- Paperback: 400 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books; 1st Edition edition (27 Aug 2002)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0142180157
- ISBN-13: 978-0142180150
- Product Dimensions: 19.7 x 12.9 x 2.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 82,161 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
29 of 30 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Algernon Blackwood was the master of supernatural story writing. He wrote as if from actual experience and real belief. His descriptions convey feelings and images in a precise and poetic way so that his belief, for a while, becomes your belief too. The nine stories in this collection are:
1) 'Smith: An Episode in a Lodging-House'. A doctor recounts a strange and disturbing adventure he had as a student staying in lodgings.
2) 'The Willows'. Two men taking a canoeing holiday on the Danube, stop to camp for the night on a island where the willows are haunted by something huge and terrifying.
3) 'The Insanity of Jones'. A man takes revenge for outrages committed against him in a previous life.
4) 'Ancient Sorceries'. A man tries to resist being drawn in to the dark religion of a previous life.
5) 'The Man Who found Out'. A scientist who leads a secret, not-so-scientific life outside the lab, discovers something he would have preferred not to have known from some ancient tablets he shouldn't have read.
6) 'The Wendigo'. A party of hunters encounter an angry spirit of Native American legend haunting a Canadian forest.
7) 'The Glamour of the Snow'. A writer, staying at a ski resort in the Alps, is lured away from the warmth and safety of the village to the freezing regions above the tree line, by a cold entity known and feared by the locals.
8) 'The Man Whom Trees Loved'. An old couple retire to a house on the edge of the New Forest and the forest gradually takes possession of the man as the woman struggles to keep him.
9) 'Sand'. A man addicted to travel goes to Egypt hoping to get to know its real spirit and mysteries - and has a more sinister experience than he'd hoped for.
All excellent, interesting and imaginative tales. Highly recommended.
1) 'Smith: An Episode in a Lodging-House'. A doctor recounts a strange and disturbing adventure he had as a student staying in lodgings.
2) 'The Willows'. Two men taking a canoeing holiday on the Danube, stop to camp for the night on a island where the willows are haunted by something huge and terrifying.
3) 'The Insanity of Jones'. A man takes revenge for outrages committed against him in a previous life.
4) 'Ancient Sorceries'. A man tries to resist being drawn in to the dark religion of a previous life.
5) 'The Man Who found Out'. A scientist who leads a secret, not-so-scientific life outside the lab, discovers something he would have preferred not to have known from some ancient tablets he shouldn't have read.
6) 'The Wendigo'. A party of hunters encounter an angry spirit of Native American legend haunting a Canadian forest.
7) 'The Glamour of the Snow'. A writer, staying at a ski resort in the Alps, is lured away from the warmth and safety of the village to the freezing regions above the tree line, by a cold entity known and feared by the locals.
8) 'The Man Whom Trees Loved'. An old couple retire to a house on the edge of the New Forest and the forest gradually takes possession of the man as the woman struggles to keep him.
9) 'Sand'. A man addicted to travel goes to Egypt hoping to get to know its real spirit and mysteries - and has a more sinister experience than he'd hoped for.
All excellent, interesting and imaginative tales. Highly recommended.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
7 reviews
31 of 33 people found the following review helpful
The scariest of ghost story writers
9 Jan 2004
Format:Paperback
Algernon Blackwood really is the most frightening to me of all horror story writers. He has a way of capturing mood and setting that outdoes any of his many followers (among whom H. P. Lovecraft was proudly one of the most preeminent). The three most famous stories in this book--the title story, "The Wendigo," and, above all, "The Willows"--emblematize his skill. The title story is set in an ancient French town where the townspeople seem to have a peculiar habit of transforming into something else, and authentically captures the creepiness of medieval towns at night. Even more frightening is "The Wendigo": set in the North Woods, it realizes whatever fears you've ever had walking alone in the snowy woods. "The Willows" was Lovecraft's nomination for the finest horror story ever written, and it clearly may have inspired THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT. Two canoesmen traversing through the Middle European forests find themselves stranded on an island by unknown forces that won't let them leave. Part of the pleasure of Blackwood is that he never overdoes it: he has a marvelous light touch, and reads quite crisply at the level of the sentence.
20 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Superb Collection of Weird Tales
1 Oct 2002
Format:Paperback
These are profoundly unsettling stories that reveal the darker forces that co-exist in the world alongside mankind. These are literate and thoughtfully chilling tales, whereby Blackwood buildings a sense of unease and gradual terror through his careful and atmosphericly descriptive prose.
Although this anthology features a couple of obvious choices ("The Willows" and "The Wendigo"), the editor has also added a few of Blackwood's lesser known stories, which is the reason that this collection is requisite. As usual, S.T. Joshi has done a splendid job of offering thorough and insightful notes about each tale at the end of the collection. Highly-recommended.
37 of 47 people found the following review helpful
Some Good, some not
13 Mar 2004
Format:Paperback
I can't say that Algernon Blackwood is my favorite eerie writer. I prefer Lovecraft's neo-gnosticism to Blackwood's pagan naturalism. To each his own, I guess. Clearly, I am biased in favor of the former type of story over the latter, although there were many good stories.
So, with the standard disclaimers out of the way:
So, with the standard disclaimers out of the way:
"An Episode in a Lodging House" - very Lovecraftian feel, including mystic text for doing Terrible Things (publication date 1906 predates HPL)
"The Willows" - can't say that I got into the spirit of this one. It reminded me of pleasant camping trips and hikes, not anything awe- or terror- inspiring. Other people seem to like it though.
"The Insanity of Jones" - an interesting story about karma and supposed justice. I was curious to see whether the central character would choose vengeance or mercy.
"Ancient Sorceries" - this lengthy story about witchcraft and a town's dark history was a good read. I found the love interest to be creepy and added to the atmosphere.
"The Wendigo" - this was my favorite. The Wendigo was what I thought The Willows should have been. The isolation, the dark, unexplored corners of the North, the terrifying abduction, all came together to be really eerie.
"The Man whom the Trees Loved" - if pagans wrote evangelistic tracts, they would be this. I felt that the writer was trying to proselytize more than write a good story. It took up a large portion of the book as well. Caveat emptor...
"Sand" - good use of suspense, realms beyond knowing. This story and the Lodging House really show the source of many of Lovecraft's ideas (who was the inspiration for many other writers such as Robert Bloch and Stephen King, who influence us today).
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