Tales of Mystery and Madness by Edgar Allen Poe (Illustrated by Chris Grimly)

"What happens when you combine one of the masters of Horror with some truly unsettling illustrations? This book. And it is both stunning and unsettling all at the same time. "

5 Stars

Pros: An awesomely unique way to bring Poe's stories to life/Hop Frog, now that was a good story, always cheering for the underdog. They all got what they deserved.

Cons: As with most comic books, there were points where the inking was difficult to read since it was made to look like handwriting.

Full Review:

The book is comprised of 4 stories by Poe. The Black Cat. The Red Plague. Hop Frog and The Fall of the House of Usher.

I had already read The Black Cat and few of Poe's other stories, so I knew what to expect but the other three stories were duly unsettling, since this is Edgar Allen Poe after all.

What made this book stand out was the illustrations that went along with it. It was an interesting mix between a children's book and a comic book. Each illustration helped bring home the point of the text. And though all of the text was verbatim from each story (as far as I could tell) the illustrations made it easy to see what Poe was getting at, even if you didn't understand all of the words.

This was given to me as a Christmas gift and it's truly special. The illustrations made the atmosphere and bone deep chilling essence of Poe's story truly come to life. Grimly does an incredible job of adding visuals to help bring Poe's insanity to life.

Comments

Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury

"Obviously targeted to writers but honestly, anyone could benefit from Bradbury's practical yet poetic advice, this was a collection of esasys by Bradbury about his writing process and reflections on some of his greatest works." ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pros: Bradbury, duh, though I'm biased, to me, the man's prose is pure poetry, every word beautiful/Since writing is not my career, it was an interesting way to view Bradbury's life. Writing was his job and he was the only income. If he did not produce material, he would not get paid. It help put things into perspective. Cons: The man can go on for a bit 😂/Bradbury's insane work ethic and endless endurance to just produce story after story seems insane and overwhelming but then again, this was his livelihood, so I'm sure it was insane and overwhelming. If he didn't write and get paid, they'd starve, so, it was a life or death situation. Full Review: This was essentially a collection of essays written by Bra...

Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King

“The tale of Andy Dufresne and how he served his time at Shawshank prison, as told through the eyes of his friend and fellow inmate, Red. Dark and disturbing but also compulsively readbale. I finished it in 2 days. Also enjoyable is Frank Darabont's 1994 film adaptation, "The Shawshank Redemption." ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pros : Red has a soothing, drawl, making the reading easy and flowing/Since I saw the film first, I couldn't help but compare the book though I was pleased to find that the two were very similar. Cons : Things got a bit rambling a bit at the beginning/Since I saw the film first I couldn't help but compare the book but this ended up not being a con. Full Review: The state of Maine has a prison. Shawshank Redemption. And Red is the guy that can get you things. He also happens to be the only guilty man in Shawshank but that's netiher here nor there. He meets Andy Dufresne for business purposes at first and he finds him to be a calm, cool man and Red likes him i...

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick

“Rick Deckard is a Bounty Hunter who's on the trail of six "Andys" (Androids) who have come to Earth illegally. His job is to track them down and "retire" them. Something he found easy to do until he met her, Rachael Rosen. The Android that does the impossible, passes the "Voight-Kampff" test. The story quickly devolves into a slow, drawn out and frankly boring mystery that was putting me to sleep by the end." ⭐⭐ Pros: I was more interested in comparing it to the film, "Bladerunner."/At first I kind of liked the drab, dreary atmostphere but it soon became soporific. Cons: I had no real idea what was going on with Mercerism/The end there had me blinking in bewilderment, like with Herbert's 29th Dune Book/There was a lot of idle chit-chat while they were in murderous/intense situations, it just seemed odd. Full Review: Rick Deckard, a Bounty Hunter, contracted with the San Francisco Police Department hunts down and retires rogue ...

All the Books.

Search This Blog