The Best Anthologies
of Reprints
Listed chronologically:
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- Shaw, Joseph T., editor.
The Hard-Boiled Omnibus
Simon & Shuster, 1946.
The first anthology to ever attempt to cover
the genre. A sampling of a dozen classic pulp stories from Black
Mask, chosen by the magazine's best and most influential author,
Cap Shaw himself. Includes seminal stories from Lester Dent,
Ramon Decolta , Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, Raoul Whitfield,
Norbert Davis, Paul Cain, Roger Torrey, George Harmon Coxe and
others.
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- Oursler, Will, editor.
As Tough As They Come
New York: Permabooks, 1951.
Extremely hard-to-find paperback collection of
"17 hard-boiled stories of murder and violence." Includes
tales from Dashiell Hammett, Bruno Fischer, James M. Cain, George
Harmon Coxe, Steve fisher, Brett Haliday, Day Keene, George Harmon
Coxe et al. Oursler is the co-creator of pivotal female eye Gale Gallagher.
.
- Goulart, Ron, editor.
The Hardboiled Dicks
New York: Sherbourne Press, 1965
Another pivotal collection, reprising some of
the choices in The Hard-Boiled Omnibus.
Includes classic tales from Norbert Davis, John K. Butler, Raoul
Whitfield, Frederick Nebel and Richard Sale, plus "An Informal
Reading List."
..
- Morrison, Henry, editor.
Come Seven/Come Death
New York: Pocket Books, 1965.
Excellent collection of seven stories. Featuring
Shell Scott, Scott Jordan, Pete Chambers, Johnny Liddell, Pete
Selby, Manny Moon and Chester Drum.
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- Goodstone, Tony, editor.
The Pulps: 50 Years of American Pop Culture
New York: Chelsea House, 1970.
239pp, Four-colour and B&W illustrations.
Over 50 complete stories, poems, features, and
articles all in their original format, including work by Paul
Gallico, Max Brand, Dashiell Hammett, HP Lovecraft, Edgar Rice
Burroughs. Also over 100 full colour original covers, some full
page..Includes T.T. Flynn's hard-to-find "The Deadly Orchard."
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- Ruhm, Herbert, editor.
The Hard-Boiled Detective
New York: Vintage Books, 1977.
Includes first book publication of Carroll John
Daly's The False Burton Combs, often considered the first
genre protagonist, although he isn't a detective per se.
.
- Kittredge and Steven M. Krauzer.
The Great American Detective.
New York: New American Library, 1978.
Mostly hard-boiled, iIncludes Carroll John Daly's
first Race Williams' story, Cornell Woolrich, Erle Stanley Gardner,
Chandler.
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- Pronzini, Bill, editor.
The Arbor House Treasury of Detective and Pulp Stories From
the Great Pulps.
New York: Arbor House, 1983.
Pretty much what the title says. Includes Hammett's
first Continental Op story, plus entries by Daly, McCoy, Nebel,
Paul Cain, etc.
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- Hoppenstand, Gary,
and Ray Browne, editors.
The Defective Detective in the Pulps
Bowling Green, Ohio: Bowling Green University Popular Press,
1983.
Excellent collection of pulp stories, featuring
such peculiar eyes as Nat "The Bleeder" Perry, the
faceless Seekay and the periodically blind Peter Quest, plus
a great intro that tries to place them in an historical context.
..
- Pronzini, Bill and Martin H. Greenberg
The Ethnic Detective
1985
Intriguing collection of non-pale-male private
eyes and other detectives.
.
- Nolan, William F., editor.
The Black Mask Boys: Masters in the Hard-Boiled School of
Detective Fiction...Buy
this book
New York: The Mysterious Press, 1985.
The Real Deal. Stone cold classic stories by
Chandler, Nebel, Hammett, Gardner, etc. and revealing essays
which introduce each one. Includes Nolan's defence of Carroll
John Daly's Three Gun Terry as the first hardboiled private
eye.
.
- Hoppenstand,
Gary, Garyn G. Roberts and Ray Browne, editors.
More Tales of the Defective Detective in the Pulps
Bowling Green, Ohio: Bowling Green University Popular Press,
1985.
More tales of "defective detectives,"
right from the pages of the pulps. Also heartily recommended
(if you can find a copy.)
..
- Drew, Bernard A., editor
Hard-Boiled Dames: A Brass-Knuckled Anthology of the Toughest
Women From the Classic Pulps...Buy
this book
New York: St. Martin's Press,1986
Collects stories about women from the 1930's
pulps. The perfect intro to Carrie Cashin, Sarah Watson, Violet
McDade and others. There's also a nifty little preface by Marcia
Muller.
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- Roberts, Garyn G., editor,
A Cent a Story! The Best From Ten Detective Aces
Bowling Green, Ohio: Bowling Green State University Popular Press,
1986
Collects 10 stories reprinted from Ten Detective
Aces and an informative introduction by Garyn G. Roberts titled
"Of Dragnets and Detective Aces: Early Beginnings for the
Hero Pulps". The stories in this book are Richard Sale,
G.T. Fleming-Roberts, Frederick C. Davis, Lester Dent, Norvell
Page, and others.
