- Mass Market Paperback
- Publisher: Berkley Pub Group (May 1978)
- ISBN-10: 0425037118
- ISBN-13: 978-0425037119
- Product Dimensions: 17.3 x 10.4 x 1.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 91 g
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,761,694 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3.6 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Horror in the Swamps and Bayous, Oct 4 2004
By Zack Davisson "japanreviewed" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Black Canaan (Mass Market Paperback)
Although Robert E. Howard was an inspired writer when working on his most famous creation, Conan of Cimmeria, he never quite managed the same magic with his other characters, a host of prize fighters, detectives, sword-swinging Irish and Scots heroes, and a horde of other hot-blooded men of adventure. Inspired by his friend HP Lovecraft, he tried his hand at horror more than once with limited success. "Black Canaan" collects a few of the best of these efforts, and some mediocre.
Despite the mis-leading cover, where the word "Conan" appears just as large as the title, and a shirtless, black-haired barbarian swings a club at an approaching monster, this book contains almost no fantasy stories. Instead, we encounter folk such as Dermod O' Conner, John Conrad and John Kirowan. They are all cut from the same Conan mold, strong, thick-hewed men who are quick to act and bold in intention. The theme of buried racial memories, and an ancestral strain slowing climbing its way back to the present are frequent spring boards for stories. Settings for adventure are places such as Zimbabwe, Arabia and any place sounding exotic to Howard's Texan ears.
By far the two most successful stories in the collection are "Black Canaan" and "Moon of Zambabwe (sic)," both of which transport Lovecraftian tribal horror to the bayous of the South, where the African slaves brought their own dark gods with them, and unholy rituals. By the very nature of the tales, they appear somewhat racists in modern eyes, so it is important to see them in their proper historical context. However, both are great adventure/horror stories, and two of the best non-Conan stories Howard wrote. If you haven't read them, it is worth getting "Black Canaan" for these two alone.
Other successful tales include the almost Sherlock Holmesian "The Noseless Horror," another Lovecraft inspired swamp adventure, "The House in the Oaks" featuring Howard's Mythos addition, Justin Geoffrey, and the raw adventure "People of the Black Coast."
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Nice Howard Collection, Dec 19 2003
By Tim Janson - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Black Canaan (Mass Market Paperback)
In the 1970's, several collections of Howards short stories came out and Black Canaan was one of those. The stories are primarily horror and dark fantasy as opposed to the more heroic fantasy that he is known for.Among the better stories are the Moon over Zembabwei about a man trying to rescue the woman he loves from a zombie cult, and "People of the Black Coast" where survivors of a ship wreck discover strange creatures on an island.
Some of these stories, Particularly the title story are very racist and Howard uses the "N" word liberally when talking about black people. some may find it offensive so be warned.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Some lesser, some vintage Howard, April 6 2003
By Matthew S. Spencer "horror/fantasy author" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Black Canaan (Mass Market Paperback)
True, while not a collection of Howard's very best, there's good stuff in here. ... And there are some good, but flawed pieces.Black Canaan - A story of back-woods blacks being led to rise up and kill a lot of back-woods whites, by an evil conjure man who seeks to make himself "king," and his supernatural femme fatal assistant. Howard's racist streak is nowhere more apparent than here, which is ashame, since this is a truly well-crafted horror-adventure yarn. Lots of great atmosphere and creepy imagery.
... And no one writes about "the horrors of the pine-lands" quite like Howard!
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