Two-Gun Bob: A Centennial Study of Robert E. Howard
November 2006
ISBN 0977173453
Paperback
$15
Robert E. Howard is enjoying a Renaissance of interest in his centennial year, and rightly so. Of the triumvirate of Weird Tales authors, only Howard has been so long misunderstood, and his works so thoroughly adulterated, as to permit of little serious study. In fact, some of us here at Hippocampus Press have neglected even to read Howard ourselves, because no definitive editions were available. With the recently released new editions of his fiction, however, we have tasted the waters, and come into the fold of Howard enthusiasts.
Towards this end we have commissioned a critical study of his entire body of work.
Update 1/12/06: Cross Plains, the home town of Robert E. Howard, was severely hit by the grass fires two weeks ago. Hippocampus Press extends its sympathy to the victims and pledges to participate in some manner in the reconstruction effort. For information on the emerging story of this disaster, please visit : http://www.rehupa.com/news_2005.htm#12-28-2005
“Benjamin Szumskyj is at the cutting edge of Robert E.
Howard scholars and aficionados. Through his diligence
and enthusiasm, the work of Robert E. Howard will
continue to be remembered and discussed, and the
sword-and-sorcery genre will be revived and renewed.”
--Charles R. Saunders, Author of Imaro
“A lot of people who've shaped the landscape of
American culture have died young, but Howard is unique
in having left behind such a great body of work in his
short stint. It's a rare genius that can produce so
much, so quickly, which so deeply connects with the
readership. Each story comes out of a greater context
than the novice Howard reader can imagine. Let Two-Gun
Bob: A Centennial Study of Robert E. Howard bring you
into his world."
--Scott Allie, Editor of Dark Horses’ Conan
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Foreword – “Robert E. Howard: A Texan Master” by Michael Moorcock
- “The Junto” by Glenn Lord
- “... From Acorns Grow: Robert E. Howard Revealed in Post Oaks and Sand Roughs” by John Goodrich
- “Sleuths, Secrets, and Grisly Mysteries: The Detective Fiction of Robert E. Howard” by Fred Blosser
- “Words From the Outer Dark: The Poetical Works of Robert E. Howard” by Michele Tetro
- “Texas Talespinner: Robert E. Howard’s Ways With Words” by Frank Coffman
- “Robert E. Howard: A State of Mind” by Charles Gramlich
- “The Persistence of the Familiar: The Hyborian World and the Geographies of Fantastic Literature” by Lorenzo DiTommaso
- “Bran Mak Morn and History” by S.T. Joshi
- “Bitter Pleasures and Swinish Stupidity: Robert E. Howard’s Take on Human Character” by Charles Hoffman
- “El Borak, the Swift” by Scott Sheaffer
- “Stars and Strong Men: The Cosmic and Science Fiction of Robert E. Howard” by Martin Andersson
- “Laudator Temporis Acti: History and Myth in the Works of Robert E. Howard” by Pietro Guarriello
- “Cimmerian Gloves: Studying Robert E. Howard’s Ace Jessel From the Ringside” by Benjamin Szumskyj
- Author, Subject and Title Index
- About the Contributors
- Acknowledgments