Western Ghosts ed. by Frank D. McSherry, Jr., Charles G. Waugh, Martin H. Greenberg (review)

150 Western American Literature feels threatened by his son’s and wife’s response to the neighbor’s gentle ways. The story’s surprise ending is deeply satisfying. In a sentence like a gunshot, the wife who has endured too much too long equates her husband with the shrike, the “butcher bird” which destroys life for its own cruel amusement. These stories are not necessarily the best two—choosing the best among such beautiful bits of short fiction would be next to impossible. My recom­ mendation is to buy the book and savor them all slowly, as one savors “The Sweetness of the Twisted Apples,” another title from this splendid collection. JANE HELM MADDOCK Western Montana College of the University ofMontana Western Ghosts. Edited by Frank D. McSherry, Jr., Charles G. Waugh, and Martin H. Greenberg. (Nashville, Tennessee: Rutledge Hill Press, 1990. 215 pages, $9.95.) A reprint collection of thirteen short stories, Western Ghosts provides fairto -decent return for its reasonable cover price. Good ghost stories, one might argue, are based in the concrete detail of the everyday world. In this particular situation, the American West proves that world. Harlan Ellison’s “Pretty Maggie Moneyeyes” is a high-energy Las Vegas yarn about a haunted slot machine. Irresistable to men while alive, a dead Maggie Moneyeyes retains old powers in her mechanical reconfiguration. A well-told tale that takes a hard look at casinos, ruined dreams, sexual need, and sudden death, it should be required reading for “lonely guys” headed for Vegas. Western Ghosts has one other superior tale. Set in a decaying Pacific Northwest mill town, Jack Cady’s “Resurrection” focuses on an old peddler who refuses to let his dead dog stay dead. Vivid sense ofplace and well-realized characterization make the supernatural plot line both believable and moving. Other modern stories of distinction include Oliver LaFarge’s “The Rest­ ing Place” and Billy Wolfenbarger’s “The Attic.” Both feature aging men coming to terms with their past. LaFarge’s outdoorsy tale concerns the last days of an archaeologist who returns to his favorite Four Corners dig to die. On the darker side, Wolfenbarger’smood piece explores the troubled psyche of a California poet who’s done too much dope and bedded too many women. Originally published in Ellery Queens Mystery Magazine (1983), “Cus­ ter’s Ghost” by Clark Howard is a great story idea marred by an unforgivably trite ending. Set in 1926, the 50th anniversary of Custer’s Last Stand, it fea­ tures yet another aging central character, this time a crippled Sioux warrior in search of life’smeaning and redemption. Looking to the 19th century, Ambrose Bierce’s “The Stranger” and Joaquin Miller’s “The Mountain-Mirage” are short, spooky tales that, to this Reviews 151 day, still read well and retain an uncommon eerieness. While Western Ghosts is probably not an essential purchase, it did have its moments and pleasures for this reader. Part of the American Ghosts Series, Western Ghosts has four sister anthologies—Ghosts of the Heartland, Dixie Ghosts, Eastern Ghosts, and New England Ghosts. JAMES B. HEMESATH Adams State College “The Grapes of Wrath”: A Fifty Year Bibliographic Survey. Compiled by Robert B. Harmon, with John F. Early. Introduction by Susan Shillinglaw. (San Jose, California: Steinbeck Research Center, San Jose State University, 1990. 325 pages, $15.00.) “The Grapes of Wrath, A Special Issue.” San Jose Studies, 16 (Winter 1990), $ 10.00. Golden anniversaries are rare these days, and when they occur they deserve a special celebration. These two works are part of such a celebration, that of the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath. Robert Harmon’s bibliography is the first to focus exclusively on this novel. Entries are subdivided into sections dealing with critical analyses of the text, stage adaptations, the film production, and audio-visual materials, among others. Entries are briefly annotated, and each is indexed by name, subject, and title. Photographs by Dorothea Lange and illustrations, including the original movie poster, are scattered throughout the text. The special issue of San ]ose Studies grew from a conference held at San Jose State University in 1989. The strong point of...