The Essential Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe

by Edgar Allan Poe, Benjamin Franklin Fisher (Editor)

The Essential Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe, by Edgar Allan Poe, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras.

Creator of the modern detective story, innovative architect of the horror genre, and a poet of extraordinary musicality, Edgar Allan Poe remains one of America's most popular and influential writers. His tales and poems brim with psychological depth, almost painful intensity, and unexpected—and surprisingly modern—flashes of dark humor and irony.

This anthology offers an exceptionally generous selection of Poe's short stories. It includes his famed masterpieces, such as "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" and "The Purloined Letter," featuring Poe's great detective, Dupin; his insightful studies of madness "The Black Cat" and "The Tell-Tale Heart"; "The Gold-Bug," his delightful exercise in "code-breaking"; and important but lesser-known tales, such as "Bon-Bon," "The Assignation," and "King Pest." Also included are some of Poe's most beloved poems, haunting lyrics of love and loss, such as "Annabel Lee," nightmare phantasmagories such as "The Raven," and his grand experiment in translating sound into words, "The Bells."

Benjamin F. Fisher, Professor of English, University of Mississippi, is a longtime enthusiast of the works of Poe. He has published books, articles, and notes about Poe, and in American, Victorian, and Gothic studies, and serves on editorial boards for several professional journals. He has also been acclaimed for outstanding teaching.

Genres: Classics, Poetry, Fiction, Horror, Short Stories, Literature, Gothic

688 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1843

About the author

The name Poe brings to mind images of murderers and madmen, premature burials, and mysterious women who return from the dead. His works have been in print since 1827 and include such literary classics as The Tell-Tale Heart, The Raven, and The Fall of the House of Usher. This versatile writer’s oeuvre includes short stories, poetry, a novel, a textbook, a book of scientific theory, and hundreds of essays and book reviews. He is widely acknowledged as the inventor of the modern detective story and an innovator in the science fiction genre, but he made his living as America’s first great literary critic and theoretician. Poe’s reputation today rests primarily on his tales of terror as well as on his haunting lyric poetry.

Just as the bizarre characters in Poe’s stories have captured the public imagination so too has Poe himself. He is seen as a morbid, mysterious figure lurking in the shadows of moonlit cemeteries or crumbling castles. This is the Poe of legend. But much of what we know about Poe is wrong, the product of a biography written by one of his enemies in an attempt to defame the author’s name.

The real Poe was born to traveling actors in Boston on January 19, 1809. Edgar was the second of three children. His other brother William Henry Leonard Poe would also become a poet before his early death, and Poe’s sister Rosalie Poe would grow up to teach penmanship at a Richmond girls’ school. Within three years of Poe’s birth both of his parents had died, and he was taken in by the wealthy tobacco merchant John Allan and his wife Frances Valentine Allan in Richmond, Virginia while Poe’s siblings went to live with other families. Mr. Allan would rear Poe to be a businessman and a Virginia gentleman, but Poe had dreams of being a writer in emulation of his childhood hero the British poet Lord Byron. Early poetic verses found written in a young Poe’s handwriting on the backs of Allan’s ledger sheets reveal how little interest Poe had in the tobacco business.

For more information, please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_al...

Reviews

[Roy Lotz · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Maven

Once, in winter, weary, I wanted to discuss a theory,
And so walked up to the classroom of my teacher, Lenore.
I started gently rapping, wondering if she wasn’t napping,
And then I heard the tapping of her feet across the floor;
The tap, tap, tap of high-heeled shoes across the floor
—And there stood my Lenore

“Oh, hello there,” she said yawning as I said to her “Good morning.
I have something I’d like to discuss with you, my dear Lenore.”
“Well sit down,” she said and went back to her desk; she looked so relaxed
As she collapsed into her large stuffed chair across the floor;
And the cushions gave out sighs like a fat man’s snore
—And there sat my Lenore.

“I think,” I said, so nervous that I found myself quite wordless,
“I think the writer you assigned us is a great big bore!”
“A bore!” she said, exclaiming, throwing up her hands, complaining
And then blaming me with a look of hatred and of war;
Yes, on her face I saw a veritable declaration of war
—On the face of my dear Lenore.

“He’s alright,” I said, fearing, trying to ignore her peering
And her sharp eyes which her anger did outpour.
“He’s just so dreary! All his stories make me weary,
And my theory is that he was morbid to the core.
Yes, I think Poe was a man morbid to the core!”
—I said this, and nothing more.

“You just don’t get it!” said she, irate.
“Just forget it! You’re as sensitive as that oaken door!"
"He was a genius!” she went on, “I mean, Jesus!
How could you ask for more?
How could a little, stupid high school student ask for more?”
—So said my Lenore.

“But," I said defensive, "in Poe, everything is sorrow and is woe
Why would I want to read a man who knows nothing more?
His stories are all the same, they all concern the insane
And the bane of life and love—I mean, what a chore!
Getting through a single story is a great big chore!”
—So said I to my Lenore.

And in a moment, in her anger, she sprang up, and I saw a dagger
Clutched in her hands, pulled from her table drawer.
And with a roar, she attacked, and I hastily went back
And with a whoosh and with a whack I quickly reached the door.
Yes—thank God!—I managed to reach the door!
—And escaped my dear Lenore.

