This is an excellent collection of Lansdale's short fiction put out in a 4,000 copy edition by Golden Gryphon in 2000. It was their 8th publication under editor Jim Turner.

This is a messy collection in a number of ways. Most of the stories are top notch, a few are average and there is one really, really bad story. In addition don't read this right after you've eaten and you better turn your politically correct filter off. There are a number of award winning stories in here. Oh, and the stories run from one-pagers to just under novella length.

Joe's stories are down in the trenches stuff and down South stuff, Texas mainly. He revels in the dregs of humanity and the stories are horrifying and funny at the same time, as long as nobody you know was ever murdered or raped. There isn't anything supernatural happening here just maniacs and mayhem mostly but wry and terribly eerie nonetheless. These stories may be all that much more terrifying because they all could happen whereas we know there aren't any real ghosts or monsters, don't we?

Joe's world view, at least from these stories, is pretty bleak. Just like in real life the good and the bad go down together at times and sometimes the bad guys win, so maybe it should be called realism instead of pessimism.

I guarantee you won't be bored. ( )

Gross enough to make Stephen King’s work look like a Little Golden Book. Well written, interesting and funny… but now I feel soiled by all the horrible things Joe wrote. Go for it if you really like horror. ( )

“He caught on fire... got hit by a truck, knocked in the river, and the gator got him...”
-from “Steppin’ Out, Summer, ‘68”

“Incident On And Off A Mountain Road” has an awesome “twist” ending! Maybe my favorite! I'd say that overall, I liked about half of these stories. Hey, and am I crazy, or did the story "The Pit" get ripped off by the television show "Preacher"? They are awfully close to the same, in my opinion.

All-in-all, it is a pleasure to read Mr. Lansdale, and this collection is no exception! ( )

Will add reviews of each story as I move through it, picking it up from time to time, not necessarily in order...

THE PIT: Brutal and well-written. Is it possible this story served as part of the inspiration for the Tarantino film DJANGO UNCHAINED? Hmmm.

This is my first Joe Lansdale book but certainly won't be my last. As the author states, this is a hand picked collection of some of his earlier short stories. The basic premise in most of the stories is truly horrifying, yet Mr. Lansdale finds the humor that lies within. And the cast of characters that populate these stories are ignorant, racist, redneck trash. Or simply just stupid. As Mr. Lansdale puts it in the preface before one of these stories, "Steppin' Out, Summer, '68" (one of the funniest stories in this book): "I think the happily stupid, those people who are that way because they choose to be, or are too lazy or uninspired to be otherwise, are among the scariest people in the world. They are also, if you squint slightly, and can deal with a lot of sadness, pretty funny." I think that sums up much of the horror, as well as the humor, in many of these stories.

For those of you reading this review that are easily offended, there are stories in here that you will undoubtedly have a hard time reading. One, "Drive-in Date", is what the author claims to be the darkest story he's ever written. Yet, the story is oddly humorous. Again, these characters can be scary and yet in their own twisted, ignorant way can also be quite funny. Regardless of how horrific and offensive some of the stories are, I highly recommend it as there are some real gems in here. Hand picked as favorites of the author's as well as fan favorites. ( )