Smonk (2006) Signed First Edition Reference

Smonk was published by William Morrow in 2006, Tom Franklin’s most tonally extreme novel — a darkly comic, ultraviolent picaresque set in 1911 Alabama. The title character, E.O. Smonk, is a one-eyed, syphilitic outlaw whose rampage through the fictional town of Old Texas creates a narrative that reads like a collaboration between Cormac McCarthy and the Coen brothers.

The Book

The novel is deliberately excessive — stacking violence upon violence, absurdity upon absurdity — in a way that either delights or repels readers. Franklin abandons the restraint of Hell at the Breech for a carnival of mayhem that includes dynamite, prostitution, vigilante justice, and apocalyptic destruction. The effect is more Flannery O’Connor than crime fiction, and the novel’s cult following appreciates its willingness to push Southern Gothic conventions to their logical extremes.

First Edition Identification

Publisher: William Morrow (HarperCollins), New York Publication date: 2006 Format: Hardcover in dust jacket

Signed Copy Market Values

• Signed first edition, fine/fine: $40–$100
• Inscribed copies: $60–$175
• Unsigned first edition: $8–$20

A cult novel with a devoted following. The most tonally distinctive book in Franklin’s bibliography.