But, one day, when in my study, I heard something rather funny,
Something funny coming suddenly from my chamber door.
I opened it and, with a start, I felt a dagger in my heart,
Which laid me down, inert, upon my chamber floor.
Over me stood the brooding figure of Lenore.
—Croaked the maven, "Nevermore."

[EmmK · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apezar de no gustarme casi nada los relatos cortos y los poemas, debo admitir que me gustaron mucho los cuantos E.A Por, están cargados de pesar, intriga, misterio, terror y si muy góticos.
El poder que tiene el autor de transmitir estás emociones es fascinante, la tensión que sientes por lo que pasará a los personajes es inquietante, me fascina que logre estos sentimientos en tan pocas páginas.

Entre mis favoritos esta obviamente "El cuervo", simplemente el sentimiento de perdida de Poe es palpable en cada estrofa al igual que el relato de "Leonor".

Otros relatos que disfrute son "Beatriz, El gato negro, El retrato oval y El corazón delator".

Un relato que me decepciono (por culpa de Netflix) es "La caída de la casa Usher", tenía grandes expectativas con el, pero si no hubiese visto la serie hubiera disfrutado mas la lectura.

En definitiva quiero leer otros relatos del autor, su literatura gótica es muy atractiva y solo quieres leer más de Poe (aunque tenga una visión pesimista de la vida).

[Kate♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

February 2020; read a handful of stories for my masters gothic literature class

October 2015;
The fall of the house of usher: 3/5stars
William Wilson: 5/5stars
The murders in the rue morgue: 2/5stars
The tell-tale heart: 5/5stars
The black cat: 4.5/5stars
The oblong box: 4/5stars
The man in the crowd: 3/5tars
The system of dr tarr and prof fether: 4/5atars

[Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has taken me years to finish. I found Poe to be a little to intense to read for weeks at a time. I started in in High School, forgot it for the first three years of College, and now I'm done.

One thing that I loved about Poe was the intensity and immersion he creates. I've never read a book or story before where I almost dreaded turning the page because I was afraid.

However, last story of this book was what nearly stopped me from finishing. The story was over 20 chapters long, and you would read page after page of how boats work and where they were in the ocean, and then suddenly something dreadful would happen with no foreshadowing or warning.

Still, I especially enjoyed the poetry, and may look it over again before I pack this away onto my shelves.

[Xristina Karvouni · Rating 4 out of 5]

A haunting collection of short stories regarding gothic imagination. Poe’s stories blend beauty and horror with unmatched precision, reflecting the depths of the human mind. From The Tell-Tale Heart to The Pit and the Pendulum every page lingers long after you’ve finished. A timeless classic for lovers of mystery, madness, and melancholy, suitable for cozy season.

"...the agony of my soul found vent in one loud, long and final scream of despair."

[Federico DN · Rating 3 out of 5]

Essential Indeed.

The must read essential short stories and poems by all-mighty Edgar Allan Poe, grandfather of anything horror.

Having read almost all the bibliography by master Poe, and setting aside some personal preferences, I must say this is indeed (add a few take a few) one of the best collection and true essential writings anyone should read by the author. Anything else is just a bonus, or a penalty, depending the case. At least regarding the short stories! Don’t mind my ratings on the poems, I just can’t stand them in general, regardless of the author, Poe not being the exception.

Go for the Best, consider the Good, whatever the Meh.

The Best :
★★★★★ “Berenice.” [4.5]
★★★★☆ “The Black Cat.”
★★★★☆ "The Fall of the House of Usher." [3.5]
★★★★☆ “The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket.” [3.5]
★★★★☆ “The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether.” [3.5]
★★★★☆ “Hop-Frog.” [3.5]

The Good :
★★★☆☆ "The Tell-Tale Heart." [3.5]
★★★☆☆ “Morella.”
★★★☆☆ “Ligeia.”
★★★☆☆ “The Cask of Amontillado.”
★★★☆☆ “The Masque of the Red Death.”
★★★☆☆ “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar.”
★★★☆☆ “Eleonora.”
★★★☆☆ “The Premature Burial.”
★★★☆☆ “The Pit and the Pendulum.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “The Murders in the Rue Morgue.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “A Descent into the Maelström.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ "Thou Art the Man." [2.5]
★★★☆☆ "The Sphinx." [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “The Oblong Box.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “The Purloined Letter.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “MS. Found in a Bottle.” [2.5]

The Meh :
★★☆☆☆ “King Pest.” [2.5]
★★☆☆☆ “A Predicament.” [2.5]
★★☆☆☆ “William Wilson.”
★★☆☆☆ “Metzengerstein.”
★★☆☆☆ “Never Bet the Devil Your Head.”
★★☆☆☆ “The Gold-Bug.”
★★☆☆☆ “A Tale of the Ragged Mountains.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “How to Write a Blackwood Article.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “The Assignation.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “Bon-Bon.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “Shadow—A Parable.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “Silence—A Fable.”

POEMS :
★★☆☆☆ "The Raven."
★★☆☆☆ “Annabel Lee.” [1.5]
☆☆☆☆☆ “To Helen, Dream-Land, Israfel, The City in the Sea, The Lake-To, The Sleeper, Eldorado, The Valley of Unrest, Ulalume-A Ballad, Sonnet-To Science, The Bells, Fairy-Land, The Coliseum, A Dream within a Dream, Sonnet-Silence.”

