The LESTER DENT Library - from Black Dog Books

All available HERE.

Forgotten Books: TARZAN THE TERRIBLE by Edgar Rice Burroughs

When I heard that Will Murray's new Tarzan novel was called Return to Pal-Ul-Don (reviewed HERE), I busted out an old copy of this novel (not the edition above, unfortunatlely) recounting the Ape Man's earlier visit to that lost corner of Africa.

Tarzan the Terrible was serialized in Argosy All-Story in early1921 and appeared in book form soon after. I first read it when I was a kid, and again when I went on a Burroughs binge twenty years ago and read his complete works over a period of about six months.

Tarzan encountered quite a few Lost Races over the course of his career, and that aspect of Tarzan the Terrible is pretty standard fare. What makes this book a stand-out is that there are so many characters and so many subplots that its like two or three average Burroughs novels packed into one.

In the land of Pal-Ul-Don, along with the usual complement of unique monsters and beasts, Tarzan meets and befriends two opposing humanoid races. One is white-skinned (the Ho-don), the other black and covered with long black hair (the Waz-don). Both races have long tails, which they employ as an extra limb. It's the sort of social dynamic later seen on many episodes of classic Star Trek. The Ho-don live in cities and palaces, while the Waz-don are relegated to the jungle. They're not exactly at war, but their co-existence is far from friendly.

To complicate matters, there are power plays at work, with the priesthood and other factions within the Ho-don itching to take over the throne. And to keep things lively, there are three romantic triangles. A Waz-don warrior is in love with a woman held captive by the Ho-don, an exiled Ho-don noble is hot for the Ho-don princess who's promised to sleazeball, and Tarzan's whole reason for being there is to search for Jane, who was abducted by Germans in an early book. More complications and abductions, ensue.

And to top it off, there's a mysterious white man (without a tail) on Tarzan's trail. That guy's identity remains a mystery until the very end.

Many of Burrough's books take jabs at religion, but I found this one surprisingly daring, especially for 1921. Learning that the Ho-don believe their god Jad-ben-Otho to be tail-free, Tarzan presents himself to the royal court as the son of that god. There are repeated references to him as "the son of god," and there's even a moment when Tarzan, hard-pressed by doubters, cries out, "Who dares believe that Jad-ben-Otho would forsake his son?" Gotta wonder how much flak ERB took for that one.

Prince Valiant Vol. 6: 1947-1948

I've reached Volume 6 (1947-1948) of Fantagraphics' best yet reproduction of Prince Valiant. This one starts in Thule (Val's home), where a rogue Viking snatches Aleta and spirits her off to the west. Val chases him past Iceland and Greenland all the way to Niagra Falls, where they spend the winter with some noble early Americans. Hal Foster did a ton of research into how those folks lived, and poured it into these pages. 

Val's hosts in the New World are the fun-loving Tillicum Indians. They think Aleta is a Sun Goddess, and act like a bunch of godfathers when she gives birth to Prince Arn. 

Foster gives us a look at what Niagra Falls might have looked like 1500 years ago. Erosion, he says, shortens the falls by three feet per year.

Val teaches the wife-snatcher a lesson by treating him to the Big Swim. In the Spring, he finds his way across the ocean to Camelot, where there's more trouble afoot. And there are many more adventures ahead, because the series is now up to Volume 11.

FREE TODAY: John Hegenberger's CROSS EXAMINATIONS

Headache. Heartache. Neckache. Backache.

Those are the titles of the four novelettes in Cross Examinations, and are fair descriptions of the sort of trouble each case brings to Private Investigator Eliot Cross. Cross likes to think of himself as a hardboiled detective, and when circumstances demand it his tough side comes to the fore. But he's more than that. He's a guy with real emotions and a social conscience that sometimes gets in the way of his business.

The four stories in this book, which have an almost novel-like continuity, are a good blend of action, humor and pathos. In "Headache," an auto dealer is accused of setting a booby-trap that kills a would-be robber. It would be easy to excuse that, figuring anyone breaking into a business deserves what they get. But Cross finds this attitude disturbing, and his main motivation is to make sure other shop owners don't follow suit.

In "Headache," a State Sentor hires him to rescue her brother from a religious cult. It starts off as fun, with Cross passing himself off as a reporter named "Irwin Fletcher," but turns serious - in more ways than one - and forces Cross to examine where his real loyalties lie.

"Neckache" is a romp through the world of comic art, with hat tips to Milt Caniff, The Spirit, Captain America, Krazy Kat, Prince Valiant and Alley Oop, among others. It's a clear indication that the author has fine and varied taste in reading matter.

In "Backache," Cross finds himself embroiled in the theft of a rare edition of The Canturbury Tales. This one exposes more good taste, especially when Cross drops an inside joke for readers (or viewers) of The Big Sleep.

And to add an extra dimension, Cross's adventures take place in or near Columbus, Ohio in the ancient era of 1988. And we know that's true, because there are references to such icons of the time as Phil Collins, Mr. Natural and Magnum, P.I.

For an extemely limited time (I think today is the last day) Cross Examinations is free for the stealing over at Amazon. Snatch it now, before it's too late! That's HERE.

Overlooked Films: JESSE JAMES MEETS FRANKENSTEIN'S DAUGHTER

 

I suspect this movie is no more Overlooked than it deserves to be, but I'm not curious enough to find out. I'm hoping you'll watch it so I don't have to.



More Overlooked Turkeys at Sweet Freedom.

Stephen Mertz strikes again! Blaze! #6: ZOMBIES OVER YONDER!

When Steve Mertz pitched this entry in the Blaze series to Rough Edges Press publisher James Reasoner, James told him: If you're going over the top, go WAY over. And that's what he did!

Zombies Over Yonder takes the husband and wife gunfighting team of J.D. and Kate Blaze to the dying town of Yonder, Arizona Territory. The new owner of The Starlight Mine - a creepy dude who wears an opera cloak and calls himself Count Vlad - has the place going full steam, despite having fired all the miners. How's he do it? With a workforce of the Living Dead, natch.

Sounds like an employers dream, doesn't it? Zombies don't need wages, or coffee breaks, or even sleep. But they do need plenty of living - or recently living - flesh to feed their never-ending appetites. Will Mr. and Mrs, Blaze find themselves on the menu? Read Zombies Over Yonder and find out.

Along the way, you'll meet a black-clad albino gunman named Lucien Grubmire, a vengeful Apache named Iron Heart, a sleazeball cavarly commander named Hitchcock, a lissome lass named Blue Feather, and a baker's dozen of evil-eyed gummen slated to meet the undertaker.

Where else can you have this much fun for a measley $2.99?

Get it here: Blaze! Zombies Over Yonder (Blaze! Western Series Book 6)

The Art of TOM ROBERTS (Part 9)

Pulpy goodness from Black Dog Books, 2008. 

A Black Dog classic - from 2000. 

From Crippen & Landru, 2002.  (Thx to R. Robinson)

Parts 1 thru 8 of The Art of TOM ROBERTS are HERE.
Next week: Nooses galore.

Altus Gallery: Nephews, Step-Sons and Crazy Second-Cousins of Zorro