Paperbacks from Hell

TL;DR

Horror novelist Grady Hendrix catalogs the explosion of pulp horror paperbacks that flooded bookstores in the 1970s and 80s — killer animals, evil children, haunted appliances, and every other gleefully overcooked subgenre publishers tried once The Exorcist proved horror could sell. Paperbacks from Hell is affectionate, funny, and gorgeously illustrated criticism that treats its trashy subject with real scholarly care.

What Is Paperbacks from Hell About?

Hendrix traces the horror paperback boom that followed the success of Rosemary's Baby and The Exorcist, organizing hundreds of long-forgotten (and some deservedly forgotten) novels into thematic chapters covering the era's recurring obsessions: Nazi leprechauns, killer crabs, haunted condominiums, and a seemingly bottomless appetite for "evil children" novels. Reproduced in full color throughout are the era's iconic, often gloriously deranged cover art, which Hendrix treats as seriously as the prose itself.

Who Should Read It?

This is essential reading for horror fans curious about the genre's publishing history, especially readers who already have some nostalgic or ironic affection for pulp horror's more excessive corners. It works equally well as a book to read cover to cover or to dip into by chapter.

Strengths

The book functions as much as an art book as a critical history — the hundreds of reproduced paperback covers do as much storytelling as Hendrix's prose, and together they make the era's sheer creative excess viscerally clear in a way text alone couldn't. Hendrix's voice threads a difficult needle: genuinely funny about the genre's worst impulses while never condescending to the writers and artists who built it.

Weaknesses

With hundreds of books to cover, most individual titles get only a paragraph or two, which means readers wanting deep analysis of any single novel will need to look elsewhere. Newcomers with no existing affection for pulp horror may find the tone's affectionate mockery lands better if you already love (or love to hate) the material being covered.

Verdict

Paperbacks from Hell is a rare nonfiction book about a genre that's exactly as fun to flip through as it is to read start to finish.