There are passages in The Mountains of Madness that are some of the best I've ever read. Great stuff Michael! (now I have to go find Lovecraft's fantasy stories)
One thing I love about HPL being in LOA is that Edmund Wilson, who hated him so much, was one of the Library's originators. Also, Lovecraft would've been as baffled as anyone else to find himself in the Library... indeed, he would've been surprised to find himself in book form at all, I suspect.
@@theblackwhitebrown It might have been Harold Bloom. I remember someone wrote an essay decrying the dumbing-down of LOA. I can only imagine what they would have thought about later SF and speculative fiction selections!
It was reading this book that got me into Lovecraft, I read this from my local library and I started with call of Cthulhu, and then at the mountains of madness and then it just went from there.
despite some personal faults Lovecraft was a pretty humble guy who never bracketed himself with his literary heroes like Blackwood, Poe, Machen, Hodgson & Dunsany. ---- but in some ways he has outlasted them all and will continue to be a mighty influence on dark fantasy fiction !
Michael, I’m going to send you an article on Wilson from The National Endowment for the Humanities. I think you’ll appreciate it. I’m thinking that more people today read Lovecraft than read Wilson. I love the Library of America volumes. I’m working on collecting the 7 volumes they’ve devoted to Le Guin.
I've never read any Lovecraft, as horror is just not my thing. But so many people whose opinion I respect have convinced me that I should at least try. On the other hand, those volumes on Ursula Le Guin, oh my. 😍‼
Significant 😂 He maybe one of the most influential writers of the weird, macabre , horror, and even fantasy. You already know How I feel about him. Great Video Michael. 👍😁👍
From now on, whenever you do your "Suh-Cie-tay" line, I will picture Edmund Wilson eyeing your bookcases with disdain: "Baker Street Irregulars indeed.. harrumph!" 😂
If Ursula K. Le Guin can have like FIVE books put out by the Library of America then Lovecraft more than warrants his single one! I bought this volume when it came out and it has a special place in my personal collection. It's not definitive and all-comprehensive but has all the best stuff (would have liked the Dream Cycle material tho). I wish there were similar volumes for Clark Ashton Smith and Robert E. Howard. I mean, if they can have Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler in the collection then those gentlemen also belong there, IMO.
I've read that Lovecraft was possibly influenced by the writings of Occultist and Theosophists Helena Blavatsky (The Secret Doctrine). She claimed there was an era before prehistoric times in which enormous and monstrous beast roamed the earth until the Lords Of Order banished them to other dimensions.
He was influenced by theosophy in that he found it very fun that their beliefs so closely mirrored his fiction, and so started referencing theosophy in his stories. But he had no occult or theosophical beliefs of his own; he just found the subjects entertaining.
Most of the better weird pulp authors seem to have had a familiarity with these beliefs. They made great background colour for the stories, but I'm not sure that the authors took them at all seriosuly.
Wilson was more or less the top literary critic of his time. He wrote contemptuously of Lovecraft, Tolkien, and the entire Mystery genre. Which does not endear me to WIlson. I do believe Lovecraft was uneven, but every writer to some degree is uneven. His later stuff was his best stuff broadly speaking. It was a shame he died young.
Straub had edited LOA's "American Fantastic Tales" volumes, so they probably decided to go with him for the Lovecraft volume just because they already had a good working relationship with him. Joshi's definitely THE big Lovecraft scholar, though. Straub's good, but I would've liked "The Hound" and "The Tomb" and "Dagon" in there, for sure.
I don't know if you will see this or not but, I have an unabridged edition of Lovecraft that has all his main stories from Knickerbocker classics. I was wondering is this editions text good like the ones you have? Love your channel. I love listening to your video's on horror books.
Seeing as he adored his cat, is the name really all that sketchy in an historical context? To us, yes, it's pretty awful, but HPL, (who, lest we forget, was born and raised in a country that had not long ended slavery) loved that cat, he wasn't using the name in a deliberately offensive way, just an ignorant one.
@@wbbartlett Lol I was Teasing. Most of the sketchy writing of the pulps great comes from a place of ignorance and wonder. The unknown is scary, but is also fascinating.
What an ass, indeed. The collection sounds like greatest hits sort of thing, which is fine I think some of his early work is heavily Poe-ish which may be why not included. I would've included Mountains of Madness.
Whose work is still being read and enjoyed in 2024, Lovecraft's or Wilson's? Whose writing has been adapted into films and comics? Who possessed the ability to manipulate language so as to "awaken thrilling horror", to quote Mary Shelley? It sure as shit wasn't Wilson! No-one is an expert at their craft from the beginning; just look at Roger, it took him centuries and many victims errr, I mean willing participants to perfect his necromantic and sorcerous skills.
