On an Odd Note

On an Odd Note is a collection of short stories written by Gerald Kersh, published as a paperback original by Ballantine Books in 1958. No other editions were issued until 2015, when Valancourt Books brought out a new edition with an introduction by Nick Mamatas.

"Seed of Destruction"
"Frozen Beauty" John Bull 1941)
"Reflections in a Tablespoon"
"The Crewel Needle" Lilliput 1953)
"The Sympathetic Souse"
"The Queen of Pig Island The Strand 1949)
"Prophet Without Honor"
"The Beggars’ Stone"
"The Brighton Monster" The Saturday Evening Post 1948)
"The Extraordinarily Horrible Dummy
"Fantasy of a Hunted Man"
"The Gentleman All in Black"
"The Eye

"Frozen Beauty", "Fantasy of a Hunted Man" and "The Gentleman All in Black" originally appeared under the "Waldo Keller" byline. "The Beggars' Stone" was originally published as "The Stone". "The Brighton Monster" was originally published as "The Monster". "The Eye" was originally published as "The Murderer's Eye".

Reception

Anthony Boucher, despite faulting the story selection as a chaotic mix of genres, noted that the book "is unified by the ever-captivating Kersh personality." Boucher concluded that while "Mr. Kersh can write a trite or inept story,... he is incapable of writing a dull sentence."
Everett F. Bleiler found On an Odd Note to be "a collection of Kersh's more important fantastic stories.... Good narratives, with unusual detail."

On an Odd Note

Contents

Reception