Friday 5 August 2011

Western Adventure, October 1957


Street & Smith's
WESTERN ADVENTURE
British Edition Vol. 2 - #4

Contents:

Featured Novelette:
Driftin’ Cowhand by Walt Coburn
When Rafe Joplin’s tough-hand outfit drove away a cavvy of rustled horses across the Missouri, Bass Jackson knew his life depended on the trigger savvy of that Driftin’ Cowhand.

Range Hogs Can Die by Wayne D. Overholser
With nesters invading Redstone Valley, even Hugh Latham’s six-gun rep couldn’t keep the lid on a cattle-sheep feud.

Boothill Cargo by Norman A. Fox
Doc Comanche wasn’t checking off that counterfeit dinero as a dead loss until he collected hot-lead toll.

Deadline for a Deputy by Frank Richardson Pierce
Tony Baxter had three strikes against him when he made a baseball player pinch-hit as a deputy and take the trail of Wideawake Jackson.

Showdown at Sundown by Richard Poole
Without chips to buck a high-stake poker game, Kerry Lantham gambled his life on blistering Colt aces.

Published a number of years before I was born, I found this pulp to be a mixed bag for my tastes. My favourite story was Boothill Cargo. Doc Comanche being an entertaining lead character, one I believe stars in a number of pulp tales by Norman A. Fox and I’ll certainly be hunting through my collection to see if I have any others. The fact I liked the story the most surprised me as a previous pulp story I’ve read by Fox didn’t inspire me that much.

Of the remaining stories I liked Showdown at Sundown best, then Range Hogs, and then the featured novelette Driftin’ Cowhand – I thought this one went on a bit too long.

Deadline for a Deputy I gave up on, mainly due to all the references to baseball, a game I’m not familiar with in any way at all due to it not being that popular here in England. Still I don’t expect to like all the stories these old pulps contain.

Overall this issue of Western Adventure has left me eager to try another one soon.

No comments: