Centipede Press just released the latest book in their series honoring great SF writers, focusing on Howard Waldrop. The books in this series tend to be massive, and the Howard Waldrop edition is no exception. Listed for $85, the book is already sold out from the publisher, just a week after its release. It’s too bad that Waldrop isn’t around to see the reception of this book, as he died just two years ago, on January 14, 2024.
Clocking in at 1040 pages, the book is limited to just 500 copies; my book is number 407. It’s signed by Waldrop, Paul di Filippo, and artists Jim & Ruth Keegan. Paul di Filippo wrote a nice introduction, but then few people have anything bad to say about Waldrop. I met him only once in 2005, when I asked him to sign my copy of Howard Who? even though the book already was signed. All he did was write “I’ve already signed this one,” then added the date, plus “and earlier.” I think that curmudgeonly note almost means more to me than his signature.
As I own most of Waldrop’s books, I may already have read most of the stories in this collection. I think I spotted some that I had not read, so those now are high on my list of next stuff to read. Kudos to Centipede Press for yet another fantastic publication. My wallet shudders at the sight of their forthcoming books this year, as there are several great titles listed.
