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American Pulp by Bill Pronzini
Reader Reviews A decent collection, June 1, 2003 Reviewer: A zealous gun girl from . Kinda bizarre that the editors of this book claim pulp's true Golden Age was not the one commonly thought of as its Golden Age (30s/40s), but the time immediately following it (50's/60s). Some of the stories in this anthology were even written as recently as the 80's. The 80's?! A bit questionable, but they're entitled to their opinion. There are a few really amazing stories in this collection (That Stranger, My Son; Don't Twist My Arm... interesting they're both about dodgy father/son relationships) some slighty above average ones (In A Small Motel; Horn Man; The Frigid Flame) some precious ones, ie, with a twist or 'punchline' at the end (High Stakes; Tick Tock), and some that were just meh (Cop Without A Shield; Terrorists). But what really disturbed me was that a few of the selections in this book are, shall we say, suspect. There was one story in particular that was so painfully boring and lifeless it was absolute torture to finish (Leigh Brackett's 'I Feel Bad Killing You'...despite the little blurb accompanying her story, Chandler she most definitely ain't). But I guess every anthology is bound to have a few clunkers. All in all, I discovered some talented writers through this collection, which made up for the not-so-great moments. If anything, it's a great introduction to some little-known authors. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title
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