American Writers (One Hundred Pages at a Time)

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 9: Episode 9: The Horror in the Museum

In this story written by Hazel Heald and H. P. Lovecraft (mostly ghostwritten by HPL), we explore an amazing wax museum with a horrible special exhibit. One of the most delightful of the Lovecraft collaborations.

Episode 470: William Wells Brown: My Southern Home (2)

The final episode in my series on William Wells Brown explores the second half of MY SOUTHERN HOME, the author's second memoir.

Next up, a special series on Neal Stephenson's BAROQUE CYCLE.

Episode 469: William Wells Brown: My Southern Home (1)

MY SOUTHERN HOME is a memoir by William Wells Brown written toward the end of his life. It rehashed much from his earlier writers, but from the perspective of a more sober old man.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 9: Episode 8: Winged Death

In another of Lovecraft's Hazel Heald revisions (ghostwriting)--WINGED DEATH--we get a fascinating tale of science, empire, and revenge. Like THE MAN OF STONE, we get most of the story from the villain' point of view.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 9: Episode 8: The Man in Stone

The first of five collaborations between H. P. Lovecraft and Hazel Heald. In this story, a wizard uses black magic to punish his adulterous wife. Through a framed narrative our authors give us a window into the mind of the villain.

Episode 468: William Wells Brown: The Black Man

In 1862, William Wells Brown wrote a series of short biographies of black activists, politicians, scientists, and artists in an attempt to prove black people's capacity for self-rule in the context of the Emancipation Proclamation. It begins with a great philosophical essay.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 9: Episode 6: The Haunter in the Dark

The final by-line publication by H. P. Lovecraft during his life was THE HAUNTER IN THE DARK. I explore this story in this episode, finishing up the formal read through of his works.

Episode 467: William Wells Brown: The Escape

In this episode I look at a play by William Wells Brown called THE ESCAPE. It is an effective look at the horrors of slavery and the necessity of resistance.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 9: Episode 5: The Shadow Out of Time (2)

The second part of my review of THE SHADOW OUT OF TIME by H. P. Lovecraft. I cannot believe I made it this far. There is still a lot to look at in future episodes but only one more "by-line" publication. Anyway, this story is good.

Episode 466: William Wells Brown: The American Fugitive in Europe

An only slightly deeper look at William Wells Brown THE AMERICAN FUGITIVE IN EUROPE. The second half of this travelogue focuses on Browns' travels through Britain, him seeing the homes and monuments of great writers, and some of his anti-slavery work.

Episode 465: William Wells Brown: The American Fugitive in Europe (1)

William Wells Brown spent 1849-1854 in Europe doing anti-slavery work. This narrative of these years reads more like a traditional travelogue than a polemical text, and that is okay.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 9: Episode 4: The Shadow Out of Time (1)

The first half of my review of H. P. Lovecraft's THE SHADOW OUT OF TIME. This story is a nice mix of cosmic horror, science fiction, and horror. It also has one of Lovecraft's most well-developed protagonists.

Episode 464: William Wells Brown: Clotel

CLOTEL is the first novel by an African-American in the United States. While not a plot-driven page-turner, William Wells Brown created a convincing portrait of the sexual and gender politics in American slavery.

H.P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 9: Episode 3:The Thing on the Doorstep

Another H. P. Lovecraft story (THE THING ON THE DOORSTEP) is explored in this episode. You think your marriage is bad. Try being married to a bossy lady who is actually an old wizard who wants your body (not in that way).

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 9: Episode 2: The Dreams in the Witch House

The second part of my review of THE DREAMS IN THE WITCH-HOUSE by H. P. Lovecraft. Great stuff in this story on modern science and folklore. This story is also our best look at the city of Arkham. Why people not like?

Episode 463: William Wells Brown, Narrative (1847)

I start a new series on the works of William Wells Brown. I start with his compelling and short autobiography about his time as a slave, published in 1847. I also speak a bit on CLOTEL, his novel.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 9: Episode 1: The Dreams in the Witch-house (Part 1)

We begin a series on the final H. P. Lovecraft stories with THE DREAMS IN THE WITCHHOUSE. This is one of my favorite Lovecraft stories, but it seems to not get much love.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 8: Episode 9: Letters, January - June 1934

The finale of my coverage of the letters of H. P. Lovecraft. I do not think I will be coming back to letters until I take on the Robert E. Howard series in the near future. For now we return to stories.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 8: Episode 8: Letters, September-December 1933

I am almost through with my commentary on the fourth volume of the selected letters of H. P. Lovecraft. These cover the autumn of 1933.

H.P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 8: Episode 7: Letters August-September 1933

I know it has been a while since I uploaded anything. Been busy at home in Wisconsin. But here are some more thoughts on the letters of H. P. Lovecraft, focusing on those written in the late summer of 1933.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 8: Episode 6: Letters April-July 1933

In this episode, I dig deeper into the fourth volume of the selected letters of H. P. Lovecraft. There are some unhinged stuff in this set, especially the letters to J. Vernon Shea.

