Book Hauls!

[SevenStars]

Savouring Stephen King's Doctor Sleep at the minute and loving it! Has anyone else read it, what do you think?

 

[Rodders]

Star Wars Frames (the cheap one)

 

[AE35Unit]

Got this from bookmooch today. Part of our college resource is centred around the art deco era and Ive read his Crome Yellow in the past.
Free books yay

 

[AE35Unit]

And today I got this for free

 

[dask]

Finally found a copy I'm happy with:


Nothing is said about whether it's an abridged edition or not but at 342 pages of which only four are taken up with an introduction by Mary MacEwen I'm hopeful it's a complete one. The green sticker says forty-nine cents but since all books are half price today at the Salvation Army it only cost me a quarter.

Also got LONG, LONG AGO by Alexander Woollcott, a 1943 hardback with no dust jacket of what looks like a collection of non-fiction. Woollcott has a story in THE POCKET BOOK OF GHOST STORIES so I thought this might be worthwhile investment at $1.50 with the 50% discount.

 

[Extollager]

Nothing is said about whether it's an abridged edition or not but at 342 pages of which only four are taken up with an introduction by Mary MacEwen I'm hopeful it's a complete one.

The House of the Seven Gables is not a long novel, and I would think that at that time Scholastic would've indicated if the book were abridged, so I'm betting you have a complete text.

I've read House twice and like it. It is largely a matter of word-picture and reverie, not event. I'm tempted to say that only one of the classic old foreign movie directors could have filmed it. It's about as far from Hollywood as anything could be. Cauliflower, algebra, brass coffee pots and Siamese cats are more like Hollywood movies than The House of the Seven Gables is.

 

[j d worthington]

As said, most likely it is a complete edition. Scholastic (as I recall) tended to be quite good about indicating if something had been abridged, and this really isn't a very long novel (none of Hawthorne's really are -- he was much more comfortable, I think, with the shorter forms) but if you've not read it before, you're in for a wonderful experience.

I would also suggest, after reading it, you look up the passage in HPL's "Supernatural Horror in Literature" dealing with this novel, and see what you think.....

 

[dask]

I would also suggest, after reading it, you look up the passage in HPL's "Supernatural Horror in Literature" dealing with this novel, and see what you think.....

I will do that, but where is this essay usually or most likely to be found? I must have close to ten HPL collections none of them contain it.

 

[j d worthington]

I will do that, but where is this essay usually or most likely to be found? I must have close to ten HPL collections none of them contain it.

It can be found in the Arkham House editions of Dagon and Other Macabre Tales, and also in the Barnes & Noble Lovecraft: The Complete Fiction. There are also some anthologies which have included it, as the anthologies themselves cull from the essay for "Lovecraft's Favorite Horror Stories" or "Favorite Weird Tales", etc. There are also a number of other places where you can find it in print.

Or... you can go to the H. P. Lovecraft Archive and read a corrected text there:

"Supernatural Horror in Literature" by H. P. Lovecraft

The passage on Hawthorne is in the opening part of Chapter VIII, "The Weird Tradition in America". However, if you've not read the essay itself before, you might find the entirety of it of some interest. It has been called (rightly, I think) perhaps the best historical essay of the field ever written; certainly up to HPL's time. (Most of those which were written to that point dealt with the origins of the weird or terror tale, taking it only through the age of the Gothic novels. Some fine essays -- and some not so fine -- but a good bit more limited than the scope of HPL's piece.)

 

[dask]

Many thanks for the link. I've added to favorites for easy access. I'm going to try to find in paper, however, as that's the way I prefer to read text of any substantial or significant length. Until I do I'll peck away at it a little at a time whenever I'm crusin' through the ihood.

 

[dask]

J.D., is this worth getting?

 

[j d worthington]

I don't actually know about that one. Schweitzer has certainly earned a place in Lovecraftian criticism (though his early The Dream-Quest of H. P. Lovecraft was a less than sterling performance), but I've no idea what his introduction here is like, nor whether the text is the most accurate or not (though I imagine he is using such).

To be honest, though, the number of essays seems rather scanty to me, and I think I'd be inclined to look for either an edition of this essay by itself for less (used, say), or for something such as the Hippocampus Press Collected Essays, Volume 2: Literary Criticism, which goes for a bit more, but has all HPL's formal essays on the subject, plus some helpful footnotes.

There is also The Annotated Supernatural Horror in Literature, which has been revised and expanded a while back -- extensive notes and an informative bibliography by Joshi, including information on various editions of the works discussed in the essay itself.

For the time being, if you're simply interested in reading this essay alone, you might look up a used copy of the Dover edition, edited by E. F. Bleiler:

Supernatural Horror in Literature: Howard Phillips Lovecraft, Everett F. Bleiler: 9780486201054: Amazon.com: Books

Not the very best edition, but certainly serviceable, and Bleiler's introduction is, though brief, rather good....

 

[dask]

There is also The Annotated Supernatural Horror in Literature, which has been revised and expanded a while back -- extensive notes and an informative bibliography by Joshi, including information on various editions of the works discussed in the essay itself.

For the time being, if you're simply interested in reading this essay alone, you might look up a used copy of the Dover edition, edited by E. F. Bleiler.

Joshi's Annotated edition is fairly recent, being released only last year so should be available through my local bookstore, and seems affordable in the 12-15 dollar region. Think I know what I'll give myself for Christmas this year unless I come across a second hand Bleiler first.

 

[Rodders]

I've recently started collecting the Babylon 5 books from "B5 Books" and have just taken delivery of Asked and Answered volumes 1, 2 and 3.

 

[Hari Seldon]

Just got the last three Gemmell Rigante books at a thrift shop.

Slowly trying to rebuild my collection after losing a lot of books do to a hurricane here in New York last year. Been scouring thrift shops and Salvation Armies. It is time consuming but so rewarding when I find some great titles or even better, a hidden gem.

 

[dask]

Guess what?

Seemed like a great deal and since the affordable care act won't break me until January now seemed like a great time.

 

[BetaWolf]

I've been lucky lately. Terry Pratchett, Discworld #1 and #2 bought online. The Colour of Magic copy that was sent to me ended up being a hardcover first US edition with the dustjacket still in very good shape. EEP!

Wild Cards #1, edited by GRRM, in hardcover, first edition, no dustjacket. Going to be fun to read I think.

Jim Butcher, the Dresden Files, #6 and #7, paperback, gently(?) used.

I also have Stirling's Dies the Fire in the mail. So plenty to read over the next few months.

 

[dask]

I didn't get this strictly for the cover but the fact the cover illustration is by sf great Richard Powers is an undeniable bonus.

 

[J-Sun]

Seemed like a great deal and since the affordable care act won't break me until January now seemed like a great time.

If you mind, that's fine but, if you don't mind my asking, how much/what condition was your copy?

 

[dask]

If you mind, that's fine but, if you don't mind my asking, how much/what condition was your copy?

If this were a comic, without being an expert but leaning heavily on Overstreet, I'd rate this a good solid fine or fine-. Shows it age but hasn't been beaten or battered around. Of course the ripped off price sticker at the top might reduce it to good or very good. I found it at Value Village for ninety-nine cents.