The Anti-Irish Sentiments of H. P. Lovecraft
Nov25

The Anti-Irish Sentiments of H. P. Lovecraft

‘Criminals and Mongrel Wretches’: The Anti-Irish Sentiments of H. P. Lovecraft   From the Chicago ‘Irish American News’, November 2017     Well now, I’m not the better for that!  In fact, I’m almost sorry that I came across this correspondence from 1918/20. You see, I’ve been a lifelong devotee of the writings of Howard Phillips Lovecraft (1890 – 1937) of New England.  When I was a schoolboy in the 60s and 70s he was pretty much...

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Providence Act 2
Jul10

Providence Act 2

Providence Act 2   “There’s no gettin’ out.  Where I’m from, everything’s like me.” — Brown Jenkin     Seamus, down at Galway’s excellent Sub-City Comics doesn’t overly care for Alan Moore.  And the main reason appears to be Moore’s many depictions of rape in his work.  The writer has explained his reasons for that, but Seamus isn’t buying it. So when I was finished reading Providence Act 1 I was happy to let him know...

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Providence  Act 1
Jun28

Providence Act 1

Providence Act 1   This piece is currently in The Lovecraft eZine   This is an overview and as such contains minor spoilers     “Today began with one of those blue skies that seems so perfect it can only go on to betray you horribly.” – Robert Black’s Commonplace Book   It’s many a long year since I bought an individual comic-book.  In fact it may be decades, more like.  There’s a fair chance that any interesting long run these...

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Robert E Howard – Black Hounds of Death
Nov16

Robert E Howard – Black Hounds of Death

Black Hounds of Death The Weird Works of Robert E. Howard, Volume 9 Edited by Paul Herman Part Two   These ongoing pieces are overviews rather than reviews and therefore contain spoilers galore.     “Many of us sometimes wonder what Howard would have done if he had continued to write for the rest of his life, whether he would have continued writing pulp stories – westerns, boxing yarns, oriental tales, and supernatural adventure – or...

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Black Hounds of Death : The Weird Works of Robert E. Howard, Volume 9
Oct25

Black Hounds of Death : The Weird Works of Robert E. Howard, Volume 9

Black Hounds of Death The Weird Works of Robert E. Howard, Volume 9 Edited by Paul Herman Part One   These ongoing pieces are overviews rather than reviews and therefore contain spoilers galore     Regular readers of these little ponderings will know how utterly weary I get when that bogeyman buzzword of our time – ‘racism’ – is thrown out.  So you can imagine the deep sigh I’m breathing as I approach Robert E. Howard’s most...

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The Starry Wisdom : A Tribute to H. P. Lovecraft
Oct05

The Starry Wisdom : A Tribute to H. P. Lovecraft

The Starry Wisdom A Tribute to H. P. Lovecraft Edited by D. M. Mitchell   An Occasional Look at Lovecraftian Anthologies: 8   Do you like wallowing in other people’s shit?  No, I’m serious.  Is your particular satisfaction based on getting right down there and rolling around in the excreted waste of others?  Or reading loving descriptions of the same? How about descriptions of male and female genitalia so extreme that they are more...

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