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The Runaway Skyscraper and Other Tales from the Pulps

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The Runaway Skyscraper and Other Tales from the Pulps (2007) is a collection of stories from early years. It contains eight short stories, mostly from adventure magazines.

The Runaway Skyscraper (1919, Argosy) is about a New York City building that took 2000 people back into ancient times.

The Gallery Gods (1920, Argosy) tells about a man who wanted public fame.

The Street of Magnificent Dreams (1922, Argosy) relates the career and reward of a man who selected the best.

Nerve (1921, Argosy) changes the attitude of a parachutist.

Stories of the Hungry Country: The Case of the Dona Clotilde (first publication) explains why it is unwise to violate the traditions of a land.

Morale: A Story of the War of 1941-43 (1931, Astounding) discloses an innovative method of breaking morale.

Grooves (1918, Argosy) shows how people restrict their thoughts.

Footprints in the Snow (1919, All-Story Weekly) is a story about werewolves.

These stories are all about people in unusual situations. Two of them are science fiction, but most are drawn from the more remote cultures of the day. While none are among his best works, it is easy to see the talents that led to such stories as First Contact and the Med Ship series.

Murray Leinster is a pseudonym of William Fitzgerald Jenkins (1896-1975). His first short story was published in 1916. Under the name of Murray Leinster -- as well as Will F. Jenkins -- he wrote about a wide range of subjects throughout his career, earning him many fans and the title of Dean of SF.

Recommended for Leinster fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales from the author's early days.

-Arthur W. Jordin