It’s public domain. You can find it
----- Vol 1. HERE, ----- Vol 2. HERE,
----- Vol 3. HERE, ----- Vol 4. HERE,
----- Vol 5. HERE.

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PERSONAL NOTE :
[1843] [688p] [Collection] [Recommendable]
-----------------------------------------------

★★★☆☆ The Essential Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe
★★☆☆☆ The Complete Stories and Poems
★★★☆☆ The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Writings
★★★☆☆ The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Tales
★☆☆☆☆ The Raven and Other Poems

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Verdaderamente Esencial.

La lectura debida de los cuentos y poemas esenciales del todopoderoso Edgar Allan Poe, gran abuelo de todo lo horroroso.

Habiendo leído casi la totalidad de la bibliografía del maestro Poe, y dejando de lado ciertas preferencias personales, puedo decir que esta es verdaderamente (añade un par quita un par) la mejor colección y en efecto esenciales escritos que cualquiera debería leer del autor. Cualquier otra cosa es un extra, o un castigo, dependiendo el caso ¡Al menos con respecto a los cuentos cortos! No le presten atención a mi calificación de los poemas, en general no puedo soportarlos, independientemente del autor, Poe no siendo la excepción.

Ir por lo Mejor, considerar lo Bueno, loquesea lo Meh.

Lo Mejor :
★★★★★ “Berenice.” [4.5]
★★★★☆ “El Gato Negro.”
★★★★☆ “El Hundimiento de la Casa de Usher.” [3.5]
★★★★☆ “La Narrativa de A. Gordon Pym.” [3.5]
★★★★☆ “El Método del Doctor Alquitrán y del Profesor Trapaza.” [3.5]
★★★★☆ “Hop-Frog.” [3.5]

Lo Bueno :
★★★☆☆ “El Corazón Revelador.” [3.5]
★★★☆☆ “Morella.”
★★★☆☆ “Ligeia.”
★★★☆☆ “El Barril de Amontillado.”
★★★☆☆ “La Máscara de la Muerte Roja.”
★★★☆☆ “El Caso del Señor Valdemar.”
★★★☆☆ “Eleonora.”
★★★☆☆ “El Enterramiento Prematuro.”
★★★☆☆ “El Pozo y el Péndulo.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “Los Crímenes de la Rue Morgue.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “Un Descenso Dentro del Maelstrom.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “Tú Has Sido.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ "La Esfinge." [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “El Cajón Oblongo.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “La Carta Robada.” [2.5]
★★★☆☆ “Manuscrito Hallado en una Botella.” [2.5]

Lo Meh :
★★☆☆☆ “El Rey Peste.” [2.5]
★★☆☆☆ “Un Predicamento.” [2.5]
★★☆☆☆ “William Wilson.”
★★☆☆☆ “Metzengerstein.”
★★☆☆☆ “Nunca Apuestes la Cabeza al Diablo.”
★★☆☆☆ ”El Escarabajo de Oro.”
★★☆☆☆ “Una Historia de las Montañas Ragged.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “Cómo Escribir un Artículo al Estilo de Blackwood.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “La Cita.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “Bon-Bon.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “Sombra—Una Parábola.” [1.5]
★☆☆☆☆ “Silencio—Una Fábula.”

POEMAS :
★★☆☆☆ "El Cuervo."
★★☆☆☆ “Annabel Lee.” [1.5]
☆☆☆☆☆ “Para Helen, País de los Sueños, Israfel, La Ciudad en el Mar, El Lago- Hasta, El Durmiente, Eldorado, El Valle del Malestar, Ulalume- Una Balada, Soneto- A la Ciencia, Las Campanas, El País de las Hadas, El Coliseo, Un Sueño Dentro de un Sueño, Soneto- Silencio.”

Es dominio público, lo pueden encontrar
----- Vol 1. ACA, ----- Vol 2. ACA,
----- Vol 3. ACA, ----- Vol 4. ACA,
----- Vol 5. ACA.

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NOTA PERSONAL :
[1843] [688p] [Colección] [Recomendable]
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[Davis Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poe is one of those writers whose work has so thoroughly permeated our culture—and become so popular among otherwise non-literary folk—that it's very easy to forget that he was an incredible genius. There simply is no other single writer who has been more influential in developing so many new ways forward not only for literature, but for art. Even more remarkable considering his body of work is so modest. He was the first Aestheticist to write in English, bringing an errant dream-like sensibility to fiction that had simply never been seen; the first purveyor of detective fiction (though I think those stories are by far his weakest), the first author in the modern genres of horror and the psychological thriller—it goes on. Even more exhaustive is the list of great artists and movements that are unthinkable without him: the Dark Romanticism of Hawthorne and Melville, French Symbolist decadence, German Expressionism, Surrealism, sci-fi, the great films of Alfred Hitchcock.

