The Horror in the Museum

by H. P. Lovecraft

Overview

“H. P. Lovecraft has yet to be surpassed as the twentieth century’s greatest practitioner of the classic horror tale.”
–Stephen King

“Lovecraft’s fiction is one of the cornerstones of modern horror.”
–Clive Barker

Some tales in this collection were inspired by H. P. Lovecraft, others he revised, two he co-authored–but all bear the mark of the master of primordial terror.

The Horror in the Museum–Locked up for the night, a man will discover the difference between waxen grotesqueries and the real thing.

The Electric Executioner–Aboard a train, a traveler must match wits with a murderous madman.

The Trap–This mirror wants a great deal more than your reflection.

The Ghost-Eater–In an ancient woodland, the past comes to life with a bone-crunching vengeance.

AND TWENTY MORE STORIES OF UNSPEAKABLE EVIL

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780345485724
Publisher:	Random House Publishing Group
Publication date:	09/25/2007
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	544
Sales rank:	201,496
Product dimensions:	8.20(w) x 5.54(h) x 1.02(d)

About the Author

Almost completely ignored by the mainstream press during his lifetime, H. P. Lovecraft has since come to be recognized as one of the greatest writers of classic horror, on a par with Edgar Allan Poe, Lovecraft's mentor. H. P. Lovecraft's work has been translated into more than a dozen languages, his tales adapted for film, television, and comic books, and he has been the subject of more scholarly study than any other writer of horror fiction save Poe.

Editorial Reviews

There is no question that Lovecraft is tremendously popular with YAs. A reviewer could question the quality of Lovecraft's writing, but with so many talented writers citing Lovecraft as a major influence, such questioning would be useless. Accept these two titles for what they are-collections of standard Lovecraft stories with modern, scary covers. The Transition of H. P. Lovecraft, a trade paperback, contains an adulatory foreword by noted horror/fantasy writer Barbara Hambly. She touches upon the racism found in some of Lovecraft's works while acknowledging that reading Lovecraft is just plain fun. The stories and literary fragments in this collection are arranged to show Lovecraft's progression as a writer. A few rather creepy illustrations are included. Horror in the Museum was originally published in 1970 as a collection of Lovecraft's collaborations with other authors. Basically, Lovecraft revised and rewrote stories sent to him by other writers. Each story illustrates Lovecraft's distinctive style and devotion to adjectives. Both of these inexpensive titles will fly off the shelves. Transition may be more popular because it contains the story that inspired the movie Re-Animator. The cover graphics are gruesome and Clive Barkerish-sure to grab attention. Buy multiples of both, since I have yet to find a Lovecraft title sitting on the shelf in any YA collection. Note: This review was written and published to address two titles: The Horror in the Museum and Other Revisions and The Transition of H. P. Lovecraft: The Road to Madness. VOYA Codes: 3Q 4P J S (Readable without serious defects, Broad general YA appeal, Junior High-defined as grades 7 to 9 and Senior High-defined as grades 10 to 12).

VOYA - Judy Sasges