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- Pronzini, Bill and Martin H.
Greenberg, editors.
The Mammoth Book of Private Eye Stories...Buy
this book
London: Robinson Press, 1988. Reprinted, 2004.
Possibly the single best anthology of private
eye stories ever, covering everyone from Carroll John Daly to
Sue Grafton, with stops along the way for Chandler, Howard Browne,
Lawrence Block, Bill Pronzini, Max Collins, Joseph Hansen, Richard
Prather and Robert Leslie Bellem, among others. Recommended.
HEARTILY.
.
- Estleman, Loren D., and Martin
H. Greenberg, editors.
P.I. Files...Buy
this book
New York: Ivy Books, 1990.
Excellent collection of stories by (mostly) latter-day
writers Block, Grafton, Paretsky, Gorman, Kantner, Michael Collins,
etc., featuring their series characters, for the most part. a
few choice nuggets from the past, such as Fletcher Flora's "The Heat is Killing
Me" are included, as well.
..
- Dziemianowicz, Stefan R., Robert
Weinberg and Martin H. Greenberg, editors.
Hard-Boiled Detectives: 23 Great Stories from Dime Detective
Magazine
New Jersey: Gramercy Books, 1992.
Exactly what it says. Instant remainder includes
one story for each year from 1931 to 1953. Includes tales of
Nebel's Cardigan, Davis' Bill Brent, Chandler's John Dalmas and
Constiner's The Dean, among others.
.
- Weinberg, Robert E., Stefan Dziemianowicz
and Martin H. Greenberg, editors.
Tough Guys and Dangerous Dames ...Buy
this book
1993.
A top notch pulp anthology, with some great stories
by folks like Chandler, Gardner, Nebel, Paul Cain, Davis, Cave,
Daly, Bellem, Gruber and Brackett.
..
- Pronzini, Bill and Jack Adrian,
editors.
Hard-Boiled: An Anthology of American Crime Stories...Buy
this book
New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.
A classic collection, containing many notable
rarities, including stories from Leigh Brackett, Ed Gorman, Andrew
Vachss, Gil Brewer, Paul Cain, Norbert Davis, Chester Himes,
Elmore Leonard and tons more. Great intros and critical analysis,
too. One classy collection.
..
- Woods, Paula A., editor.
Spooks, Spies and Private Eyes:
Black Mystery Crime and Suspense Fiction of the 20th Century
Doubleday, 1995.
A landmark, as editor Paula Woods, in her intro
and aided by a primo selection of short stories, traces the development
of black mystery and crime writers. Authors include Walter Mosley,
Richard Wright, Gar Haywood, John A. Williams, Gary Phillips,
and Hugh Horton. Recommended.
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- Jakubowski, Maxim, editor.
The Mammoth Book of Pulp Fiction...Buy
this book
London: Robinson Press, 1996.
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- Randisi, Robert J., editor.
First Cases: First Appearances of Classic Private Eyes...Buy
this book
Dutton, 1996.
An essential collection, featuring the short
story debuts of several more-or-less contemporary shamuses, including
Dan Fortune, Kinsey Millhone, The Dan Kearney Agency, Matt Scudder,
Ben Perkins, Nate Heller, V.I. Warshawski and others, even Randisi's
own Miles Jacoby.
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- Haining, Peter, editor,
Pulp Fictions
New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1996
This 1996 cheapie collection (frequently reprinted) of pulp classics, old and occasionally new, is priced to own, and you sure can't turn your sniffer up at the selection. Besides solid, if not too surprising P.I. stories from usual suspects Chandler, Hammett, Bellem, Daly, Ellroy and Macdonald, there are entries ranging all over the hard-boiled genre from everyone from Spillane, Leonard and MacKinlay Kantor to McBain, Sam Fuller, Stepen King and Quentin Tarrantino. And Hainings' brief but informative introductory notes are worth checking out, as well.
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- Gorman, Ed, Bill Pronzini and Martin
H. Greenberg, editors.
American Pulp...Buy
this book
New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, Inc., 1997.
.
- Gorman, Ed, Bill Pronzini and Martin
H. Greenberg, editors.
Pure Pulp...Buy
this book
New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, Inc., 1999.
Classic hardboiled crime by Westlake, Block,
John D. MacDonald, Frederic Brown, Norbert Davis, Leigh Brackett,
James M. Cain, David Goodis, et al.
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- Randisi, Robert J., editor.
First Cases 3: New and Classic Tales of Detection...Buy
this book
Signet, 1999.
More short story debuts of various detectives,
including P.I.s Delilah West, Stephanie Plum, Tess Monaghan,
Ed Rivers, Fred Carver, Nick Polo, Chip Harrison, Saxon and Aaron
Gunner.