But paradoxically, Poe is absolutely inimitable. He demonstrates how to write a tale with no obvious messages or intentions without veering into empty solipsism. He doesn't tell stories; he creates moods and moments, with each of his words a miniature brushstroke. Read, say, The Cask of Amontillado and The Tell-Tale Heart through this lens. They become perfect pieces of literary art. What is their "point"? I'm not sure even Poe knew. You have to experience them more as musical compositions. This is even more so for his pure Aestheticist stories like "The Masque of the Red Death," "Shadow," "Silence", all of his poetry, and the great early trio of "Berenice," "Morella", and "Ligeia". You can read about his literary manifesto in "The Poetic Principle", but ultimately you have to read him apart from any criticism or anyone but himself. He is almost completely separate from any prior tradition. Don't let his reputation as a mere macabre goosebump purveyor fool you—the strange and often hideous beauty of his imagination is exceptional.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

UPDATED: 4/17/2015, 4/18/2015, 4/19/2015, 4/20/2015
Anytime I have said 7th grade, it was really 8th grade.


FINALLY. I HAVE DONE IT. I HAVE FINISHED. I KNOW. I SPENT THREE-FOUR MONTHS ON THIS THING, AND IT'S NOT EVEN THE WHOLE COLLECTION!!!

I decided to write notes and give stars to each and every poem and story contained within this book.
Those will be typed up later.

It's later. Literally minutes later.
I started reading Edgar Allan Poe's poems in early January while reading A Series of Unfortunate Events. That obviously didn't work so well as I completely abandoned Edgar Allan Poe to finish the story of the Baudelaires. Yeah, if I can help it, I prefer to read one book at a time. I don't know what that says about me. That I can't split my focus? Hm?
I'm glad I took notes. I'm bad at remembering things, even if I did focus on it. That to me is scary. I'm sure I liked a lot of passages and quotes and characters that I have no idea I like.
Also, since it's been a long time, maybe my thoughts changed, surely my thoughts changed on every poem and story contained within this collections.
Okay, let me just get on with it. This is going to be quite long.

Whatever is in quotes are my thoughts on that day that I read whatever I read. The rest are any comments now.

Poems

The Lake-To-, Stars: **
"Fine."
So many interpretations on this poem - doing a quick search. I love how everyone sees something different in whatever they read. Still, two stars.

Sonnet-To Science, Stars: **
Yup, I definitely read this in school with my questionable 7th grade English teacher (reminder to change every reference to him to 7th grade, not 8th grade - for some reason 8th grade seemed to fit him and registered in my mind as such). Another quick search refreshed my memory about science v. art. The Enlightenment v. the Romantic movement. That I remember learning about in high school. And I've also read about a year ago Robert K. Massie's Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman, and of course that was filled with Enlightenment principles (which I kind of forgot about(quick search: ah, yes, the movement away from the spiritual and towards reason, advances in mathematics and science, democracy, individualism, in-born rights, 1700s, Marie Antoinette, Catherine the Great, Voltaire, deism, separation of power, Johannes Kepler, astronomy - Yeah, that Age was cool. And the Romantic?? Of which I know less about?? Quick search: reason can not explain everything, Victor Hugo (oh shit, the coolness of the Enlightenment may have lost me), Frankenstein (I have to reread that one), questions of absolute good and absolute evil, okay - got it)).
So Poe wasn't really a fan of the Scientific Revolution? Oh Poe, the more we discover the more we can wonder!!

Fairy-land, Stars: **
(Wrote nothing but the title).

Israfel, Stars: ****
(A star is drawn write next to the title of the poem in the book and the same thing on my post-it note. It means I liked this one and to pay attention. I also liked the last two stanzas.)
"too perfect, moralistic
-page 12 flowers are merely flowers
- might not do so well on earth with his pure heart, but a mortal's lyre will work well in the sky."
Yup. I like it.
Quick search: Regrets. Read that someone read that Poe was arrogant and talking about himself. *Reads poem over again.* Shit.
But, no! That won't ruin it for me!

To Helen, Stars: **
I wrote nothing. Not even the title.

The Sleeper, Stars: **
"Meh."
I think I also read this one in 7th grade.

The Valley of Unrest, Stars: **
Only wrote the title.

The City in the Sea, Stars: **
Only wrote the title.

The Coliseum, Stars: **
Didn't even write the title.

Sonnet-Silence, Stars: **
Again nothing.

Dream-land, Stars: **
(This one has a star next to it that I drew on the book and on the post-it).
"dreams 22-23"
*Rereads poem.* At first I thought, Stephanie, why? And then I saw my note and it came to me. You see, when I just read it, I automatically thought DEATH. But, clearly this is Dream-land. Dreams. I didn't indicate what I especially liked about it, but I'm pretty sure I may have glanced twice at "For the heart whose woes are legion" and "I have wandered home but newly" from "I have reached these lands but newly." Yes, very much like.

The Raven, Stars: ***** (Why not?)
(It has a star on both book and post-it with an additional comment of "well, duh," because well, duh).
"and his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming."
This is the poem that Mr. Edgar Allan Poe is known for. Every child that has gone to school in America, in the ol' US of A, has at the very least heard of this poem. Unless it's a very, um, religious school I guess? Almost every schoolchild has had to analyze this poem why? Because it is spectacular. In all sense of the word.
I remember particularly the English teacher going over this particular line, "And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor." Emphasis on ghost. Why? Maybe to torture us? To make some of us into Poes so we can write our own cryptic poems? Said the teacher, "you will remember this forevermore."
I'm debating if whether I really want to give it five stars (what about Israfel? HMMMMMMMM?), or because I've been groomed to think that it's good, or because I'm in a gothic mood currently.

