Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Publication
Del Rey (1987), Edition: 1st, 375 pages
Description
"H.P. Lovecraft has yet to be surpassed as the twentieth century's greatest practitioner of the classic horror tale."--Stephen King "The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown."--H.P. Lovecraft This is the collection that true fans of horror fiction must have: sixteen of H.P. Lovecraft's most horrifying visions, including: The Call of Cthulu: The first story in the infamous Cthulhu mythos--a creature spawned in the stars brings a menace of unimaginable evil to threaten all mankind. The Dunwich Horror: An evil man's desire to perform an unspeakable ritual leads him in search of the fabled text of The Necronomicon. The Colour Out of Space: A horror from the skies--far worse than any nuclear fallout--transforms a man into a monster. The Shadow Over Innsmouth: Rising from the depths of the sea, an unspeakable horror engulfs a quiet New England town. Plus twelve more terrifying tales!… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member jseger9000
I admire Lovecraft for what he contributed to the horror genre more than I actually like to read his stuff.
This book is missing my favorite of his stories: At the Mountains of Madness, but for a novice, it's a good intro and will show you both what's good and bad about his writing.
This book is missing my favorite of his stories: At the Mountains of Madness, but for a novice, it's a good intro and will show you both what's good and bad about his writing.
LibraryThing member storyjunkie
I enjoyed this collection, despite some qualms about certain depictions. I knew going in that non-white ethnicities and women would not be represented well, when they would be represented at all. We are talking semi-canonized literature from the beginning of the 20th century - and such flaws are a
The craftsmanship is good: the language and the handling of tension better than I thought it would be. There's a deftness of prose that sometimes borders on too spare, but I can't tell if the moments of shock that I'm not feeling are because I'm jaded or if Lovecraft actually missed the note (to use a musical analogy).
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staple of what was considered for canonization for a long time.The craftsmanship is good: the language and the handling of tension better than I thought it would be. There's a deftness of prose that sometimes borders on too spare, but I can't tell if the moments of shock that I'm not feeling are because I'm jaded or if Lovecraft actually missed the note (to use a musical analogy).
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LibraryThing member tairngire
Lovecraft is the guilty pleasure B-movies of literature. The stories are so intense, so ridiculously over the top, brimming with archaic words and American macabre.
LibraryThing member MikeLancaster
I am one of those people who finds Lovecraft's tale incredibly rewarding.
I loved them when I was a kid, but I've ended up loving them more now I'm not.
His narrative vision was -quite simply- astonishing. His often sublime creations prise him head and shoulders above many other practitioners of the
I know there is a lot to wince at in the canon: the inbred country-folk degenerating into savages, or worse; the often jaw-dropping racism that -although tempered in his later works- still provides the reader with an uncomfortable aftertaste; the uneven pace of some of the tales; the stubborn overuse of words like 'gibbous' and 'eldritch'.
But somehow Lovecraft's stories manage to transcend their myriad flaws and give us a science-horror that is breathtaking in its scope and depth.
You might think that they would have to be truly brilliant to overcome those flaws.
And they are.
I loved them when I was a kid, but I've ended up loving them more now I'm not.
His narrative vision was -quite simply- astonishing. His often sublime creations prise him head and shoulders above many other practitioners of the
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weird tale, and the influences of Poe, Dunsany and Machen -although vast- are secondary to the wonderful instinct he had for how much to show and how little to reveal. As a result, the stories ask a reader to imagine along with Lovecraft; to piece together the jigsaw pieces of cosmic horror sometimes from scant hints and thin, but evocative, descriptions. I know there is a lot to wince at in the canon: the inbred country-folk degenerating into savages, or worse; the often jaw-dropping racism that -although tempered in his later works- still provides the reader with an uncomfortable aftertaste; the uneven pace of some of the tales; the stubborn overuse of words like 'gibbous' and 'eldritch'.
But somehow Lovecraft's stories manage to transcend their myriad flaws and give us a science-horror that is breathtaking in its scope and depth.
You might think that they would have to be truly brilliant to overcome those flaws.
And they are.
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LibraryThing member SlySionnach
If how I love an author is based upon how fast I buy more books by them, Lovecraft may win. Before I was finished with this book, I went out and bought two more of his anthologies, and moved seamlessly from finishing this one and starting the next in the space of a train ride.
I've been told to
I kicked and screamed when I had to rise for air.
From story to story, the rough beginning of reading the older writing style became easier and soon the little voice in my head that does my reading even deciphered the phonetic spelling with an accent of its own. I adored every creature I read about from the Mi-Go to the Elder Ones, and I yearned to hear more about the forbidden shoggoth while fearing them at the same time. Though Lovecraft's characters never disclose just what the creatures look like, we certainly know that they're dreadful.
