American Fiction Library

University of Denver Press (Denver, Colorado, USA)
Series dates: 1942
Size: 7.5″ x 5″ and 8″ x 5.5″

The University of Denver Press, now defunct, at one time had nearly 400 titles in its catalog. Their American Fiction Library series, however, is among the least ambitious series ever – with only two titles, both issued in 1942:

*Janet Lewis’ The Invasion
**Frank Waters’ The Man Who Killed Deer

*Reprinted, with series name, by Alan Swallow (Denver), in 1964 and 1973.
**Reprinted, with series name, by Sage Books, Chicago, in 1958 and 1971.

The books are large (in two different sizes), and both are from UDP’s back catalog. Published immediately before WW2, it’s possible that the war interrupted plans for the series.

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The jackets are unique to each of the two titles, with a description of the book on the front flap and quotes from reviews on the back flap.

Review quotes for the first book in the series, Janet Lewis’ The Invasion:

amer_fict_lib_dj2_reviews

The second book in the series is Frank Waters’ The Man Who Killed Deer:

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The series’ list (of two) books is included on the page facing the title page. It also mentions their American Biographical Library with its single title. It seems as if the plan was to have a general American Library with a fiction and biography section.

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