Amazon.com Review
Penzler Pick, January 2000: I love short stories, and having read scores of anthologies over the years I rejoice when someone comes up with an especially nifty theme for one. Lawrence Block has managed to do something really cool. He asked some of today's top mystery writers to pick their favorite of their own stories as well as the story they most admire or that most influenced them. Stephen King selected his "The Wedding Gig" and Joyce Carol Oates's "Murder-Two"; Peter Lovesey picked his "The Crime of Miss Oyster Brown" and Donald E. Westlake's hilarious "Too Many Crooks"; Harlan Ellison's choices were his "Tired Old Man" and Jacques Futrelle's classic "The Problem of Cell 13"; and Tony Hillerman, best known for his novels, named his "First Lead Gasser" and Joe Gores's Edgar-winning "Goodbye, Pops."
There is a wide range in this handsome volume, with authors selecting work from the world of pulp fiction (Benjamin Appel), literary fiction (John O'Hara and Stephen Crane), and horror fiction (W.F. Harvey), as well as the more traditional mystery fiction.
It's not too soon to look forward to the next volume in what we hope will become a long-running series. --Otto Penzler
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Only one feather was missing from the literary cap of mystery grand master Block: he'd never edited an anthology. To rectify the situation, Block has assembled this anthology, which pairs stories chosen as personal favorites by some of the genre's top crime-fiction writers with a story of their own. Brit Peter Lovesey's sharp wit shines in a story about two eccentric twins. Lovesey picks Donald Westlake's hilarious tale of a bank robbery gone awry as his companion piece. Genre boundaries are stretched a bit with the inclusion of Stephen King, who pairs one of his scary tales with a similarly spooky story by Joyce Carol Oates. The sole woman contributor to the book (a minor but irritating flaw) is Joan Hess, whose eerie story of a woman with a strange addition to her apartment is both shocking and surreal. Hess chooses as her favorite a chilling Halloween tale by Judith Garner. In all, nine principal writers are included, who select the 18 diverse and diverting stories. A well-conceived and entertaining anthology.
Emily Melton
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