I wonder how much Wilson read of Lovecraft to spew his highbrow review? He must have picked a story and read half of it. He doesn't seem like a guy to give someone a chance if he didn't like the writing. I wonder if Wilson was a writer and just wasn't good enough to have his writings published so he became a critic. He's just jealous of Lovecraft.
"Critics are men who watch a battle from a high place then come down and shoot the survivors."--Ernest Hemingway
I Love that. 👍😁👍
Wilson = Who's heard of him?
Lovecraft = The exact opposite.
Love the "Wilson" voice. Ha ha! 🙂
There are passages in The Mountains of Madness that are some of the best I've ever read. Great stuff Michael! (now I have to go find Lovecraft's fantasy stories)
One thing I love about HPL being in LOA is that Edmund Wilson, who hated him so much, was one of the Library's originators. Also, Lovecraft would've been as baffled as anyone else to find himself in the Library... indeed, he would've been surprised to find himself in book form at all, I suspect.
No Sherlock or Mythos? I can’t live in that world Mr Wilson.
This is a good volume. It was my first real exposure to Lovecraft.
On Edmund Wilson, "He was no fun at all, this guy." Love it.
Okay. Thanks a lot Michael. Now I've got to go read some Lovecraft again!
I remember there was even an outcry when LOA started publishing Kurt Vonnegut. People!
There was? Vonnegut may not be the best author, but he had his shining moments.
@@theblackwhitebrown It might have been Harold Bloom. I remember someone wrote an essay decrying the dumbing-down of LOA. I can only imagine what they would have thought about later SF and speculative fiction selections!
Wow, what a coincidence, I just finished re-reading The Call of Cthulhu! Great video as always.
Start a write-in campaign to LOA for REH!! No texts....no X....no e-mail. But send actual letters....preferably blood stained like Roger's letters!!!
It was reading this book that got me into Lovecraft, I read this from my local library and I started with call of Cthulhu, and then at the mountains of madness and then it just went from there.
you can't help but notice that the best HPL editions are right behind Michael's right shoulder !
The Hound is my favorite Lovecraft story. I found it genuinely terrifying the first time i read it
He did more with less pages than Stephen King does with 1000 pages.
@@scottharris1985 King can pad a story better than anyone.
@@jamesholland8057 Cocaine is a hell of a drug!!😅
I don’t know man , King is pretty darn good
@@guaporeturns9472 very good but does make books very long. Some are great others not so great.
King books are the size of a 1970's New York telephone book....but the quality pages are the size of a 2024 Laramie telephone book!!
despite some personal faults Lovecraft was a pretty humble guy who never bracketed himself with his literary heroes like Blackwood, Poe, Machen, Hodgson & Dunsany. ---- but in some ways he has outlasted them all and will continue to be a mighty influence on dark fantasy fiction !
🎵 It's the Robert... wait... it isn't... 🎶
Michael, I’m going to send you an article on Wilson from The National Endowment for the Humanities. I think you’ll appreciate it. I’m thinking that more people today read Lovecraft than read Wilson. I love the Library of America volumes. I’m working on collecting the 7 volumes they’ve devoted to Le Guin.
I've never read any Lovecraft, as horror is just not my thing. But so many people whose opinion I respect have convinced me that I should at least try. On the other hand, those volumes on Ursula Le Guin, oh my. 😍‼
@@buckocean7616 Yes! The Le Guin volumes are a treasure, for sure.🤩😍
I have to get back to Lovecraft. He is loved or hated. I have never seen middle-ground comments.
LOVE the outfit. (I'm thinking "Varney".)
Significant 😂
He maybe one of the most influential writers of the weird, macabre , horror, and even fantasy. You already know How I feel about him. Great Video Michael. 👍😁👍
From now on, whenever you do your "Suh-Cie-tay" line, I will picture Edmund Wilson eyeing your bookcases with disdain:
"Baker Street Irregulars indeed.. harrumph!" 😂
@@davidosborn6714 and bah humbug.
If Ursula K. Le Guin can have like FIVE books put out by the Library of America then Lovecraft more than warrants his single one! I bought this volume when it came out and it has a special place in my personal collection. It's not definitive and all-comprehensive but has all the best stuff (would have liked the Dream Cycle material tho). I wish there were similar volumes for Clark Ashton Smith and Robert E. Howard. I mean, if they can have Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler in the collection then those gentlemen also belong there, IMO.
