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In a career that began in 1959 and continued until his death in 2002, R.A. Lafferty garnered the admiration of authors and editors including Robert A.W. Lowndes, Harlan Ellison, A.A. Attanasio, Gene Wolfe, Michael Swanwick and many, many others. His body of short fiction is comprised of well over 200 stories and, despite his vast popularity, there was never a concerted effort made to produce a comprehensive collection of his short fiction, until now.

Welcome to the first volume in a series that will run to a dozen volumes collecting all of R.A. Lafferty's short fiction. Whether it be well-known stories such as Narrow Valley or more obscure work such as The Man Who Made Models, all will be collected here in the Lafferty Library. Each volume will feature close to 100,000 words of Lafferty's fiction and each volume will feature an afterword by series editor John Pelan and a guest introduction by a notable author in the field of fantastic fiction.

This first volume includes an introduction by Michael Swanwick, an afterword by John Pelan, and photographs of R.A. Lafferty.

Table of Contents:

• Eight Words from the Most Wonderful Writer in the World: Introduction by Michael Swanwick
• The Man Who Made Models (1984)
• The Six Fingers of Time (1960)
• The Hole on the Corner (1967)
• Square and Above Board (1982)
• Jack Bang's Eyes (1983)
• All But the Words (1971)
• The Ungodly Mice of Doctor Drakos (1973)
• Frog on the Mountain (1970)
• Narrow Valley (1966)
• Condillac's Statue, or Wrens in His Head (1970)
• About a Secret Crocodile (1970)
• Days of Grass, Days of Straw (1973)
• The Ninety-Ninth Cubicle (1984)
• Thus We Frustrate Charlemagne (1967)
• Parthen (1973)
• The Skinny People of Leptophlebo Street (1975)
• Rivers of Damascus (1974)
• The Man Who Made Myths: The Voyages of R.A. Lafferty: Afterword by John Pelan

Contents:

• Introduction by Harlan Ellison
• The Man with the Aura
• One at a Time
• Royal Licorice
• Land of the Great Horses
• Anamnesis
• Ginny Wrapped in the Sun
• Pleasures and Palaces
• Continued on Next Rock
• Gray Ghost: A Reminiscence
• Ride a Tin Can
• Hog-Belly Honey
• All Hollow Though You Be
• I Don't Care Who Keeps the Cows
• Old Halloweens on the Guna Slopes
• The Ultimate Creature
• Great Day in the Morning
• Scorner's Seat
• Afterword by John Pelan

In a career that began in 1959 and continued until his death in 2002, R.A. Lafferty garnered the admiration of authors and editors including Robert A.W. Lowndes, Harlan Ellison, A.A. Attanasio, Gene Wolfe, Michael Swanwick and many, many others. His body of short fiction is comprised of well over 200 stories and, despite his vast popularity, there was never a concerted effort made to produce a comprehensive collection of his short fiction, until now.

Welcome to the third volume of the Lafferty Library, a series that will run to a dozen volumes and collect all of R.A. Lafferty's short fiction. This present volume features Lafferty classics such as Snuffles and Boomer Flats alongside obscure later works such as Calamities of the Last Pauper and the rare The Last Astronomer. From the raucous fun of The Hellaceous Rocket of Harry O'Donavan to the quietly evocative Selenium Ghosts of the Eighteen Seventies to the disturbing The Funny Face Murders, the depth and breadth of R.A. Lafferty's wondrous imagination is on display once again. Enjoy seeing the world as you've never seen it before!

This third volume includes an introduction by Bud Webster, an afterword by John Pelan, and photographs of R.A. Lafferty.

Contents:

• The Man Underneath
• Selenium Ghosts of the Eighteen Seventies
• Dream
• Boomer Flats
• The Hellaceous Racket of Harry O'Donovan
• You Can't Go Back
• Thou Whited Wall
• The Effigy Histories
• The Wooly World of Barnaby Sheen
• McGonigal's Worm
• Inventions Bright and New
• Snuffles
• What Big Tears the Dinosaur's
• The Last Astronomer
• Ifrit
• The Funny Face Murders
• Calamities of the Last Pauper
• Nine Hundred Grandmothers
• Through Other Eyes

In a career that began in 1959 and continued until his death in 2002, R.A. Lafferty garnered the admiration of authors and editors including Robert A.W. Lowndes, Harlan Ellison, A.A. Attanasio, Gene Wolfe, Michael Swanwick and many, many others. His body of short fiction is comprised of well over 200 stories and, despite his vast popularity, there was never a concerted effort made to produce a comprehensive collection of his short fiction, until now.