Ulalume: A Ballad, Stars: ****
"maybe" - Thanks, Stephanie.
*quick read.* *quick search: Found this site: http://www.shmoop.com/ulalume/summary... and it's awesome. I realize that I need to spend more time with these poems. I'm only looking at surface level, which is a good start, but not enough. I'm definitely rusty. If there was some literature club led by a professor, I'd totally go to it.
I think I have read this one in 7th grade too. That teacher-man spent at least 6 months of the school year talking about Edgar Allan Poe.

The Bells, Stars: **
Wrote neither comments nor the title.

A Dream within a Dream, Stars: ***
"You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;"
*quick reread.* INCEPTION. Crazy to think I might have read this without any knowledge that a movie like that would come out and instead of thinking about the poem from the movie, I think about the movie from the poem. That does kind of suck.

Eldorado, Stars: **
Wrote nothing, nothing, nothing.

Annabel Lee, Stars: *****
(Did I write "dick," "duck," or "click" next to the title on my post-it, and why? And also, I know I like this poem, why didn't I mark it??)
"and this maiden lived with no other thought
than to love and be loved by me"
*quick reread.* So simple, so safe. Of course. Another movie, well, two movies come to mind when reading this poem. The first makes more sense, Holes. It has been some time, let me tell you, since I sat down and read Edgar Allan Poe. I've had this book sitting on my shelf since I'm guessing high school, and the last time I remember hearing about Poe in a classroom setting was, again, in 7th grade. TV is both a wonderful and evil thing. Usually I just let it play in the background on some channel while I do other thing that are not reading. Sometimes, or often, channels like to repeat their programs. What movie plays almost constantly for a couple or months maybe every few years or so on one of those channels I let the remote sleep on? Holes. Holes is also a book that I read with the class towards the end of 6th grade. We also had the whole theater to ourselves when the movie was released. Why am I mentioning it? Because in this movie, in a small little scene, Miss Patricia Arquette recites to one of her students, "I was a child and she was a child/In this kingdom by the sea-" and then her soon-to-be-lover cuts her off and surprisingly recites, "But we loved with a love that was more than love/I and my ANNABEL LEE;" and Miss Arquette, "Oh, Sam." Oh, Sam indeed. I really do like that movie. So one day it was playing, and at that time I also had an enormous crush on someone I worked with, heard the lines, typed the lines into Google - lo, and behold! Edgar Allan Poe. That was three years ago. The other movie is Tim Burton's Dark Shadows. I don't know. Don't ask. Well, I guess the cliff thing, and ghostly paleness, and tombs and stuff like that reminds me of the poem. There is no point to all of this.

4/18/2015 Next time, when I read a large book like this, I will review each poem/chapter/whatever section on the day that I finish it. It does wound me that I have difficulty remembering even the passages I really enjoyed. I feel like I have to reread and research better to give Edgar Allan Poe justice.

Tales
*Reminder that anything in quotes are notes I took while reading.

Metzengerstein, Stars: ****
"vs. Berlifitzing
I liked it. reminded me of the headless horseman. - even
and picture of dorian gray
though
mentions this rivalry. painting
of a horse. stables on fire
a horse - evil horse."
I remember being surprised that I actually really liked it. It was a good way to start Tales. I thought it was quite a simple horror story. I like the combination of rivaling families, war, paintings, fire, horses, madmen - it's a good combination. Compared to other works that I spent months reading, this one does stick in my mind.

Bon-Bon, Stars: **
I simply wrote, "non-non. I suppose I didn't like it.

MS. Found in a Bottle, Stars: **
"a guy on a ship, a storm.
survives the swede. another
ship crashes into ship. goes
to South Pole."
Eh. I remember pieces of this one. It was okay.

The Assignation, Stars: **
"Venice. narrator Marchesa di
Mentoni + friend commit suicide"
Eh.

Shadow-A Parable, Stars: **
Wrote nothing, not even the title.

Silence-A Fable, Stars: **
Same.
It has to take a lot for me to give a piece of literature one star. I would have to have a severe adverse reaction. Two stars are just fine and acceptable. No regrets. I suppose that is worse than having a reaction, having NO reaction, but hey. *shrugs and moves on.*

Berenice, Stars: ****
(a star next to this one, means I liked it)"narrators OCD, fixated on a perfume
Berenice, once beautiful - struck
by disease - now ugly. cousins
-except for her teeth monomania. concentrate
on one thought
-gets the teeth."
Hahahaha! "Gets the teeth," indeed. Poe's male characters almost always seem to have certain fixations or quirks that make the character enjoyable. Those fixations seem to help set the tone of the story. I love it. Is he crazy? Is it simply a horror story? Elements of both? Yes, I enjoyed this one.

Morella, Stars: **
"narrator becomes entranced
by Morella (but as time goes by
*ahem* she gets older) he wants her
to die. She dies + gives birth to
a girl. nightmare came true
find can't escape her as she is reborn
through her daughter."
Fine.

King Pest, Stars: ****
(a star next to this one) "2 seamen during time of Plague.
undertaker shop. meets King Pest.
waving a thigh bone, with his
royal consorts, drinks alcohol out of
skulls - as drunk as they are laugh + stare
stops the women - killed the men."
I remember pieces of this one as well. Very macabre.

