Avon Fantasy Reader No. 17
Edited by Donald A. Wollheim
Avon Novels, Inc.
1st Printing
As the editor of the series, it was up to Wollheim to attempt to select material that would not only attract new readers, but that would, hopefully bring in older readers who would recognize the names of authors displayed on the cover. Case in point: Nictzin Dyalhis.
Having one of the oddest names to grace a pulp, Dyalhis, was originally from Scotland and spent much of his life in the Orient. His stories were quite popular with the readers of Weird Tales, yet today, his work is almost totally forgotten. To readers in the 50s, however, Dyalhis would have been a name that many might have remembered fondly and "The Sapphire Siren" was popular enough that it even spawned a sequel.
The rest of this issue is the mix of old and new. G. K. Chesterton and William Hope Hodgson share page space with Wallace West and Anthony Boucher. A dash of Ray bradbury is thrown in for good measure. There is also a collaboration between Lovecraft and E. Hoffmann Price, entitled " Through the Gates of the Silver Key," that dates from 1934 and is a part of the Cthulhu Mythos.