Welcome to the fourth volume of the Lafferty Library, a series that will run to a dozen volumes and collect all of R.A. Lafferty's short fiction. This present volume features Lafferty classics such as Bank and Shoal of Time, The Cliff Climbers, Been a Long, Long Time, Ishmael into the Barrens and many more. The depth and breadth of R.A. Lafferty's wondrous imagination is on display once again. Enjoy seeing the world as you've never seen it before!

This volume includes an introduction by Richard A. Lupoff, an afterword by John Pelan, and photographs of R.A. Lafferty.

Contents:

• Introduction by Richard Lupoff
• The Man with the Speckled Eyes (1964)
• Primary Education of the Camiroi (1966)
• Polity and Custom of the Camiroi (1966)
• Funnyfingers (1976)
• For All Poor Folks at Picketwire (1975)
• Thieving Bear Planet (1982)
• The Transcendent Tigers (1964)
• Bank and Shoal of Time (1981)
• The Emperor's Shoestrings (1997)
• McGruder's Marvels (1968)
• Been a Long, Long Time (1970)
• Entire and Perfect Chrysolite (1970)
• The Cliff Climbers (1970)
• And Walk Now Gently Through the Fire (1972)
• Ishmael into the Barrens (1971)
• Afterword by John Pelan

In a career that began in 1959 and continued until his death in 2002, R.A. Lafferty garnered the admiration of authors and editors including Robert A.W. Lowndes, Harlan Ellison, A.A. Attanasio, Gene Wolfe, Michael Swanwick and many, many others. His body of short fiction is comprised of well over 200 stories and, despite his vast popularity, there was never a concerted effort made to produce a comprehensive collection of his short fiction, until now.

Welcome to the fifth volume of the Lafferty Library, a series that will run to a dozen volumes and collect all of R.A. Lafferty's short fiction. As with all previous volumes, this collection, assembled by series editor John Pelan, brings together a delightful blend of the familiar, the esoteric, the known and the obscure. In this volume you'll find his well-known characters, such as The Men Who Knew Everything; represented here by "Mud Violet" and "Barnaby's Clock"; the wondrous Argos Mythos (considered by many to be among Lafferty's finest works), are featured with a rare treat, the novella "How Many Miles to Babylon?", which has never previously appeared in any R. A. Lafferty collection. We even feature an appearance by that most venerable of think-tanks, The Institute for Impure Science, with the novelette "Flaming Ducks and Giant Bread."

From the enthusiastic introduction by Michael Kurland and the titular novelette from 1978, and all the way back to Lafferty's second prose sale, "Adam Had Three Brothers," this volume also includes an interview conducted with Lafferty by Robert J. Whitaker and an afterword by series editor, John Pelan.

Contents:

• Introduction (essay by Michael Kurland)
• The Man Who Walked Through Cracks (1978)
• In Our Block (1965)
• Camels and Dromedaries, Clem (1967)
• Hands of the Man [Habitable Worlds] (1970)
• Among the Hairy Earthmen (1966)
• Barnaby's Clock [Men Who Knew Everything] (1973)
• Ewe Lamb (1985)
• How Many Miles to Babylon? [Argos Mythos] (1989) (variant of How Many Miles to Babylon)
• Incased in Ancient Rind (1971) (variant of Encased in Ancient Rind)
• Rang Dang Kaloof (1972)
• Flaming Ducks and Giant Bread [Institute for Impure Science] (1974)
• Le Hot Sport (1988)
• Mud Violet [Men Who Knew Everything] (1973)
• And Name My Name (1974)
• Adam Had Three Brothers (1960)
• Bequest of Wings (1978)
• Company in the Wings (1983)
• An Interview with R. A. Lafferty (1976) (interview by Robert J. Whitaker)
• And the Band Plays On... (essay by John Pelan)

In a career that began in 1959 and continued until his death in 2002, R.A. Lafferty garnered the admiration of authors and editors including Robert A.W. Lowndes, Harlan Ellison, A.A. Attanasio, Gene Wolfe, Michael Swanwick and many, many others. His body of short fiction is comprised of well over 200 stories and, despite his vast popularity, there was never a concerted effort made to produce a comprehensive collection of his short fiction, until now.

Welcome once again to the sometimes nightmarish, occasionally hilarious, always fascinating universe created by the incomparable R. A. Lafferty. The stories in this sumptuous volume are some of Lafferty's finest -- taut and terrifying, yet pungent with his uniquely cynical tone.

He stares down mercilessly at a world gone quietly mad. "The Man Who Never Was" treads across the thin line between reality and illusion, thickening the haze that separates who we are from who we pretend to be. "Maleficent Morning" is about undoing the unthinkable, a masterful take on themes that range from the myth of Aladdin's Lamp to the curse of "The Monkey's Paw." Coursing between nightmare and waking, its folksiness makes it all the more jarring.