I think I'm being too stingy with my stars. Just know that four stars mean I really, really, really liked it. For some reason I may be saving the five stars for one particular story.

Ligeia, Stars: **
"narrator takes the death of
his beautiful, intelligent
passionate wife hard
gets addicted to opium
marries Lady Rowena Trevanion,
of Tremaine, They hate each other.
becomes sick + hears things.
Marriage of money senses spirit. dies
comes back to life after thinking about Ligeia."
Erryone miserable. As I was flipping through that story in my volume, I noticed I marked a passage I liked in faint pencil. Commit, Stephanie. Worried that I did that to the other stories before, I quickly skimmed those pages but it seemed that passage was the only one that was marked so far.

How to Write a Blackwood Article, Stars: **
"Signora Psyche Zenobia, not
Suky Snobbs - odd clothing
wanted to write well, gets advice
from Mr. Blackwood - publishes
gothic stories. - tells her to
get into a scrape - such as
getting into an oven . oh, we
all know this is going to go spectacularly
well. drown in a gutter, take questionable
pills, etc, + other writing tips."
I think this is Poe having fun. The next story is the one Zenobia comes up with.

A Predicament, Stars: **
"Zenobia
completely botches it
Oh, lord."
I think I remember it being a complete mess. Gets stuck in a clock, I'm pretty sure?

Finally, I start to write the dates on when I read stories.

"3/16/15 12:20 a.m.
I know, it's been a long time
things happen, what more can I say."

The Fall of the House of Usher, Stars: *****
"His words are fantastic!
a wonderful feeling when you just
know you will love it
((illegible)) cut out done things
yes, good + creepy
I do remember the house collapsing,
but how could I forget ((illegible))"
Yup. If I had been saving five stars for the most special one, this one is it. Of course I read this one in 7th grade. I remember spending a lot of the time analyzing the beginning of the story, not so much the end. I really do like classes that analyze works - I feel like I'm such a poor reader when I'm not analyzing at the level I do when required and led to by class. But 7th grade was awful and that teacher was a dickhead.
You know when you read a few sentences of a story and you just know you are going to enjoy it - that's how I felt. In fact I think I put up so long with reading this one because I wanted all my life conditions to be right so that I paid extra-special attention on this one. The thing is that when I read, I have to have certain things in my life in order. It's very difficult for me to focus if I'm worried about a class, didn't exercise, have a messy room, so on. It was a long time before I felt it was acceptable to read it. Does anyone else get like this?
If I could rip out the pages of this book, photocopy and maximize the size of the writing, and paste it all over my walls, I would.

"3/17/15"
William Wilson, Stars: **
"Edgar Allan Poe. wrong words, wrong lines.
I don't know a lot about opium,
but I guess that Mr. Poe had
very bad experiences on it
I like poppy seeds
I think the reason it was so ((illegible)) to
((illegible)) is that you really have to
((illegible)) yourself in it, which is great,
but in small doses
Calls himself William Wilson
a troublemaker, did something bad
another boy has the same name -
((illegible)) of the boy, except for this one boy
-same birthday, people thought brothers
-copies him, although not a strong voice
doesn't quite know what to make of him
equal match - perhaps even more
clever + wittier - could be his own mind
debaucherous thinks very highly of himself
spooked, left school
rambunctious? Glendinning rich parvenu"
I may have lost a post-it. Eh.
Oh, yeah, by this point, I noticed that the editor, Benjamin F. Fisher, totally calls Poe out for misquoting things and making up quotes throughout this volume. Also calls Poe out on using big words to make his writing seem more elevated. Dude, I can relate.

The Murders in the Rue Morgue, Stars: ***
"C. August Dupin + narrator
Caesar Augustus Dupin ((I indicated here three stars. I'm finally giving stars to things as I read them.))
A vicious double murder occured
smashed up the chimney
((illegible)) + bones broken head slice off
in a very Sherlock way
Madame L'Espanaye + Camille??
kept reading, almost exactly
-have to read up on it"
What I was blubbering about in my notes is that this detective story had a very similar feel to Sherlock. In research, I have discovered that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was inspired by Poe's Monsieur Caesar Augustus Dupin. It made me happy. It always interests me which authors like other authors and which ones they don't. I'd like to do more research about Poe and who inspired him and who he inspired, but it makes me anxious about how much research I would have to do only to forget it all as I usually do in the future.

"3/19/15"
A Decent into the Maelström, Stars: **
No stars, no nothing, just the title. Is this the one where the guy takes him to the edge of the cliff or that whirlpool thing. Both only two stars.

Ah, here it is.
"3/20/15 checked day before
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was influenced
by Mr. Edgar Allan Poe.
just one idea into a beloved detective.
does Sherlock qualify as fanfiction?
((illegible)). again.

And here I continue with a review of Maelström??
"batten down the hatches
a man tells narrator
the story of a whirlpool + a hurricane
+ how he survived it."
Yay, I was right, but it was one story. Still two stars indicated.
*quick search: I was unsure, but I was right. A maelström is a whirlpool. batten down the hatches, idiom = prepare for trouble. Now I know.

