September 21st, 2026
Another day, another Mysterious Benefactor Fantasy Press first.
Eshbach, Lloyd Arthur. Tyrant of Time. Fantasy Press, 1955. First edition hardback (in first state cloth binding), a Fine- copy with tiny bump to top front tip and just a trace of foxing to gutters, in a Fine-, Mylar protected dust jacket with just a sliver of a sticker ghost to the right of flap price where a price sticker was applied that extended just beyond the edge of the Mylar, otherwise mint. Short story collection from the owner and operator of Fantasy Press. Chalker/Owings, page 162. Kemp, The Anthem Series, page 48.
Tags: Books, Fantasy Press, Lloyd Arthur Eshbach, Science Fiction, small press publishers
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September 18th, 2026
We interrupt our ongoing cataloging of that giant pile of books we were given to catalog a brand spanking new book:
Lansdale, Kasey. First Chance. Blackstone Publishing, 2026. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket, inscribed to me at BookPeople on September 12, 2026, with a special bookmark laid in. I’ve known Kasey since I dropped by father Joe Lansdale’s house in the 1990s to compile his bibliography for Nova Express in the early 1990s (I think we went out for BBQ). This mystery is her first solo novel. Bought for cover price at BookPeople. This is a first, but Kasey said they’re already doing a second printing.
Tags: Austin, BookPeople, Books, Kasey Lansdale, Mystery, signatures
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September 17th, 2026
Another book from that Mysterious Benefactor:
Biggle, Lloyd Jr. A Galaxy of Strangers. Doubleday, 1976. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy with slight bumping at head, heel and points, in a Fine- dust jacket with pinpricks of wear at head and heel. Short story collection. I read a fair number of Biggle’s novels in my youth, but not any short stories.
Tags: Books, Lloyd Biggle Jr., Science Fiction
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September 16th, 2026
Another book from that Mysterious Benefactor:
Jones, Raymond F. The Toymaker. Fantasy Publishing Company Inc. (FPCI), 1951. First edition hardback, in the Currey A cloth binding (with “F.P.C.I.” binding at heel rather than Gnome Press), a Fine- copy with slight bend at head and heel, and very slight bumping of points, in a Near Fine- with trace of loss at points, slight edgewear at head and heel and slight dust soiling to white rear cover. Short story collection. Currey, page 273. Chalker/Owings, page 172 (though they mistitle it as The Toymaker and Others, a subtitle that doesn’t seem to appear anywhere on the book itself) (“All top-notch tales from the golden age of Astounding by a much under-appreciated writer, one of John W. Campbell’s favorites. There’s not a cropper in the book; highly recommended.”). Kemp, The Anthem Series, page 86.
Tags: Books, FPCI, Mysterious Benefactor, Raymond F. Jones, Science Fiction, small press publishers
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September 15th, 2026
Another book from that Mysterious Benefactor:
Smith, Edward E., Ph.D. Galactic Patrol. Fantasy Press, 1950. First edition hardback in a first state blue cloth dust jacket, a Near Fine copy with slight wear to gold lettering on spine, slight send at head and heel, and trace of foxing to inside covers and gutters, in a Near Fine, Mylar-protected dust jacket with thin lines of wear at head and heel and trace of dust soiling to white rear cover. Currey, page 456. Chalker/Owings, page 160. Kemp, The Anthem Series, page 34.
Tags: Books, E. E. "Doc" Smith, Fantasy Press, Mysterious Benefactor, Science Fiction, small press publishers
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September 14th, 2026
Another Mysterious Benefactor book.
Stableford, Brian. The Man in the Cage. John Day, 1975. First edition hardback (“10 9 8 7 6 6 5 4 3 2 1” on copyright page, as per Currey). First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Replaces an Ex-Library copy. Currey, page 465.
Indeed, one of the reason I cataloged this one is I’m running out of room and haven’t gotten my new bookcase yet, and this is just a 1-for-1 replacement…
Tags: Books, Brian Stableford, Mysterious Benefactor, Science Fiction
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September 11th, 2026
Another Dragonstairs chapbook:
Swanwick, Michael. Red Dog. Dragonstairs Press, 2026. First edition chapbook original, #66 of 80 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy. “Red Dog is Michael Swanwick’s collection of essays, some fictional, about life in western Pennsylvania.” Bought from the publisher at the usual discount.
Copies of this will be available in the next Lame Excuse Books catalog, which, owing to the huge number of books I’m currently working through, should be out later this month.
Tags: chapbooks, Dragonstairs Press, Michael Swanwick, Pennsylvania, Science Fiction, small press publishers
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September 10th, 2026
Another book from that Mysterious Benefactor, and another small press book from the 1950s.
Smith, George O. Path or Unreason. Gnome Press, 1958. First edition hardback (“First Edition” stated, as per Currey), a Near Fine copy with the start of slight creasing at head and heel, slight bend at head and heel, trace of wear to a couple of points, with characteristic toning of pages for Gnomes of this era, in a Fine- dust jacket with the barest trace of darkening to top edges of flaps. Currey, page 459. Chalker/Owings, page 204. Kemp, The Anthem Series, page 263.
Tags: Books, George O. Smith, Gnome Press, Mysterious Benefactor, Science Fiction, small press publishers
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September 9th, 2026
Another book from that Mysterious Benefactor, and another small press book from the 1950s.
Leinster, Murray. Operation: Outer Space. Fantasy Press, 1954. First edition hardback in a first state blue binding (as per Chalker/Owings), a Fine- copy with slight bumping at heel and a trace of rubbing to band at heel, in a Near Fine dust jacket with slight creasing and abrasion wear at heel, slight fading to red lettering on spine, tiny trace rubs to front, and a few small spots of dust soiling to white rear cover; overall, a very nice copy. Currey, page 268. Chalker/Owings, page 162 (“The first interstellar journey, financed by making it a TV spectacular”). Kemp, The Anthem Series, page 47.
Tags: Books, Fantasy Press, Murray Leinster, Science Fiction, small press publishers
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September 8th, 2026
Another book from that Mysterious Benefactor (I’m going to be cataloging these for quite a while), and another small press book from the 1950s.
Russell, Eric Frank. Deep Space. Fantasy Press, 1954. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine, Mylar-protected dust jacket (there’s a tiny bit of wrinkling at top of spine, but this is such a perfect copy that it feels like nit-picking); just a spectacular copy. Short story collection. Chalker/Owings says there’s a Grant remainder binding, but so close to the original that there’s no way to tell them apart; this copy is so “as new” that it may be one of those. Currey, page 423 (where he says this blue binding is the first state binding). Chalker/Owings, page 161. Kemp, The Anthem Series, page 45.
Tags: Books, Eric Frank Russell, Fantasy Press, Mysterious Benefactor, Science Fiction
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