Aaron's Book of the Week :: Anarchaos by Curt Clark (Donald Westlake)

Continuing our tribute to Donald Westlake, the Book of the Week is the paperback original edition of Anarchaos (cover art by "Lynch"), a science fiction novel published in 1967 as by Curt Clark, a pseudonym used by Westlake on much of his science fiction.

Like many mystery writers, Westlake dabbled in science fiction, usually SF with some mystery elements. Probably his best SF is contained in the collection Tomorrow's Crimes, published under Westlake's real name, but Anarchaos is a more fun collector's item, because of the obscure Curt Clark pseudonym, which did not appear on any other Westlake book. And if you're wondering whether Westlake ever regretted his forays into pulp science fiction, wait until you see the pseudonym he used for a far more embarrassing genre next week.

Incidentally, that will be our third different Donald Westlake pseudonym, but there are at least eight other known Westlake pen-names that I don't have in my collection. But don't worry, I am holding in reserve for some future BOTW's a marathon of other books in my collection under different pseudonyms all written by a single, now very famous, author.