Two formerly out-of-print novels in Ms. Settle's "Beulah Quintet," an intergenerational series, are also newly available as part of the Mary Lee Settle Collection from the University of South Carolina Press.

Also carried are books on the humanities and sciences, out-of-print novels, books on philosophy, theater, film, psychology, imports from Britain and travel books.

Mr. Alton explained that it was often easier to track down out-of-print novels than niche-market books like "Confetti," which might have had a smaller publication run.

Now "Doc," a documentary by an Oscar-nominated filmmaker (one of Mr. Humes's daughters) and fresh awareness among several publishers is raising hopes that Mr. Humes's long out-of-print novels will finally resurface.

He cited the example of Paula Fox, a novelist who had six out-of-print novels when Jonathan Franzen, the author of "The Corrections," cited her work in an essay in Harpers Magazine.

Arkansas has also resurrected two out-of-print novels by John E. Williams, "Stoner" and "Butcher's Crossing."

A consummate bookworm with an inexhaustible curiosity, Mr. Cirker built Dover into a paperback powerhouse by delving deep into the public domain and reprinting thousands of out-of-print novels, illustrations, manuals and scientific texts.

"One is an out-of-print novel and one a current novel," Ms. Rosenthal said.

On February 16, 2011, Faust announced on his blog that he had created a publishing company called Thief Media as an organ to distribute his out-of-print novels in ebook formats.

Then in 1984 Tor picked up most of my out-of-print novels, Hasan included, for republication un der its imprint.