‘The Camp-Fire: The Complete Correspondence From the Pages of Adventure, 1918-1920’

A different kind of reprint came out from Steeger Books recently: The Camp-Fire: The Complete Correspondence From the Pages of ‘Adventure,’ 1918-1920.

This large hardback book reprints all “The Camp-Fire”, the letters section that ran in Adventure for the years of 1918-20. Adventure was one of the top pulps under the editorship of Arthur Sullivant Hoffman, and this may have been due in part to this unique letter column that he developed there.

Noted as “a free-to-all meeting-place for readers writers and adventures,” in many ways, “The Camp-Fire” was the social media of the magazine, as it was used not just for readers to comment on stories, but to provide news and updates for the reader, allow for questions and comments from letters, allow authors to both introduce themselves as well as provide more information on their stories, and more.

All the pulps had some kind of letter column, and some had more unique ones. But unless you get the original pulp (or a facsimile), you won’t get a chance to see what they had to offer.

Seldom has material from “The Camp-Fire” been reprinted. I know the Harold Lamb collections put out by the University of Nebraska Press did include his contributions there, but not aware of any other such reprints.

So what we get here are 70 of “The Camp-Fire”, the complete set from the years 1918 through 1920, when the magazine was being published twice a year. We also get an excellent intro by Thomas Krabacher, which gives a good overview of the pulp and its development up until that time, and the innovations Hoffman was putting into place. Each section runs several pages, usually around seven to eight. We get scans direct from the pulps, so nothing has been reset.

Some of the sections had artwork, which is also included. There are several cartoons. In one, we get a drawing of a saddle with all the parts noted. In the Aug. 3, 1919, section, we are introduced to a coat of arms for Adventure. It would be interesting to see someone do this up as a sticker or the like.

In addition to reader’s letters, we get poems, chanties, and a wide range of information and news. There are several author introductions, and as noted, some authors provide additional information on their stories, which has seldom been reprinted.

While there is an index of the author intros, there is no general index of everything. It would probably be a daunting task to create. One could read this by starting at the beginning and working your way through, or jumping around. I’ve had an enjoyable time just jumping around.

Will there be a second or third volume? I have no idea. I guess if this one sells well enough, maybe a second. If you are a fan of Adventure or adventure pulp fiction, do check this one out.