What I also enjoyed is how big a role science plays into his stories. It's all physics and traveling through space on bat-like wings and visiting lands beyond the stars.While I abhor learning physics, I'll never hate reading about how we can twist it into helping us find the world of Yuggoth (which has recently been demoted, and I wonder how the Mi-Go feel about this...)
I recommend this collection to anyone who wants to see how Lovecraft influenced the horror masters of today. Or anyone wants to read a weird tale.
I've been told to
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read Lovecraft by just about everyone I know who knows what I like to read. Finally convinced, I picked up the only book I had (because reading the "Best Of" seems like a good place to start) and dove in.I kicked and screamed when I had to rise for air.
From story to story, the rough beginning of reading the older writing style became easier and soon the little voice in my head that does my reading even deciphered the phonetic spelling with an accent of its own. I adored every creature I read about from the Mi-Go to the Elder Ones, and I yearned to hear more about the forbidden shoggoth while fearing them at the same time. Though Lovecraft's characters never disclose just what the creatures look like, we certainly know that they're dreadful.
What I also enjoyed is how big a role science plays into his stories. It's all physics and traveling through space on bat-like wings and visiting lands beyond the stars.While I abhor learning physics, I'll never hate reading about how we can twist it into helping us find the world of Yuggoth (which has recently been demoted, and I wonder how the Mi-Go feel about this...)
I recommend this collection to anyone who wants to see how Lovecraft influenced the horror masters of today. Or anyone wants to read a weird tale.
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LibraryThing member cyberlemur
Unique and vocabulary expanding, Lovecraft's verbal explanations of the unexplainable are always a joy.
LibraryThing member comfypants
"The Rats in the Walls" - It seems like Lovecraft's trying to scare you, but the best he can do is tell you the characters are scared and leave out as many details as possible. The style is like he's trying to imitate Poe, but instead of having a clever twist or psychological motivation, he just
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sort of says, "Here's some weird stuff. The end." Maybe I'll give one of his later stories a chance some other time. 2.5/5. 12-26-08. Show Less
LibraryThing member EvilJohn
An excellent collection of short horror stories.
LibraryThing member mikemillertime
This definiteive collection of Lovecraft's finest easily display how this author is undeservedly underrated and forgotten with his impact on the genres of horror and thriller. His stories may end too quickly and without resolution, he may occasionally suffer from a strange New England snobbishness
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(against the poor or minorities), but his works are completely original, inhabiting and inventing a strange milieu of alternate dimensions and paranomal sciences, well before any other thinker did. His stories are suberbly written, if not hyperbolic, but all part of the fun in this fantastic calvacade of supernatural and horrific gems. Show Less
LibraryThing member josh314
This is a great collection of tales from the master. My only quibble is that it is hard to imagine that "the best of HP Lovecraft" does not include At the Mountains of Madness. But one can tell that they were going for a collection of short fiction here while Mountains is a more of a novella and
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maybe Lovecraft's longest story. Still, I would call this the definitive anthology if not for that omission. Show Less
LibraryThing member traciolsen
I have never read the Cthulu story, and I always have to know all there is to know about an internet meme, now don't I? Fits well with my current phase of Geek Out. Cthulu may be less scary in small bits read while brushing my teeth, though.
LibraryThing member jcovington
A collection of his best short fiction. I am forced to confess, I don't really care for Call of Cthulu. Mountains of Madness is a must read though.
LibraryThing member Kplatypus
Lovecraft=a creepy good time. His stories are pretty much always entertaining, even when they become repetitive. Discover the origins of Cthullhu! And definitely check out my favorite story, "The Dreams in the Witch House."
LibraryThing member caanderson
The master tells six tales of horror with a big side of creepy. Each tale creepier than the last.
LibraryThing member SumisBooks
A wonderful compilation of his stories. This compilation includes such tales as The Call of Cthulhu, the Dunwich Horror and Shadow over Innsmouth. HP Lovecraft has a way of writing that in my personal opinion is damn near perfect. His sentence structure and word usage is on point in every
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paragraph. Absolutely fabulous writer and absolutely fabulous stories. I would recommend this to anyone! Show Less
LibraryThing member adamconnell
You can't understate Lovecraft's influence. This edition has an introduction by Robert Bloch. That introduction, titled "Heritage of Horror" had such an impact on me as a young writer that it cemented my goal to become a published author. The intro is more about horror than SF (my field) but it was
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stunning, life changing. Show Less
LibraryThing member JHemlock
Where Poe is dark and brooding, Lovecraft is Mad and brooding. This is the first of a three part anthology that digs into his work. From the Rats in the Walls to the Colour out of space we are constantly reminded of our feeble grasp on reality and our place in it. Our fear is brought to a cosmic
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level without a sign of redemption. Lovecraft will remind us that just because we give up and die here our pain will not end and we will suffer in a place far beyond what anyone knows. Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1963
Physical description
375 p.; 8.24 inches
ISBN
0345350804 / 9780345350800