The Jaguar Hunter Explained

The Jaguar Hunter
Author:Lucius Shepard
Illustrator:Jeffrey K. Potter
Cover Artist:Jeffrey K. Potter
Country:United States
Language:English
Publisher:Arkham House
Release Date:May 1987
Media Type:Print (hardback)
Pages:xii, 404
Isbn:0-87054-154-4
Dewey:813/.54 19
Congress:PS3569.H3939 J3 1987
Oclc:14212330

The Jaguar Hunter is a collection of science fiction, fantasy and horror stories by American author Lucius Shepard. Illustrated by J. K. Potter, it was released in May, 1987 and was the author's first book published by Arkham House. It was originally published in an edition of 3,194 copies, with a second printing later in 1987 of 1,508 copies. Bantam Books issued a trade paperback edition in 1989, and Four Walls Eight Windows reprinted the collection in 2001. The first British publication came as a Paladin Books trade paperback in 1988, followed quickly by a Kerosina Books hardcover. A Rumanian translation appeared in 2008.[1]

The Jaguar Hunter won the 1988 World Fantasy Award for best collection, as well as the Locus Award in the same category. Five of the stories were nominated for the Nebula Award, one winning the award; three of those were also nominated for the Hugo Award; and one nominated, for the Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Awards. Ten of the eleven stories placed in the annual Locus polls, eight reached the top ten, and two won Locus Awards.[2]

Contents

The precise contents of this collection vary from edition to edition. The Bantam reprint omits "R & R". The Paladin and Kerosina editions omit "R & R" and add three additional stories. The 2001 reissue adds one story to those found in the original edition.[4] [5]

Reception

Orson Scott Card gave the collection a highly favorable review, declaring that "Shepard is the best new short-fiction writer of the eighties" and "is capable of dazzling brilliance."[6]

Neil Barron described The Jaguar Hunter as "One of the finest collections of fantasy and science fiction published in the 1980s."[7]

Sources

. Sheldon Jaffery . The Arkham House Companion . Mercer Island, WA . Starmont House, Inc.. 140–141 . 1989 . 1-55742-005-X.

. Jack L. Chalker . Mark Owings . The Science-Fantasy Publishers: A Bibliographic History, 1923-1998 . Westminster, MD and Baltimore . Mirage Press, Ltd.. 56 . 1998.

. S.T. Joshi . Sixty Years of Arkham House: A History and Bibliography . Sauk City, WI . Arkham House. 156–157 . 1999 . 0-87054-176-5.

Notes and References

  1. http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?37110 ISFDB bibliography
  2. http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/NomLit120.html#4724 Locus Index to SF Awards
  3. http://www.locusmag.com/index/t140.htm#A8287 The Locus Index to Science Fiction: 1984-1998
  4. http://www.locusmag.com/index/b427.htm#A6273 The Locus Index to Science Fiction:1984-1998 Books, Listed by Author
  5. http://www.locusmag.com/index/yr2001/b44.htm#A1430 The Locus Index to Science Fiction: 2001
  6. http://www.hatrack.com/osc/reviews/f&sf/87-11.html "Books to Look For"
  7. Neil Barron, Anatomy of Wonder (5th edition), Libraries Unlimited, 2004, p.374.