Episode 462 : Barbara Tuchman: The Proud Tower (Chapters 7-8)

The finale of my review of THE PROUD TOWER by Barbara Tuchman also finishes off our look at this mid-century American historian.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 8: Episode 5: Letters, Jan-April 1933

More of Lovecraft's letters are examined in this episode covering the period from January to April 1933. Some of the most notable elements include the publication of DREAMS IN THE WITCH HOUSE and the death of H.S. Whitehead.

Episode 461: Barbara Tuchman: The Proud Tower (Chapters 5-6)

As we move on in Barbara Tuchman's THE PROUD TOWER we explore chapters devoted to the Hague Conventions on peace with their successes and failures, as well German culture. The later chapter deals almost exclusively with the career of Richard Strauss, the composer.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 8: Episode 4: Letters, Nov. 1932-Jan. 1933

In this episode,  I talk about the fourth volume of H. P. Lovecraft's Selected Letters, focusing on the winter of 1932-1933. Overall, a tame set of letters during a transformative period for the United States and the world.

Episode 460: BarbaraTuchman: The Proud Tower (Chapters 3-4)

In chapters 3-4 of THE PROUD TOWER by Barbara Tuchman we examine the emergence of a new phase of American imperialism and the Dreyfus Affair in France. These two chapters are not very related, but the entire book is quite fragmented.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 8: Episode 3: Letters July-October 1932

I continue to explore the fourth volume of Lovecraft's selected letters. While these 20 letters are not the most exciting we see a continuation of some important themes: frustration with publication in commercial fiction market and Lovecraft's flirtation with fascism.

Episode 459: Barbara Tuchman: The Proud Tower (1)

I kick off my four-part look at THE PROUD TOWER by Barbara Tuchman. The first two chapters of this book look at pre-Great War British aristocracy and anarchism. Two topics that do not see to meld, within a book that does either.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 8: Episode 2: Letters March-July 1932

In these letters we see Lovecraft's continued frustration over the the state of the magazine fiction market and the personal impact of the death of his aunt, Lillian Clark.

Episode 458: Barbara Tuchman: Guns of August (5)

The finale of my review of THE GUNS OF AUGUST by Barabara Tuchman. I give my overall feelings of this text along with a look at the last chapters and Tuchman's conclusion.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 8: Episode 1: Letters, January-March 1932

The H. P. Lovecraft letters from early 1932 show his frustration with the status of the Weird Tales and other magazines, as he finds he cannot match they style they desire and have come to expect from him. Some real anxiety in this set of correspondence.

Episode 457: Barbara Tuchman:The Guns of August (4)

Toward the end of Barbara Tuchman's THE GUNS OF AUGUST we explore the battle of Tannenberg and the retreat of French armies toward Paris. Tuchman also analyzes the situation at sea and the position of the USA in the early days of the Great War.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 7: Episode 15: The Trap (Lovecraft and Whitehead)

I finish up this series on Lovecraft's stories from the late 1920s and early 1930s with a look at his collaboration with Donald Whitehead, "The Trap". While not as amazing as the Bishop revisions, this story does have some interesting ideas, and a 17th century wizards.

Episode 456: Barbara Tuchman: The Guns of August (3)

Part three of a review of THE GUNS OF AUGUST by Barbara Tuchman. The logic of planning leading to entrenchment (military, institutional, and ideology) is explored in the middle chapters of this excellent study of the first days of the Great War.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 7: Episode 14: Medusa's Coil

The last of the Lovecraft revisions of Zealia Bishop's work is also the most controversial. This short story explores the culture of the Black Atlantic, the post-war south, and art. It is the most detailed study of the artist by Lovecraft since "Pickman's Model".

Episode 455: Barbara Tuchman:The Guns of August (2)

In this episode, I explore the second part of THE GUNS OF AUGUST by Barbara Tuchman. In these chapters we see how the war plans set up by the Great Powers made conflict unavoidable and prevented military and political institutions from changing course. 

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 7: Episode 13: The Mound (2)

I did not plan to record any two-part reviews of the H. P. Lovecraft revisions, but THE MOUND is such a massive and interesting tale that I just had to this time. In this episode, we focus on the culture and society of K'n-yan.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 7: Episode 12: The Mound (1)

One of Lovecraft's most significant revision works was the novella THE MOUND. Zealia Bishop provided the original prompt and Lovecraft ran with it creating an entire civilization. Influenced by THE COMING RACE by Edward Bulwer-Lytton.

H.P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 7: Episode 11: The Curse of Yig

In this episode, I explore THE CURSE OF YIG by Zealia Bishop and H. P. Lovecraft. It is one of his most famous revisions and a great story that takes Lovecraft's worldbuilding to the American Midwest.

H. P. Lovecraft Book Club: Series 7: Episode 10: The Shadow Over Innsmouth (Part 3)

My final thoughts on THE SHADOW OVER INNSMOUTH by H. P. Lovecraft. This story ends with some action and then an coda examining our narrator's deep family history.

Next, we will explore the Zealia Bishop revisions.