There are even informative footnotes! (Were these present in the original magazine printings?) The story that Wellman tells is straightforward and brutal. I am surprised by many things in this story, foremost being Wellman's desire to be true to contemporary archeological findings about the period of history in which he has set his story. The first story introduces men, as in Homo Sapiens, and pits them against Neanderthals, here referred to as Gnorrls by the first men who meet them.

More in-depth reviews of the individual stories follow below.

After reading the Silver John stories, I shouldn't be surprised that Wellman can write about prehistory so well. He avoids the mistake of using words and expressions that tear the reader out of the period of time in which the story is set, and his depiction of a human mindset in prehistory is believable. The world that Wellman describes feels genuine: wild, expansive, and so far greater in breadth and scope than human beings can possibly know. The adventures that Wellman concocts are fun and exciting, taking Hok to distant lands and pitting him against other peoples and some strange and dangerous beasts. His hero Hok is reminiscent of Conan for his superior strength, wily stratagems, and undaunted courage.

I went into this anthology looking forward to prehistoric battles and adventures, and Wellman did not disappoint. Howard's Conan stories, his adventures compare favorably with the Tarzan tales. The Hok stories are solid entries in the pulp fantasy canon. It's a minor storytelling trick, but it adds mythic resonance. He alludes to the fact that Hok's mighty deeds are the origin of the Hercules myth by placing him in a desperate struggle with some primitive beast, and then pointing out through a footnote how, distorted and exaggerated by retelling, that battle came to be known as one of Hercules' Labors. Another fun twist is that Manly Wade Wellman subscribed to the belief that every fable has a hint of truth to it. Hok is repeatedly referred to as 'humanity's first hero', and the fact that everything he does is a first (building the first bow, inadvertently forging the first sword) adds to the excitement. Possessed of a more daring nature than his clan-mates, he ranges further than anyone, coming into contact with a variety of interesting peoples (frequently hostile Neanderthals, but also rival tribes and even Atlanteans) and prehistoric monsters. Hok is a Cro-Magnon, the strongest and cleverest of his kind. The premise of the Hok the Mighty stories is simple, yet compelling.

Manly wade wellman who fears the devil