Edgar Allan Poe: Complete Tales & Poems by Edgar Allan Poe Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Edgar Allan Poe: Complete Tales & Poems
Book Review: Gothic
Summary: 5 Stars
Before there was H.P. Lovecraft or Stephen King, there was Edgar Allen Poe. Despite his melodramatic literary tendencies, he is definitely one of the most important literary figures of his century and easily the greatest American writer of that century, more important even than Mark Twain. A truly fascinating writer, but his life was perhaps even more fascinating- one of those sick, tormented 19th century characters like Dante Gabriel Rossetti or Baron Corvo. However I should say that this writing is not for everyone and you have to have certain gothic tastes and a tolerance for the occasional absurdity if you want to read it. Aside from the horror tales, this collection also has his burlesques, and it helps to know French and Latin if you want to tread through those comfortably.Book Review: Simply Marvelous
Summary: 5 Stars
Edgar Allen Poe. I'm sure you have read his most famous of works, The Pit and the Pendelum, The Tell Tale Heart, the Raven etc. But who of you has ventured deeper into his writings? There are many of his lesser known works that will keep you glued to the couch for hours. Example: The Angel of the Odd. You may think you know Poe, but.... you really don't. This book also contains an introduction that was very interesting. I know much more now, some of which I wish I didn't learn. Excellent stories, excellent poems, excellent book.Book Review: Simply Marvelous
Summary: 5 Stars
Everyone has read Poe's most famous stories and poems. The Pit and the Pendelum, The Tell Tale Heart, The Raven etc. But few ever venture deeper into his lesser know works. The fact is that there are many other stories and poems which are equally impressive. And you don't need to be a horror fan, his stories are really more of a fantasy. He describes every little niche to the finest detail. So if you love his works but think you've read them all, I would suggest you buy this book. There are many stories and poems that you've have never heard of that will stay in your memory for quite some time. Personally, I found The Angel of the Odd to be quite exquisite.Book Review: Poe In my mind
Summary: 5 Stars
I read a few stories by Poe: they include "The Murders of the Rue Morgue," "The Raven," "The Tell Tale Heart," "The Cask of Amontillado," "The Gold Bug," and "The Fall of the House of Usher". I thought all of these stories are very interesting. As a junior in high school I thought I was going to have a very boring time reading Poe for a project we had to do for school. Surprisingly I was not bored with his writing style at all. Especially when I read "The Tell Tale Heart," which was by far my favorite story by Poe thus far. Poe brings you into his work rather slowly, but once you get past the first page or two he sucks you into his writings. When you read his stories you wonder how a person can think of these sorts of topics to write about. You realize Poe's mind was definitely not one track thinking, but very open to various themes. Poe's writings are good for anybody to read, especially if you are into sick and twisted stories.
Poe may not seem to be very much of a fright story writer nowadays, because we have so many movies with amazing special effects. But after you read Poe and realize what time he wrote in you think he is a pretty spooky writer.
In my mind Poe is an amazing author and I come from a generation where we have substituted movies for books. Poe is a must read author some time in your life, so take a minute and instead of watching Texas Chain Saw Massacre read one of Poe's stories and you will feel like you accomplished something more meaningful.
Book Review: What a tribute to "Lennore"!
Summary: 5 Stars
Poe has been in my library since my grade school days. And everytime I go back to him I always leave throughly impressed by Poe's ability to create a total effect in the mind of the reader with his prose and poetry. A good example of this is The Pit and the Pendulum, where our hero is subjected to the most vile psychological torture you can imagine. Every sentece leaves the reader no choice but to be horrified at the bleak conditions of the cell where the protagonist is kept. In The Cask of Amontillado, the fate of Fortunato is clear for the reader after the first paragraph, however the sheer brillance of Poe is in the execution. It is a perfect clock work, where each paragraph ineroxably leads to the next until the grim conclusion is reached. I wont give it away, but even after more than a dozen reads it still is spellbinding. For anybody interested in the Macabre, the Amazing or the plain creepy Poe is and always will be the master craftsmen!!