Some early editions of Clive Barker's The Books of Meat contained bits of hamburger sewn into the binding, to provide that essential perfume of rotting flesh. Although public outcry quickly caused the publisher to release a less odorous edition, the experiment soon spawned a host of more acceptably-scented volumes (the "Musk" series of romance novels proved especially popular), and the malodorous first edition of The Books of Meat still enjoys a certain cachet among dedicated collectors of the genre.
"Passing in any crowd are secret people whose hidden response to beauty is the desire to tear it into bleeding meat."
--James Tiptree, Jr. (Alice B. Sheldon)
©1997, 2001 Alan P. Scott. All rights reserved.
Last updated May 20, 2001.
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