@@meistergedanken4790 all greats of good reads.
Wilson sounds like a caricature of a critic.
Wilson actually pushed for something like a Library Of America. It was established after he died.
I've read that Lovecraft was possibly influenced by the writings of Occultist and Theosophists Helena Blavatsky (The Secret Doctrine). She claimed there was an era before prehistoric times in which enormous and monstrous beast roamed the earth until the Lords Of Order banished them to other dimensions.
Blavatsky was herself, an enormous and monstrous beast...a fraud too.
He was influenced by theosophy in that he found it very fun that their beliefs so closely mirrored his fiction, and so started referencing theosophy in his stories. But he had no occult or theosophical beliefs of his own; he just found the subjects entertaining.
Most of the better weird pulp authors seem to have had a familiarity with these beliefs. They made great background colour for the stories, but I'm not sure that the authors took them at all seriosuly.
Wilson was more or less the top literary critic of his time. He wrote contemptuously of Lovecraft, Tolkien, and the entire Mystery genre. Which does not endear me to WIlson.
I do believe Lovecraft was uneven, but every writer to some degree is uneven. His later stuff was his best stuff broadly speaking. It was a shame he died young.
Oh My!
Missing out all the Dreamlands stories is completely Dunsane. Sorry, insane.
Straub had edited LOA's "American Fantastic Tales" volumes, so they probably decided to go with him for the Lovecraft volume just because they already had a good working relationship with him. Joshi's definitely THE big Lovecraft scholar, though. Straub's good, but I would've liked "The Hound" and "The Tomb" and "Dagon" in there, for sure.
Well, HPL was a great proponent of "tell, don't show", which is sort of contrary to the establishment approach.
Sounds like Wilson aught to keep to non fiction and text books. I mean no Tolkien, no Sherloch... I, just nooo 😲
I have been reading Lovecraft for four decades. I have the pre-Joshi Arkham House hardcovers except his volume of collaborations. No Dagon? Blasphemy!
I don't know if you will see this or not but, I have an unabridged edition of Lovecraft that has all his main stories from Knickerbocker classics. I was wondering is this editions text good like the ones you have? Love your channel. I love listening to your video's on horror books.
@@rdvirus6017 yes, that’s a good one.
Great writer. Yes he was scared of his own genitals. Yes the name of his cat was a bit sketchy, but a great writer.
Seeing as he adored his cat, is the name really all that sketchy in an historical context? To us, yes, it's pretty awful, but HPL, (who, lest we forget, was born and raised in a country that had not long ended slavery) loved that cat, he wasn't using the name in a deliberately offensive way, just an ignorant one.
@@wbbartlett Lol I was Teasing. Most of the sketchy writing of the pulps great comes from a place of ignorance and wonder. The unknown is scary, but is also fascinating.
At the time it was a fairly common name for a black or mostly black pet. It doesn't seem to have been intended in a derogatory way in most cases.
Wilson didn't like LotR? He even put the boots into Sherlock H? I think I've found a new hero. 🤭
Edmund Wilson disliked most genre fiction. His take-down of the mystery genre was "Who Cares Who Killed Roger Ackroyd?"
Roger Ackroyd likely cared tho......
@@grantross2609 Actually he was probably the only character in the story who didn't care.
💀🎃☠️♥️
Wow that guy would be disgusted by writers these days 😮 imagine his critique of Fifty Shades of Grey 🤣
I actually wish I could read that.
@@michaelk.vaughan8617 me too 🤣
What an ass, indeed. The collection sounds like greatest hits sort of thing, which is fine I think some of his early work is heavily Poe-ish which may be why not included. I would've included Mountains of Madness.
Whose work is still being read and enjoyed in 2024, Lovecraft's or Wilson's? Whose writing has been adapted into films and comics? Who possessed the ability to manipulate language so as to "awaken thrilling horror", to quote Mary Shelley? It sure as shit wasn't Wilson!
No-one is an expert at their craft from the beginning; just look at Roger, it took him centuries and many victims errr, I mean willing participants to perfect his necromantic and sorcerous skills.
Edmund Wilson is actually a very important American critic. The LOA was his idea. They publish a couple volumes of his work.
I wonder how much Wilson read of Lovecraft to spew his highbrow review? He must have picked a story and read half of it. He doesn't seem like a guy to give someone a chance if he didn't like the writing. I wonder if Wilson was a writer and just wasn't good enough to have his writings published so he became a critic. He's just jealous of Lovecraft.
Wilson who?
Weird that they included "He" of all things. A story that is artistically minor, not at all influential, and features some of his ugliest racism.