In my last post, I wrote that I wasn’t too familiar with contemporary fantasy. I do like classic fantasy, in that it often overlaps with Gothic and Victorian ghost and horror stories. For a few years now Barnes and Noble has offered leather-bound collections of classic tales for a pretty good price ($25.00 for most titles). I’m a sucker for attractive editions of books, so I’ve picked up a few. Barnes and Noble has NOT compensated me in any way for this free plug, by the way. I am happy to support one of the few brick and mortar booksellers that hasn’t been put out of business by Amazon. I still miss Borders Books.
Each collection features lots of classic stories that are in the public domain, which means you can find all of them for free online. There are some excellent yarns in them, like W. W. Jacobs’ “The Monkey’s Paw”. The Penny Dreadful collection is a hoot – it has the original Sweeney Todd story, published as “String of Pearls”.
Anyway, this post is about book number 14 of 2024: Classic Fantasy Stories:
I’m cheating a little here, since I started reading it before 2024, but since I read the majority of the stories in this year, I’m counting it!
Even though it calls itself classic fantasy, it could just as easily be called a collection of Gothic horror. There are some terrific stories in it – one of my favorites is Robert Louis Stevenson’s “The Bottle Imp”, which is a cautionary tale of being careful what you wish for! Theophile Gautier’s “The Mummy’s Foot” is just what it sounds like: a mummy’s foot that has a life of its own and bedevils an archaeologist.
Quite a few are more light-hearted, such as E. M. Forster’s “The Celestial Omnibus”, about a bus that magically appears in a blind alley and is discovered by a young boy. I wonder if J. K. Rowling was familiar with this story when she was writing the Diagon Alley scenes for her Harry Potter series. John Kendrick Bangs’ “The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall” is likewise tongue-in-cheek, about a very damp ghost that is more annoying than frightening.
Seabury Quinn’s “The Phantom Farmhouse” is much creepier – a man recovering from surgery in a Maine sanitarium comes across a pleasant country family while he is taking restorative walk. He falls in love with the beautiful daughter, but there are strange things about her and her family. They all have red fingernails, their index fingers are longer than the other fingers, and when the moon is full he hears mournful howling as three houndlike creatures hunt down hapless sheep.
The book closes with novella by Francis Stevens, “Claimed”. It is the tale of a mysterious box that is discovered on an island that suddenly appeared when an underwater volcano in the Atlantic erupted. It is made of some indestructible green substance, and even though a seam can be seen, it is impossible to open. There are some red words inscribed in one side, and whenever they are on top, the box inexplicably places them on the bottom. A greedy and unsavory millionaire businessman acquires it and ends up in a battle of wills with Poseidon himself. Fortunately, his loyal niece and his young, handsome, personal physician are there to make sure things work out for the best. It sounds cheesy, and it is, but Stevens is a fairly good writer, and I can see how H. P. Lovecraft claimed her as an influence.
Classic Fantasy Stories is a great book to keep on the side table next to your favorite reading chair. When you’re at a loss for something to read, and you don’t want to get into something heavy, you can pick this one up and read one or two stories. And when you’re done, it looks very nice on your bookshelf!
FracTad's Bookshelf 