The Ape Man's Brother -- Joe R. Lansdale

Take a bit of Burroughs, toss in a dash of Philip Jose Farmer and a smidge of P. K. Dick, then add a whole lot of Lansdale.  Stir well. The result is The Ape Man's Brother.  

In an alternative world, an Ape Man and his "brother" (Bill, a superior form of australopithecus or something along those lines) are taken from their lost world by way of a zeppelin.  The Ape Man is quite willing to go, thanks to the fact that he's met The Woman, who's a passenger on the zeppelin.  Well, "met" isn't adequate to describe their first encounter, but this is, after all, a family blog.   

The adventures of Bill, the Ape Man, and The Woman when the reach New York are chronicled by Bill (nice name), the brother, and they're sometimes ribald (and even vulgar), often hilarious, occasionally touching, and always entertaining.  The story is also a meditation on civilization and what it means to be civilized.  You get an idea of what the novella's leading up to from the cover.

This novella was written in response to Joe's challenge at an Armadillocon a few years back.  Some panelists and the audience were challenged to write a story based on this pulp cover.  I wrote two stories.  One story is in the current issue of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine.  The other is available here, and you can't go wrong at the price.  You can't go wrong with Lansdale's novella, either.