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- Breen, Jon L, and Ed Gorman, editors,
Sleuths of the Century...Buy
this book
2000,
There's a lot of non-PI stuff in this, but there's
some primo P.I. stuff, as well. From the intro: "To represent
the twentieth-century detective, we have selected twenty-five.
They are male and female; straight and gay; tough and cozy; public,
private, and purely amateur. Some of them are obvious consensus
choices - who would leave out Wimsey or Queen or Archer or Mason
or Wolfe or the cops of the 87th? - while others may be more
surprising." Stories here includes ones featuring Nero Wolfe,
Perry Mason, Steve Grayce (Chandler's house dick), Fergus O'Breen,
Lew Archer, Matt Scudder, Nameless, Sharon McCon, Easy Rawlins
and V.I. Warshawski.
.
- O'Sullivan, Maurice J., and Steve
Glassman, ed.
Orange Pulp: Stories of Mayhem, Murder and Mystery...Buy
this book
University of Florida Press, 2000.
Great collection (and a great title, too) of
stories and classic excerpts set in the Sunshine State, including
P.I. stuff from John Carroll Daly, Jonathan Latimer, Brett Halliday
and John D. MacDonald, as well as contributions from Charles
Willeford, Stephen Ransome, Edwin Ganberry, Mary Roberts Rinehart,
and Don Tracy. Includes a solid essay, with bibliography, on
Florida crime fiction.
.
- Gorman, Ed, and Martin H. Greenberg,
editors,
Pulp Masters...Buy
this book
New York: Carroll & Graf, 2001.
Great collection of six pulp novellas by John
D. MacDonald, Mickey Spillane, Donald Westlake, Lawrence Block,
James M. Cain and a full novel by Harry Whittington. According
to Bill Crider, "Pulp Masters is worth picking up for the
Whittington novel, So Dead My Love, alone."
.
- Jakubowski, Maxim, editor,
The Mammoth Book of Pulp Action ...Buy
this book
New York: Carroll & Graf, 2001.
A new Carroll&Graf collection of rfelatively rare hard-boiled goodies, by such masters of the craft as Dashiell Hammett, Robert Leslie Bellem, Cornell Woolrich, Erle Stanley Gardner, John D. MacDonald, Ross McDonald, Ed McBain, Charles Willeford, David Goodis, and James Ellroy.
.
- Spillane, Mickey, and Max Allan
Collins, editors,
A Century of Noir: Thirty-Two Classic Crime Stories...Buy
this book
New York: New American Library, 2002.
A good, solid collection, with reprints from from folks like Cain, Goodis, MacDonald, Macdonald, Brackett, etc, as well as stories by both editors. Also, Ben Schutz's great Lost and Found, which wraps up his Leo Haggerty series.
.
- Randisi, Robert J., editor
Most Wanted...Buy
this book
2002.
Personal favourites of past (and current) presidents of PWA.
Four of the stories are new (including a new Nameless tale by
Pronzini, an Alo Nudger by John Lutz, a new P.I. by Jeremiah
Healy and a new Stanley Hastings by Parnell Hall) and the rest
are reprints, but for the most part, they're GOOD reprints, by
the likes of Lawrence Block, Michael Collins, William Campbell
Gault, Sue Grafton, Les Roberts, Robert Randisi, Sara Paretsky
and Max Allan Collins..
- Penzler, Otto, editor,
The Black Lizard Big Book of Pulps: The Best Crime Stories from the Pulps During Their Golden Age--The '20s, '30s & '40s....Buy this book
New York: Vintage Crime/Blck Lizard, 2007
It's big, alright, and it's got a big title, but for those of you who have never actually read anything from the glory days of detective and crime pulps, this is more than just a massive doorstop -- it's the gateway drug of the year. Combining three previously published (or scheduled to be published) collections, The Crimefighters, The Villains and The Dames, and featuring each of those individual volumes' intros (by Harlan Coben, Harlan Ellison and Laura Lippman, respectively, as well as an overall view by Penzler himself, this is one huge hunk of reading, over 1100 pages of Grade-A pulp, 100 % pure, from some of the greatest writers the genre has ever seen: Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett (a never-before-published story), Erle Stanley Gardner, Raoul Whitfield, both James A. and Paul Cain, Norbert Davis, Horace McCoy, Cornell Woolrich, George Harmon Coxe and even a couple of complete novels (from Carroll John Daly and Frederick Nebel), ripped from the pages of Black Mask, Dime Detective and other shining lights of the era. The stories have all been cleaned up and re-typeset for easy legibility, but the two-column layout, instantly familiar to design anyone who's ever gingerly handled an actual copy of those dusty, musty old pulps and many of the original illustrations have been retained so it's like reading the biggest baddest pulp on the newstand. Go ahead, take a little taste. The addiction starts here...
Thanks to Monte
Herridge for his help plugging some of the holes here.
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