Rooted in the rich tradition of Southwestern humor, the Breckinridge Elkins stories are told in a voice as big, boisterous, and unforgettable as their hero. This is storytelling steeped in colorful vernacular, extravagant similes, and gleeful exaggeration - tall tales grounded in concrete detail and common experience, where every punchline lands with frontier force.
In Tall Tales of the Southwest (1930), folklorist Franklin Meine identified the recurring themes that defined this uniquely American style of humor. Robert E. Howard's Breckinridge Elkins adventures stride confidently through many of them: rambunctious courtships, political misadventures, hunting exploits, oddball personalities, perilous travels, dubious frontier medicine, gambling, and - most reliably - spectacular fights.
Nearly every Breck yarn barrels headlong into one or more of these classic subjects, delivering stories that are as riotously funny today as they were in Howard's time. Loud, fearless, and blissfully unaware of his own strength, Breckinridge Elkins stands as one of the great comic creations of the American frontier - proof that nobody ever told a tall tale quite like Robert E. Howard.
Explore the boundless imagination of Robert E. Howard in this first volume of the complete collection of his Breckinridge Elkins stories. Featuring alternate versions, drafts, and fragments, this Ultimate Edition offers a rare glimpse into the creative process of the legendary author. A must-have for fans of Howard's tales.
