ThePulp.Net editor
2014-07-15 23:15:13 UTC
Okay, after John Olsen's comment, I figured I should step up. ...
Back in the early spring, I had the great fortune of meeting Nicky
Wheeler-Nicholson, the granddaughter of Maj. Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson
at a nearby convention.
I was mostly familiar with the Major's background as one of the founders
of DC Comics. But before that, he was a pulp fictioneer.
Nicky was promoting a book of her grandfather's adventure stories, "The
Texas-Siberian Trail." The book was edited by John Locke and published
by his Off-Trail Publications.
Being known as the Major obvious indicates that he had a military
background. In the preface, Nicky discusses his service in the U.S. Army
Cavalry along the Texas-Mexico border and the Philippines, and in
Military Intelligence in Asia and Russia, then onto the Western Front of
World War I.
The book's title reflects the Major's military service, as well as how
the book is organized. Rather than reprinting the stories in
chronological order, the stories appear based on his military postings.
The first two stories, "Beelzebub the Bane" and "Shavetail," take place
along the Mexican frontier. "The Colonel Who Drank Along" is in the
Philippines. The next three, "The Tiger of the Ussuri," "The Czarina's
Pearls" and "The Dumb Bunny," are set in Russia. The final two, "Treason
for Glory" and "The Road Without Turning," on the Western Front.
The stories were originally published between 1927 and 1932, with all
but one in ADVENTURE ("Shavetail" ran in ARGOSY).
The Major writes pretty tight stories. Very little is padding, as most
everything is pushing the stories forward. He writes authoritatively,
too. It's clear he knows what he's writing about, whether it's taming a
horse, working with a tainted officer, or dealing with unsavory Russians.
It's a very entertaining book and a great way to spend a few evenings
reading.
- Bill
Back in the early spring, I had the great fortune of meeting Nicky
Wheeler-Nicholson, the granddaughter of Maj. Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson
at a nearby convention.
I was mostly familiar with the Major's background as one of the founders
of DC Comics. But before that, he was a pulp fictioneer.
Nicky was promoting a book of her grandfather's adventure stories, "The
Texas-Siberian Trail." The book was edited by John Locke and published
by his Off-Trail Publications.
Being known as the Major obvious indicates that he had a military
background. In the preface, Nicky discusses his service in the U.S. Army
Cavalry along the Texas-Mexico border and the Philippines, and in
Military Intelligence in Asia and Russia, then onto the Western Front of
World War I.
The book's title reflects the Major's military service, as well as how
the book is organized. Rather than reprinting the stories in
chronological order, the stories appear based on his military postings.
The first two stories, "Beelzebub the Bane" and "Shavetail," take place
along the Mexican frontier. "The Colonel Who Drank Along" is in the
Philippines. The next three, "The Tiger of the Ussuri," "The Czarina's
Pearls" and "The Dumb Bunny," are set in Russia. The final two, "Treason
for Glory" and "The Road Without Turning," on the Western Front.
The stories were originally published between 1927 and 1932, with all
but one in ADVENTURE ("Shavetail" ran in ARGOSY).
The Major writes pretty tight stories. Very little is padding, as most
everything is pushing the stories forward. He writes authoritatively,
too. It's clear he knows what he's writing about, whether it's taming a
horse, working with a tainted officer, or dealing with unsavory Russians.
It's a very entertaining book and a great way to spend a few evenings
reading.
- Bill
--
William Lampkin
http://ThePulp.Net
Your link to the online world of the pulps!
Yellowed Perils: Thoughts and Comments on the World of the Pulps
http://www.thepulp.net/yellowedperils/
--
William Lampkin
http://ThePulp.Net
Your link to the online world of the pulps!
Yellowed Perils: Thoughts and Comments on the World of the Pulps
http://www.thepulp.net/yellowedperils/
--