"3/21/15"
Never Bet the Devil Your Head: A Tale with a Moral, Stars:**
"'assume now in Purgatory for that
assumption'" hahaha? 245
what am I reading? funny? seems snarky
damn, taking no prisoners insults authors
+ poets he's already criticized in the negatively
in the past. Toby Dammit.
Okay. - says bet the Devil his
head. lost his head. a moral to
the story, sells it for dog meat."
The first and second sentences are the ones I'm referring to on page 245. I was a bit confused. This one seems different from the Poe everyone thinks about when they think of Poe. Did not indicate how many stars.

"3/22/15"
Eleanora, Stars: **
"225 paragraph
narrator(20) Eleanora(15) live in this
eden - like hill alley ((hill alley??? I don't know))
she dies + makes a promise to never
love someone else. falls in love w/ someone else
after living + being true."
Happy ending? In a Poe story?! Blasphemous.


Continued review in the comments

[Trish · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poe is such an October mood/aesthetic. He is October personified.

[su ୨୧ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐

[rylie · Rating 5 out of 5]

spooky season is over :( i'll come back to these next year, but heres the one's i read for this october!!

Short stories:

Ms. found in a bottle: I spent the whole time reading this thinking there was some deeper meaning that I was missing. Turns out, it was about exactly what I thought it was.

The tell-tale heart: my sister talks about this every time I mention poe, and surprisingly I hadn’t read this one yet? One of my favs I think, I was very engaged the whole time

The pit and the pendulum: I remembered reading this in high school, and I was thinking it had something to do w the Spanish inquisition. And then I was like wait that makes no sense its poe, but… I was right. Very suspenseful and such a good halloween read.

The mask of red death: love a good gothic masquerade ball as the nobles try to avoid the plague, wish this would’ve been me in 2020.

The Murders in the rue morgue: im not gonna lie I read this one bc of bungo stray dogs. Good halloween read <3

Poems:
The raven: a classic. I’d read this one before as a kid, but I don’t think I really understood or remembered it well.

To Helen & Alone: both these poems are about dead moms (I think?) so that’s cool I guess. I’m so bad at reading poetry

The haunted palace: I had to look up what this one actually meant bc there’s so much imagery I had no idea what was going on. I really liked on it once I understood it though!!

Annabelle lee: I know all the lore behind this poem because I once was on a ghost tour and the tour guide recited it by memory and told us the entire history. 10/10 for that reason. (Simon, if you’re reading this, u rock).

[Elise · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the horror tales with which I was already familiar: Berenice, Morella, Ligeia, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Masque of the Red Death, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Premature Burial, and The Cask of Amontillado. Berenice is definitely the best one, but overall a good creepy time.

[Jacob]

Its a slow read and you must have a dictionary by your side. I've read not quite half, and I have to say that Poe is one of my favorite authors.

[Husti Georgian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity.

I always saw great quotes by Edgar Allan Poe and thought of him as a very interesting author. I was definitely excited about his books. He is considered the inventor of the detective fiction genre, as well as a significant contributor to the then-emerging genre of science fiction. These are two, if not the two, of my most favored genres. While I do appreciate the historic significance and importance this author holds, it felt a bit dated for me. His detective stories, while undoubtedly competent, felt more like an earlier take on Sherlock Holmes. Is it fair to judge his work based on what came after? Probably not. However, while I acknowledge his contribution, I can't exactly force myself to like his work, shame as it is.

“All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream.”

My favorite short story by him is perhaps "The Masque of the Red Death." It's beautifully written and works really well if you don't take it too literally but approach it in a more allegorical way. It also showcases some of his best writing.

[readingsprints_and_chaisips · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed Poe's writing and tone so much. It's very dark and gothic. Even the love poems. And now that I know that Ravens can actually "mimic" speech?! Amazing!

The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket by Poe (1836), however... Nope. Not for me. It does remind of Moby Dick by Herman Melville (1851) which I am also currently reading (2015). And that makes sense as well, now knowing that Poe was an inspiration for many authors. I recommend reading his work.

[NJ :) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Speaking as someone who is not a literary scholar in any capacity, I found Poe to be a tad overrated.

Please don’t misunderstand.
I love Poe. You could call me an Edgar Allen Hoe.

But I believe that he only gained popularity because of the edginess, the grit, and general darkness of his stories and poetry. Not his writing style, which I found to be a little bland.

Nonetheless, I adore the dark and creepy so I still enjoyed this collection, but I think that his most popular works (The Telltale Heart, The Raven, etc.) are his most popular for a reason. They are his best, his darkest, and most interesting.

I also found that his poetry held my attention better than his prose, but that could be because I decided to read this collection as a book from beginning to end, as a whole instead of revisiting every so often.

But 10/10 for creepy.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

It really is a pity the stories aren't rated individually, because the second half of the collection of stories was superb. The first half seemed rather incomplete, like Poe got bored writing them and hastily concluded them. As for the poems, I did not care for most of them. My favorite poem from the collection, "The Raven", seemed to be written in an entirely different way than the other poems. Altogether, I highly recommend this work. It contains a little bit of many things - not only poetry and short stories, but mysteries and horror. I really enjoyed it overall.

[Nostalgia Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

See my status updates for brief reviews/thoughts on all the stories.

Poe is simultaneously a bore and a slog to read through, but his tropes and his endings and his satire is just SO DAMN GOOD. These are presented in the order in which they were published, and you can definitely see his style become more succinct, effective, and horrific (or satiric, depending on the context) as you read through them. There's definitely a reason most of my absolute favorites are ones that are in the latter half of the collection.

