This is not that thing.
No, instead, this is a completely separate new series, focused on just talking about things I think are worth your time (hence the name). It could be anything that pops into my head, but I honestly don't expect it to have many entries. Think of it as a catch-all series. There won't be any real standard to them, I'll just draw attention to the thing, say a bit about it, and try not to ramble as much as I usually do. Note the word "try."
And don't worry, I'll still be doing the obscure stuff, and I actually have a title for that series now. I chose to talk about this first, though, since it does a thing that's very similar to what I hope to do with my new series: draw attention to forgotten gems.
I've mentioned before that my wife is amazing, and that she basically takes care of me. She feeds me and supports me, both financially and emotionally. She believes in me way more than I do. And sometimes she just does really cool things for me. For example, to celebrate my birthday this past December, she took me out for a nice lunch and a shopping spree at my favorite stores. One of those stores is famous Canadian bookstore chain Chapters, where most of that money was spent. I got a ton of cool stuff that day, but the standout for me has to be this little gem, Paperbacks from Hell by Grady Hendrix.
As I mentioned above, this book does exactly what I want to do with my forthcoming "obscure stuff" series, but the focus here is relatively specific: horror fiction in the 1970s and 1980s (and some brief 1990s). The author, Grady Hendrix, is a horror himself, and is already pretty well-known for his own '80s throwback novel, My Best Friend's Exorcism, which I hope to read pretty soon myself. I had been wanting this one for a while, and I was not disappointed.
The book is bigger than I thought, about 230 pages including the epilogue. But it's what's on those pages that really matters, as Hendrix takes us from title to title, the vast majority of which I had never heard of. The amount of focus given to any given book really depends on a few factors, such as cultural impact, overall quality, or just sheer insanity. A few noteworthy entries get an in-depth review, but most are rather mentioned more in relation to the category they fall into, and how well they do it. There's also more than a handful of titles that get short non-sequitur mentions highlighting a particularly disgusting or disturbing scene. Hendrix is witty and irreverent throughout, but it's clear he knows what he's talking about, and his obvious love for the genre shines through despite (or rather, because of) the snark.
If I had any real complaint about the book, it's that I wish there were more of it. I said that it was bigger than I expected, and it was, but it still wasn't quite enough to satiate me. There were plenty of books or series mentioned over the course of this book that I would like to know more about, without necessarily buying them separately (if I can even find them).
Still, what's here is extremely enjoyable, and I honestly feel guilty complaining that it isn't enough. And I definitely can't say that the book didn't do what it intends to do, since I actually made a list of books to track down because they interested me so much. First and foremost among these is the Blackwater saga by Michael McDowell which, coincidentally (or not), recently got re-released in a single complete volume. I'll be picking that up as soon as possible, all because of Paperbacks From Hell.
I enjoyed myself so much that once I had finished it, I seriously considered just starting it over again. I honestly can't remember the last time I felt that way about a book. I actually felt just the slightest bit sad that I had spent all my birthday money, since I would've liked to trawl the local used bookstores to see if I could find some of the things from my new list. I wouldn't be surprised if I do that before too long, and I can almost guarantee I'll be reading Paperbacks From Hell again very soon.
If you want to pick it up (and I highly recommend doing so), it'll run you about $25 USD, $30 CDN, about ten bucks cheaper on Kindle. At the time of this writing, its price is actually reduced on Amazon (US), bringing it down to about $15, which is an absolute steal.
Let me just be clear in saying that I don't get any kind of kickback for saying any of this stuff. I have no affiliation with Amazon or anybody involved with the publishing of Paperbacks From Hell. I genuinely just love it, and I want to let people know about it. It was the most enjoyable experience I've had with a book for quite some time, and it is absolutely Worth Your Time.
Until next time!
Current interests:
Listening - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (The Beatles, 1967)
Playing - Wolfenstein 3D (1992)
Reading - Star Wars: Princess Leia (2015)
Watching - Bob's Burgers (2011)
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