The Complete Fiction of H. P. Lovecraft: 12 (Knickerbocker Classics)

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Over the last 20+ years I've read and re-read almost all of the short stories and novellas contained within, but it is quite nice to have them all compiled into one large volume, and I'm enjoying re-reading them yet again. All the legitimate criticisms notwithstanding, for me personally I give this five star-spawns of Cthulhu out of five. his "at the mountains of madness", origin of the shoggoths, centers around a geological impossibility (extremely high mountains in a low-deposition, high-erosion environment) read up on eolian processes. The Shunned House: Disappointing; long, dull, and without a good payoff. The only thing to fear is French itself.

One part of his writings though, that I didn't enjoy were many his dream cycle stories. Most of the time they seem to be nothing more than shot glimpses into a dream world narrating forgettable stories if stories at all. The longest of these works 'The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath' was one of the most tedious things I read in my life. The story was (apart from a few parts and the ending) boring, repetitive and forgettable and the work consisted mostly of descriptions of fabulous places with strange names that had no importance of the story. This is a short and fairly simple story that, while undeniably atmospheric, is also undeniably juvenile. It all builds toward a twist that is – these days at least – a bit overdone. Whereas many of these other stories are uniquely Lovecraftian, I found this one derivative.Old Bugs: An anti-dissolution (drinking and debauchery) cautionary tale written by a lifelong teetotaler for his young friend as a personal missive. It was as subtle as Reefer Madness.

If you’re academically inclined and want to hear the development of HPL as an author, this Chronological List can be an interesting way to approach the stories. Como curiosidad señalar que una de las cosas que más he disfrutado a medida que iba leyendo estos libros ha sido ir buceando en la biografía de Lovecraft, y ver como todos sus traumas, manías e ideas políticas y sociales influyeron en su obra y se manifiestan en la misma. Conocer todos esos detalles ha enriquecido mucho para mí la lectura. Y por supuesto me han permitido ahondar en una figura muy compleja, solo así se explica que ideara y pusiera sobre el papel lo que escribió. There's honestly so much more complexity to the Mythos than I ever expected and I love it so much! I can't wait to take a deeper dive into what other writers have added to the Mythos over the years.

SAMPLES

The Lurking Fear: Like Reanimator, written for serial publication in the same magazine, but this story is vastly superior and more to Lovecraft’s usual form. The Colour out of Space - this one blew me away, and possibly might be my favourite tale. Highly recommend. Lovecraft’s stories often remind me of how nudity was depicted in early film. It was never shown directly. The Hays code didn’t allow it. Instead, you might see a silhouette. Or a dress fall to the ground at the woman’s feet. Or there’d be a bannister in the way. Lovecraft likewise has this propensity to avoid actually describing his cosmic horrors. His characters will instead simply say, ‘I cannot describe it, for my very mind rebelled against grasping such a reality! Mouth and teeth and tentacles!’ or ‘I refuse to share this knowledge, for it will inspire madness in all who hear it.’ It is, frankly, annoying.