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Dope Menace: The Sensational World of Drug Paperbacks, 1900-1975
"Dope Menace boasts hundreds of full color images from the wicked subgenre of drug-exploitation narratives... The covers that made these authors books so easy to pick up are collected here for the first time, in all their seductive and transgressive glory."--Tucson Weekly
While we now enjoy this exploitative genre for its campy kitsch, gloriously bad writing, and outlandish misinformation, drug paperback books were once a transgressive medium with a perversely seductive quality.
Dope Menace collects together hundreds of fabulously lurid and collectible covers in color, from xenophobic turn-of-the century tomes about the opium trade to the beatnik glories of reefer smoking and William S. Burroughs’ Junkie to the spaced-out psychedelic ’60s. We mustn’t forget the gonzo paranoia brought on by Hunter S. Thompson in the ’70s, when anything was everything.
Author Stephen J. Gertz is a well-regarded authority on antiquarian books and contributor to Feral House’s Sin-A-Rama, an award-winning visual history of sleaze paperbacks from the sixties.
Annie Nocenti, longtime editor of High Times magazine, offers an informative foreword.
While we now enjoy this exploitative genre for its campy kitsch, gloriously bad writing, and outlandish misinformation, drug paperback books were once a transgressive medium with a perversely seductive quality.
Dope Menace collects together hundreds of fabulously lurid and collectible covers in color, from xenophobic turn-of-the century tomes about the opium trade to the beatnik glories of reefer smoking and William S. Burroughs’ Junkie to the spaced-out psychedelic ’60s. We mustn’t forget the gonzo paranoia brought on by Hunter S. Thompson in the ’70s, when anything was everything.
Author Stephen J. Gertz is a well-regarded authority on antiquarian books and contributor to Feral House’s Sin-A-Rama, an award-winning visual history of sleaze paperbacks from the sixties.
Annie Nocenti, longtime editor of High Times magazine, offers an informative foreword.
- GenresArt
250 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 13, 2023
06/2014
This is a book about drug paperbacks from, roughly, the 1920s through the 1960s. It's a book I had mostly for all the hilarious covers (almost all featuring semi naked women). Only now did I decide to read the history, and the mid 20th century paperback market continues to fascinate me. I love genres and it thrills me to know there's one called "drug-porn."
This is a book about drug paperbacks from, roughly, the 1920s through the 1960s. It's a book I had mostly for all the hilarious covers (almost all featuring semi naked women). Only now did I decide to read the history, and the mid 20th century paperback market continues to fascinate me. I love genres and it thrills me to know there's one called "drug-porn."
March 18, 2019
Another fine Feral House book. Great company whose publications shine a light on all the dark crevices of society.
April 19, 2019
A nice selection of book covers. The essay is short (60 pages of the 250, and those interrupted by lots of pictures), and then there are tons of pictures of books. The essay does a competent job, not a lot of insight but does put things into perspective. I did find it interesting to see the later book covers using photos. Get it to see the old covers. Gertz writes just enough to give you a background. I would have like a little more, especially on the whole beatnik/jazz/drugs combination, but alas, there's nothing there.
December 9, 2023
A terrific look at the way the (very) popular press framed the discussion about drugs in the 20th century--all with the allure of illicit sex and an underlay of fear. Judging from the dazzling photos of cover art, a lifetime of book collecting went into acquiring the pristine copies shown here. These books may tell us more about ourselves than the latest best seller list crammed with celebrity/political bios, lightweight fiction, and other junk.
December 15, 2024
Awesome library find that compiles old drug paperback covers along with a long essay for history and context. Although not the point of the book it’s funny how every generation gets older and knows the following one is a mess and “things used to be different.”
“The Reluctant Stud” is a hilarious book title and showed me how funny the word reluctant is to add to nearly any sentence.
“The Reluctant Stud” is a hilarious book title and showed me how funny the word reluctant is to add to nearly any sentence.
April 13, 2011
Extremely good fun! The writer was a bit undependable (funny in some places, goofy in others), but then I guess that goes with the territory.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews