Pulping Up George Orwell’s Burmese Days

Paula Rabinowitz’s American Pulp: How Paperbacks Brought Modernism to Main Street is a fascinating read for all those who like their pulp fiction. One interesting aspect she covers in the book is the “pulping” of various classics to make them appear sexier, more titillating and interesting to pulp readers who might not normally buy them. One example is the 1952 Popular Library’s edition of George Orwell’s 1934 Burmese Days, the tales of his time as a colonial policeman upcountry in Burma….not sure what exactly anyone buying the book on the strength of the cover art would have made of it though!!…..