "The Canvas Bag" is a quiet mood piece from F&SF. "An Ounce of Cure" and "Meeting of the Board" are overdone comic inferno stories. "The Counterfeit Man" is an overwrought variation on Campbell's "Who Goes There" where the main character spins an incredibly complicated -- but true -- hypothesis about shape-changing aliens based on no evidence at all. "The Expert Touch" is a forced, predictable story about psychological manipulation, salvaged slightly by just the right closing line. The other stories, including "The Link" and "Circus" that are original to the collection, are similarly contrived idea stories.

Other than "My Friend Bobby" and "Second Sight", there's not much here for the modern reader, but this is a solid and representative collection for fans of 1950s American SF. ( )