Carl Webster, the gunslinging U.S. Marshal from "The Hot Kid" and "Up in Honey's Room," serves as the centerpiece of two stories and one novella, in this never-before-published-in-the-U.S. collection from the inimitable Elmore Leonard.

the “other stories” are lifted straight from the other carl webster books so i’m glad this was a library book and not a purchase. but the title novella was really good as a bridge of sorts between the other two webster novels. ( )

The two short stories and novella that comprise this book, all starring US Marshall Carl Webster, have appeared elsewhere before. According to Leonard's site (elmoreleonard.com), "the two [short] stories, 'Louly and Pretty Boy' and 'Showdown at Chechotah' ...appear pretty much verbatim in 'The Hot Kid.' (The bad guy's name is different.)" The novella, "Comfort to the Enemy," was serialized in the New York Times Sunday Magazine in 2005.

But that takes nothing away from the stories. They are vintage Leonard. I have always liked the Webster stories, as I feel like they are a link between Leonard's modern crime stories and his earlier Western novels. The stories in this book are fun and display Leonard's trademark humor and perfect ear for dialogue. ( )

Leonard left us with three books about the greatest United States Marshal, "The Hot Kid, Carl Webster. These tales take us back to the era of Bonnie and Clyde and Pretty Boy Floyd. It's the depression and the war years and out in the wild lands of Oklahoma, there's a kid grown up who believes in tracking down his man and bringing them to justice. He's also a helluva quick draw.
The first two stories are reprised from "The Hot Kid," and tell the story of a young Carl Webster, all of fifteen years and just popping into the pharmacy for an ice cream only to encounter a bank robber. Years later, Carl brings that very same man to justice.

Another tale is about Louly, whose cousin married Pretty Boy Floyd. Ensnared by his charm, she starts a letter writing campaign to his prison and ends up penpals with another inmate. She becomes a gun moll, robbing people who haven't got much to begin with ending up with Carl on their trail.
The final novelette here is about a POW camp in Oklahoma housing German prisoners captured in the North African campaign. This story firmly plants Carl and Louly in the wartime era and drags together a lot of elements from other Carl Webster stories.

All of these stories have a firm sense of time and place. You really feel as if you've taken a time machine back to that period. ( )

Leonard left us with three books about the greatest United States Marshal, "The Hot Kid, Carl Webster. These tales take us back to the era of Bonnie and Clyde and Pretty Boy Floyd. It's the depression and the war years and out in the wild lands of Oklahoma, there's a kid grown up who believes in tracking down his man and bringing them to justice. He's also a helluva quick draw.

The first two stories are reprised from "The Hot Kid," and tell the story of a young Carl Webster, all of fifteen years and just popping into the pharmacy for an ice cream only to encounter a bank robber. Years later, Carl brings that very same man to justice.

Another tale is about Louly, whose cousin married Pretty Boy Floyd. Ensnared by his charm, she starts a letter writing campaign to his prison and ends up penpals with another inmate. She becomes a gun moll, robbing people who haven't got much to begin with ending up with Carl on their trail.

The final novelette here is about a POW camp in Oklahoma housing German prisoners captured in the North African campaign. This story firmly plants Carl and Louly in the wartime era and drags together a lot of elements from other Carl Webster stories.

All of these stories have a firm sense of time and place. You really feel as if you've taken a time machine back to that period. ( )