[Cynda is still foggy after knee surgery. · Rating 3 out of 5]

An essential collection would have to include the only novel Poe wrote, -The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym-. Brutish read. Have tried several times. No good. Not the fault of the collector and publisher.
I have to rate the collection. Enjoyed a large majority of the other stories, not only my usual favorietes, but particularly "King Pest". Because I so enjoyed some new favorite Poe stories and would not have found them otherwise, or unlikey, I will rate this collection 3 stars.

[Ashton · Rating 2 out of 5]

If this were really the "essentials" of Poe, this book would be significantly shorter. You've already heard of and read the essential Poe. He has five or six good stories and the rest are just pseudo-intellectualist drivel. Poe really thought if he threw in enough random and irrelevant French and Latin people would think "Wow, this guy is so smart and well traveled!" but it just makes him look like more of a try-hard than anything else.

[Alissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ONLY reason I gave it three stars is because I'm just not a fan of horror stories. I think Poe is one of the greatest writers of his time and his poetry is genius. I just can't always read his subject matter.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

You can only read so much of Poe if you aren't all Gothic thinking and a horror story fan. I was into it, until I wasn't. Then I was done.

[aya · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretentious and badly written, his fame is due to shock-factor writing and taboo topics. also racist. masque of the red death and fall of the house of usher was good though.

[Stacey (Bookalorian) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Had a Poe day. This one is always a top one for me

[Arian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This took a while to finish but it was so worth it. Had to deal with some stuffs so last two months were extremely slow but I pulled through. This was fun.

[Paulina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sytuacja wygląda tak, że za nic nie mogę znaleźć swojego wydania tej książki więc biorę to, bo większość opowiadań się zgadza i ilość stron jest podobna xdddd

Średnia: 4.0🌟 - ogólnie mega podoba mi się twórczość Poe. Co prawda były opowiadania, które kompletnie do mnie nie trafiły, ale gdzieś zginęły przy reszcie. Najbardziej chyba zapadły mi w pamięć: Eleonora, Annabel Lee, Morella, Ligeia i upadek domu Usherów. Natomiast co do trylogii opowieści kryminalnych - widać czym się Arthur C. Doyle inspirował 🤭.


5/5🌟 ~ The Tell-Tale Heart, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Fall of the House of Usher, Mystery of Marie Rogêt, Annabele Lee, Silence: A fable, Ulalume, Bridal Ballad, Shadow: A Parable, The Conqueror Worm, Morning on the Wissahiccon

4.5/5🌟 ~ The Oval Portrait, Ligeia, Eleonora, Morella

4/5🌟 ~ The Black Cat, Berenice, The Purloined Letter, The Devil in the Belfry, William Wilson, The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, The Raven, The Island of the Fay, To One in Paradise, Israfel, The Man of the Crowd, Never Bet the Devil Your Head

3.5/5🌟 ~ The Pit and the Pendulum, The Cask of Amontillado, MS. Found in a Bottle,

3/5🌟 ~ Hop-Frog, The Masque of the Red Death, The Gold-Bug, Metzengerstein, The Bells, The Colloquy of Monos and Una, A Tale of Jerusalem, The Sphinx

2/5🌟 ~ King Pest, The Business Man

[Alireza · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. “
“'Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door—
Only this, and nothing more.”

---

“In the deepest slumber-no! In delirium-no! In a swoon-no! In death-no! even in the grave all is not lost.”

---

“Who has not, a hundred times, found himself committing a vile or silly action for no other reason than because he knows he should not? Have we not a perpetual inclination, in the teeth of our best judgement, to violate that which is Law, merely because we understand it to be such?”

---

“I continued, as was my wont, to smile in his face, and he did not perceive that my smile now was at the thought of his immolation.”

[Colby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a long read! Over 650 pages of all things Poe: his short horror stories, his detective serials, his poems, his sole completed novel, his essays and non-fiction, and lengthy introductions, footnotes, biographies, and essays on Poe’s influence. I know I’m going to be cracking open my edition of this every year, if only to re-read some of my favorite works. There were so many five star stories here that I really loved. In no particular order, my top 10 stories were:

MS. Found in a Bottle
William Wilson
The Murders in the Rue Morgue
A Descent Into the Maelstrom
The Masque of the Red Death
The Pit and the Pendulum
The Tell-Tale Heart
The Gold Bug
The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket
Hop-Frog

[Alin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I will pester everyone I know into reading The Black Cat and The Tell-tale Heart, and a couple of the poems.

I had always known as a teenager that I loved short horror stories, but I really fell in love with his. Before that, I would listen marveled to random friends telling ghost stories in the evenings. We have a similarly weirdly cold and dark poet in Romania as well, Bacovia, whose poems I also immediately loved.

Be advised, this wasn't mandatory reading for me, being a Romanian, but I happened to hear about and read him in high-school.

[Avery (ThePagemaster) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every time, around October/Halloween, I read Edgar Allan Poe. I've read a good portion of his stories and all of his poems, but I tried my best to read ALL of Poe's works, or at least, his lesser known works. Though, I haven't succeeded this year, it still feels nice to read Poe--who I consider, my favorite writer of all time.