"Groaning Hinges of the World" is a dark fable about a world overtaken by depravity, more relevant now than ever. "Long Teeth" is a strange brew of grue, gore, and greed, a corrosive narrative about the cyclical effect of avarice. "Day of the Glacier" is a prescient, literally spine-chilling account of a climatic catastrophe fueled by paranoia and militarism. "Three Shadows of the Wolf" is a suspenseful, fanciful, and undeniably moody mystery about the hunt for an elusive and very intelligent werewolf.

This special Centipede Press edition is graced with a poignant introduction by Neil Gaiman, a combination valentine and tribute to his favorite writer that incorporates an incisive interview Gaiman conducted with Lafferty. "I like almost all my short stories," Lafferty declared. He undoubtedly loved the ones contained between these covers. Dig in, and savor one of fantasy literature's most ferociously imaginative authors.

Contents:

• Introduction by Neil Gaiman
• The Man Who Never Was
• Something Rich and Strange
• Maleficent Morning
• What's the Name of That Town?
• Tongues of the Matagorda
• The End of Outward
• Oh Tell Me Will It Freeze Tonight
• Quiz Ship Loose
• Horns on Their Heads
• And Mad Undancing Bears
• Groaning Hinges of the World
• Long Teeth
• Slow Tuesday Night
• Rainbird
• Brain Fever Season
• Day of the Glacier
• Three Shadows of the Wolf
• Lord Torpedo, Lord Gyroscope
• Or Little Ducks Each Day
• Marsilia V
• Afterword by John Pelan

In a career that began in 1959 and continued until his death in 2002, R.A. Lafferty garnered the admiration of authors and editors including Robert A.W. Lowndes, Harlan Ellison, A.A. Attanasio, Gene Wolfe, Michael Swanwick and many, many others. His body of short fiction is comprised of well over 200 stories and, despite his vast popularity, there was never a concerted effort made to produce a comprehensive collection of his short fiction, until now.

Come one, come all! Step foot inside the scintillating world of R.A. Lafferty, the unparalleled jester and satirist for all that's ponderous and preposterous. Known for his eccentric brand of tall tales, Lafferty is one of the few who's brave enough to make sense of the nonsensical, even at the cost of his equilibrium as well as our own.

As an authorial chameleon, Lafferty commands the role with poise, tact, and quizzical inventiveness. Go ahead and decipher "Posterior Analytics." An economics term, you ask? No! It's Lafferty's clever poke at the so-called experts who can't dig themselves out of trouble even with all the answers at their cortical tips. "In the Turpentine Trees" calls to mind the slow-drip ooze of resin from pine trunks. However, it's his way of defining the deity in the clouds, billions of years in the making, or simply chosen by default. And "Junkyard Thoughts" is much more than what's on top of mind in a waste lot. Marvel at Drumhead Joe, a lawman hot on the trail of a murderer, searching in all the right places, and in all the right personalities.

With a world gone completely mad, how could one not know? But did you know: Lafferty is slightly ahead of that curve? Check out "Mad Man" and observe as George Gnevni flips the switch from the mad maniac to sane lap dog only to lose his good standing. His replacement is always on standby. Gang warfare takes to the heavens in "And All the Skies are Full of Fish," where local kids show off their kinetic powers to a goading public. Just a typical day in the life of a Lafferty resident.

Remove the rose-colored glasses and glimpse the world through Lafferty's eyes. "All the Pieces of a River Shore" will have you seeing Dali. Not in dripping clocks but in roaming waterways that are too realistic to comprehend or even handle. In "Dorg" you may ask which comes first: cause or effect? Even with a prophetic but spooked cartoonist it doesn't matter. Not when the world begs him for more. And "One-Eyed Mocking-Bird" shows that too much knowledge is ripe for paradox but it's also perfect to stake a movement and its figurehead.

Featuring an insightful introduction by Scott Bradfield and a revealing interview with Lafferty lead by Ron Wolfe, this Centipede Press edition is yet another example of Lafferty's resounding influence. Falling under his spell is just a part of the game. You may lose your balance, but you'll both come out winners.

Contents:

• Introduction by Scott Bradfield
• And All the Skies Are Full of Fish
• Junkyard Thoughts
• Posterior Analytics
• In the Turpentine Trees
• Buckets Full of Brains
• Make Sure the Eyes Are Big Enough
• The Only Tune That He Could Play or Well, What Was the Missing Element
• Smoe and the Implicit Clay
• Once on Aranea
• Dorg
• Sodom and Gomorrah, Texas
• Name of the Snake
• Mad Man
• Aloys
• All Pieces of a River Shore
• Bird-Master
• Golden Trabant
• All the People
• Puddle on the Floor
• Magazine Section
• The Polite People of Pudibundia
• Holy Woman
• Nor Limestone Islands
• One-Eyed Mocking-Bird
• Interview with R. A. Lafferty