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4.34 AVERAGE
4.34 AVERAGE
2022: Choosing to use this as my yearly Poe read stand-in volume. Reading a few "new" stories in here, reading through most of [b:The Science Fiction of Edgar Allan Poe|262439|The Science Fiction of Edgar Allan Poe|Edgar Allan Poe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1387742510l/262439._SY75_.jpg|254384] that I didn't read over the Summer of the Balloon Hoax, and, of course, rereading the absolute classics in the [b:The Essential Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe|32552|The Essential Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe|Edgar Allan Poe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1632700707l/32552._SY75_.jpg|15570658].
The only major work I wish was in here is Maelzel's Chess Player, and, of course, this doesn't contain the incomplete "Journal of Julius Rodman" or the brief excerpt of "The Light-House". But, for the most part, all the short stories and poems are here, as well as "Eureka" and "Narrative of Pym". The only thing this could have benefitted from would have been inclusions of any of the many AMAZING illustrators who have taken on Poe stories across the ages (Clark, Redon, Beardsley, Rackham, just... how can you not have included some of these?!).
The only major work I wish was in here is Maelzel's Chess Player, and, of course, this doesn't contain the incomplete "Journal of Julius Rodman" or the brief excerpt of "The Light-House". But, for the most part, all the short stories and poems are here, as well as "Eureka" and "Narrative of Pym". The only thing this could have benefitted from would have been inclusions of any of the many AMAZING illustrators who have taken on Poe stories across the ages (Clark, Redon, Beardsley, Rackham, just... how can you not have included some of these?!).
Poe has always been an inspiration for me. I love the gothic scenes and strange mixture of misery, glee and gloom in his verses. He has most certainly always been one of my favourite poets.
One of the books that shaped my childhood.
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
What the heck did I just read? Okay I knew Poe was a little dark- not all of his stories are some are very imaginative (like taking a hot air balloon to the moon). But quite a few stories go on for several pages (like 100) with NO CONCLUSION! I did enjoy 2/3 detective stories. Several of his short stories went over my head. In a few stories, he wrote using dialects one of them being Irish (I think) but I had a hard time reading it. As he did write in the 1800s some stories don’t age well as they portray minorities negatively. Poe was a smart dude he had knew several language and there are whole quotes in French, Latin, Italian, an others but- he didn’t always translate the quotes to English. I wish he had. He was very much a shock writer the story would go like this: description….description… dialogue…description…big shock reveal. I found most of the endings to be abrupt. I also found most of the stories to be boring. I definitely understand how he led the way for Stephen King. I think I am more likely to watch a movie based on his works than to read them again. Also most of his poems are awful.
My only complaint is that the audio volume is soooo low that I was blasted with sound every time I switched back to the radio. Vincent Price's voice reading some Poe tales that I haven't heard before... that was the best part. I liked the stories better than the poems. Poems do sound good when read aloud, but I think the sense is somewhat lost -- on me anyway -- because the words on the page and my ability to look over them are missing. I know The Raven well enough to really enjoy hearing that, but his other poems I would rather just read. The stories, though, were really well chosen.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes