Customer Reviews

Amphigorey Too

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Though not quite so wonderful as "Amphigorey" (q.v.) (if nothing else, there is nothing to equal the brillint "Gashleycrumb Tinies" nor "The Unstrung Harp"), the first Gorey omnibus volume, if only because the very best was skimmed off for that volume, this is still very high class whimsey indeed.

Like Gahan Wilson (q.v), Gorey looks at the world in a slightly skewed manner; much of his work consists of showing or telling us something that sounds perfectly rational but does not, in fact, quite compute, leaving our own minds to struggle with the cognitive dissonance he creates.

Probably my favourite bit in this collection is "The Gilded Bat", which is a sadly perceptive story of perception and reality in the life of a prima ballerina -- even after litle Maudy Splaytoe has progressed to being enigmatic star Miriella Splatova, her life is still pretty much the same as it always was, a round of rehearsal, performance and boredom. (In a wonderful example of something or other, there was a ballet based on this work; i have never seen it, but heard an interview on PBS with the choreographer, who had had to create excerpts from three OTHER, fictitious, ballets referred to in the text...)

The two versions of "The Chinese Obelisks" present us with an opportunity to see the author's mind at work, comparing sketch and draft of text to the finished work.

The only reason not to immediately purchase this work would be if you could only afford one of them and hadn't already got the previous volume. If you DO already have "Amphigorey", then you absolutely must have this collection to go with it.

Edward Gorey is the type of artist who produces very specific reactions from anyone studying his work: one will either love or hate his artwork and/or stories. For those of us who are a little off center ourselves, this book is delightful. His unique drawings remain unmatched to this day, and his tales--well, they are not ordinary by any stretch of the imagination. Even though I am a staunch Gorey fan, I must admit that there are times when some of the endings leave me quite sad but, just as in life, not every tale has a happy ending. The book itself is huge, very heavy and filled to the brim with as much Gorey drawings as any fan can desire. Mr. Gorey deserves more recognition for his unusual but strange depictions of characters whom we don't really know whether to love or hate--a sort of bizarre Alice In Wonderland world of people who run the gamut from the familiar to the insane, and a bestiary of creatures born from the depths of an uncommon imagination. One has to wonder what a cartoon series based on his drawings and story lines would be like--certainly not Saturday morning fodder. At any rate, the book is well worth every penny whether you are a fan of Edward Gorey or have just discovered his works and find yourself fascinated by his bizarre view of a world which existed in his extraordinary imagination.

This wonderful second collection contains 20 highly enjoyable stories:

THE BEASTLY BABY (a definite Gorey favorite!) about an absolutely abominable baby, you'll be glad to see the end of!
THE NURSERY FRIEZE: Features odd strips of rhino-like animals saying words like "Archipelago" & "Quodlibet" which could very well be used as a frieze for a very unique nursery :-)
THE PIOUS INFANT: About little Henry Clump, who is completely unselfish and charitable, and always concerned about the salvation of everyone elses soul!
THE EVIL GARDEN: About a families visit to an ominous garden, where there is no way out!
THE INANIMATE TRAGEDY: A dramatic tale featuring inanimate objects as the characters, such as pins & needles (who appear to represent the chorus) a penpoint, glass marble, two-holed button, thumbtack, & a piece of knotted string (as the villain)
THE GILDED BAT: About a little girl who grows up to be a very distinguished prima ballerina.
THE IRON TONIC: or "A Winter Afternoon"- "The people at the grey hotel, Are either aged or unwell" "The guests who chose to stay aloof, Lie wrapped in carpets on the roof".
THE OSBICK BIRD: About Emblus Fingby and the osbick bird that chooses one day to live with him, as his loyal friend.
Two versions of THE CHINESE OBELISKS, one version that looks like a sketch or rough draft, and then the better known one in typical Gorey style- All about an author who goes for a walk, and the many things he encounters.
THE DERANGED COUSINS (one of my favorites!): About Rose Marshmary, Mary Rosemarsh & Marsh Maryrose, three cousins who all live together in a rose covered house at the edge of a marsh. "Since they were orphans and there was no one to stop them, they were often merry far into the night"!
THE ELEVENTH EPISODE: Starts when a woman hears a scream apparently coming from a well, when she goes to investigate she falls in and enters a world that changes her life.
[THE UNTITLED BOOK]: Charming piece, that features a little child looking out the window as strange creatures come to play in the garden. Hippity Wippity!
THE LAVENDAR LEOTARD: An early Gorey tale, in which the author introduces two small, distant, ageless, and wholly imaginary relatives to fifty seasons of the New York City Ballet!
THE DISREPECTFUL SUMMONS: A tale of the occult!
THE ABANDONED SOCK: All about the saga of a sock that decides it's life is tedious and unpleasant, and goes for an adventure.
THE LOST LIONS: About a handsome man named Hamish, whose life is suddenly changed when he one day opens the wrong envelope!
STORY FOR SARA: A cute story about a slightly wicked little girl, who captures two little birds in her small bag, and her meeting with a very large prowling cat!
THE SALT HERRING: An odd tale written to make all serious men mad, mad, mad!
LEAVES FROM A MISLAID ALBUM: A wordless collection of interesting pictures.
A LIMERICK: Absolutely cute, very SHORT limerick about poor little Zooks, of whom no one was fond.

Edward Gorey one of my favorites, whose darkly whimsical and macabre tales (that he sometimes writes under pseudonyms) are sure to offend the overly-prudish, luckily I'm not one of them. Should Gorey be classfied as a writer or Illustrator? He so obviously possessed talent in both fields, I cannot imagine his fantastic drawings without the odd amusing little quips. The people in his illustrations usually resemble silent movie stars, the women always look elegant and mysterious, the men dashing and stately. His stories also include lots of fanciful creatures and adorable (but usually hapless) children.
Gorey is strange and wonderful, and I am VERY proud and absolutely happy to be fan!
Get all three collections!

This is the 2nd of the Amphigorey series and is just as entertaining as the first. Edward Gorey takes macabre little tales and illustrates them in a delightfully, gothic manner. A literary treasure and a must read for those who enjoy dark humor.

Even the most seemingly innocuous tale becomes bizarre and sinister in his hands, thanks to his macabre, claustrophobic writing style. I don't remember which stories are in which amphigorey specifically, but favourites include The Evil Garden, The Epileptic Bicycle, The Gashleycrumb (sp?) Tinies, and of course the Wuggly Ump. Oh, and the one where the guy invites all his guests up to see his...sofa? And then it ends with him "turning it on" and them being locked in the room...shudder. Not for the faint of heart, but brilliant in the extreme. Don't miss it.

This is the second book in the Amphigorey series. As I said above there's nothing very shocking in this one. Some favorites are The Gilded Bat and The Evil Garden

Unlike most writers, Gorey does not seek publicity and goes his own way with classic unconcern. His artistic credo scattered about in random interviews is the antithesis of verbosity. "There's a kind of style running through the universe. I think of my books as Victorian novels all scrunched up. I write about everyday life. It's dreadfully hazardous. I never could understand why people feel they have to climb Mt. Everest when you know it's quite dangerous getting out of bed. I think you have to rely on chance an awful lot. I don't believe in free will. I've always been a firm believer in the line from a Patrick White novel. 'Life is full of alternatives, but no choices.' . . . I haven't the slightest idea why my work has taken the tack it has. I just do what occurs to me--if it occurs to me strong enough. My philosophy? I'm a Taoist if I'm anything. They believe this is the way the world runs and you might as well go with it. I stand by the idea that you can't prevent things. The surrealist writers thought the most mysterious thing of all is just everyday life. I agree. Everyday life is very discomfiting. I'm trying to convey that discomfiting texture in my books. THE BEASTLY BABY is an illustrated commentary on the nature-nurture issue. In Gorey's view, some "bad-apples" are such from the beginning. THE NURSERY FRIEZE is an antiquarian's delight. THE PIOUS INFANT showcases religious zealotry. THE EVIL GARDEN might have been inspired by Mirbeau's "le jardin des supplices," Stutthof Concentration Camp or the carbon-nitrogen cycle. THE INANIMATE TRAGEDY is an obvious parody of a classical Greek play complete with chorus, carried out by inanimate objects. THE IRON TONIC could be depictions of some of the inhabitants of Lake Woebegone waiting for Godot. THE OSBICK BIRD is an example of commensalism. THE DERANGED COUSINS is an example of psycho-pathology in every day life. Gorey's work is like an open window on the ID which draws our attention to the ubiquitous dysphemism of human activity. This commentator who is a resident of "Fun City, USA," has known six people who were murdered and three murderers, and the list of personally viewed and experienced disasters is lengthy. Gorey's work makes us think about the human condition as well as covertly laugh at what we see as its stark shortcomings and irrationalities.

Just like Shel Silverstein in the ABZ BOOK, Edward Gorey suceeds once again because of the innocuous, sing-songy way he delivers his tales of doom and gloom. The Chinese Obelisks and the Beastly Baby are especially mean and rotten(the way we like it!)

Here's a little tribute to Edward Gorey: I tried to submit one earlier but I haven't set my Netscape preferences yet--so here goes:

A is for Abner who played with himself
B is for Betty, died lonesome in a shelf
C is for Catherine who slept with her cat
D is for Divine, who ate whole a bat.
E is for Eric, complained he was hot.
F is for Falstaff, who ate his own snot.
G is for Garret, cast out of his town
H is for Homer, whom God struck down.

Um, that's about it right now--I haven't really figured out the rest of this poenm, but as soon as I do, you'll be the first to know.

It's a little difficult, I guess my point would be, to follow in the footsteps of the great Edward Gorey, and I'm finding it, how shall I say, extremely embarrassing to even attempt to create some of my own.