The Call of Cthulhu

H.P. Lovecraft for Beginning Readers

by R.J. Ivankovic

From the talented pen of popular deviantart.com contributor R.J. Ivankovic, H.P. Lovecraft's The Call of Cthulhu (for beginning readers) from Chaosium.com.

108 pages, hardback - and in full color!

Genres: Horror, Humor, Picture Books, Fiction, Fantasy, Poetry, Graphic Novels

108 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2016

About the author

a.k.a. DrFaustusAU

Reviews

[Andrew]

I have lost count of the number of copies I have of Call of Cthulhu since after all it is a short story, however upon learning of this "new" edition I had to see for myself what it was all about.

So I can honestly say I have no idea what brought about this project but I must admit its great fun. If I said Dr Seuss I would think just about everyone who frequents this site would recognise the name. So when I say that in this book you have H P Lovecraft meets Dr Seuss you pretty much have the idea of this book in one.

Yes it is the 're-telling' of Call of Cthulhu in the style of Dr Seuss, from the prose right down to the artwork it has it perfectly represented and its great fun. Sure the book has considerably condensed the material but the feel and style of the book is still miraculously conveyed. Sure there will be some scholarly purists out there who hate this book. But for me this is a great way of re-introducing the story to new readers while at the same time raising a wry smile the established ones.

This is a great book and I am happy to place it on my bookshelves - the question is will we be seeing more adaptations?

[Stewart Tame]

This is pretty much exactly what it looks like: a retelling of “The Call of Cthulhu” in the style of Dr. Seuss.

I'm not going to summarize the plot. The story is a classic of horror fiction, and should be familiar to anyone into the genre enough to want to read this book in the first place.

What you really want to know is: just how good is this book anyway? Very good, as it turns out. Ivankovic does an excellent job of evoking both Seuss and Lovecraft. I'm actually impressed by how well the artwork fits the story. The Suess-ian rubbery limbs, tufts of hair, and improbable architecture are more of a match for Lovecraft's ideas than I would have thought possible.

And this isn't the usual half-assed attempt at drawing like Seuss that so many cartoonists produce. Ivankovic appears to have a deep understanding of his style, as opposed to just repeating visual tropes. And it's hard to imitate. I get it. With a style that simple and clean, there's not a lot of room to fudge it if you screw up. It's like trying to draw Peanuts, or TinTin.

The entire tale is told in Seuss-ian verse. All of the important details from Lovecraft's original tale are covered. And I have some idea of how hard it can be to write light verse that scans this well. So often, one thinks of the perfect word, only to realize that it doesn't fit the meter, no matter how badly you torture the grammar.

So, yes. The book is good. It brings together the work of two disparate creators, and it succeeds brilliantly. So much effort has been expended on such a gleefully silly project that I can't help but grin. Highly recommended!

[Shannon]

Dr. Seuss meets the Call of Cthulhu with an emphasis on the former. Well-delivered.

OVERALL GRADE: B to B plus.

[Kazima]

Two of my favorite things
Combined into one,
This insane mash-up
Is really well done!

[DivaDiane SM]

That was thoroughly delightful! The familiar story, set completely in Seussian-style verse and illustrated in the same style.

It says that it’s for beginning readers, but I think that is meant in jest. Too many big words and of course, the story is a bit…adult.

A good one to add to my collection of Lovecraft “for children”.

[Laura]

Dangerously delightful. Might give children entirely the wrong idea about the Great Old Ones. Interesting interplay with the dark side of Dr. Seuss.

[Sarah]

Dr. Seuss meet H.P. Lovecraft...what a perfect match! Loved the story and it rhymed so well that the kids loved it too!

[Bill Poynter]

Yes, Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos reimagined as a children’s book illustrated by Dr. Seuss… I’m in!! (I mean, what’s not to like, right??) Five stars just for the concept and execution! With that said, I’m not entirely sure it’s reeaallllly all that appropriate for kids… Maybe older ones? This version is pretty faithful to the content of the original story—what with the cosmic dread and elder gods spelling ominous doom for humanity, and so forth... Read it and judge for yourself. But it’s an inspired literary mash-up, and that’s why I like it.

[Dutchess]

The Call of Cthulhu as told by Dr Seuss is a fun idea whose questionable execution makes it come across as gimmicky. For the most part, Ivankovic maintains his poetic meter well with 5-7 syllables per line. However, there are some lines that feel clunky by inevitably including names like Abdul Alhazred and Cthulhu, or even just generally clunky lines like “endured horrible sights” used to end a stanza.

This is a good coffee-table book for your friends to flip through—it may even be a conversation starter—but it's not something I'd recommend reading. It feels more like a summary of Lovecraft's story rather than a retelling of it.

The artwork is great, though, and is enough to keep this at three stars instead of two.

[DJ]

Incredibly faithful to the source text (now with less racism!)

[Rick]

Hilarious adaptation. Brilliant and inspired.

[Mark]

The Call of Cthulhu - for beginning readers
By R. J. Ivankovic

Publisher: hasn’t been published yet. Available for viewing at deviantArt.com
http://drfaustusau.deviantart.com/gal...
Published In: N/A
Date:
Pgs: 75

Summary:
A beginning reader parody adaption of The Call of Cthulhu in the style of Dr. Seuss.

Genre:
Science Fiction, Horror, Parody

Main Character:
Francis Wayland Thurston

Favorite Character:
Cthulhu...and the prose style, which is almost a character unto itself

Least Favorite Character:
Nope. Don’t have a least favorite.

Favorite Scene:
When Cthulhu awoke.

Plot Holes/Out of Character:
None that I could see

Last Page Sound:
HA! Greatness.

Author Assessment:
I would look at anything else written by him.

Disposition of Book:


Why isn't there a screenplay?:
As a cartoon, I would love to see it. Doubt it’d ever be made, but it could be glorious.

[Benjamin Uke]

A Dr. Suess version of HP lovecraft's most favorite story.

Wow, imagine reading that one to the kids.
Child: Momma, I'm scared to go to bed.
Mother: Why are you afraid?
Child: Daddy read Catooloo again.

I have spent all day reading about slavery in the American South for a research paper. It is really relaxing to read about monsters that aren't humans.

[Sabrina]

Simple, funny, scary, lovely.

[Jagat]

Excellent adaptation. Great art and edition. Dr. Seuss and Lovecraft is a perfect match.

[Niko]

I got this as a gift from a friend, and I was honestly a bit nervous that it would turn out to be a low-effort cash grab. It would have been very easy for the author to just mash up two Internet-popular things, half-ass some rhymes, and rake in money from anyone looking for a "geeky" conversation piece to put on a bookshelf. Thankfully, this book does not do that.

This adaptation is faithful to the source material, the rhymes are on point, and the art is a wonderful homage to Dr. Seuss. I'm not sure if it would be appropriate to share this with my niece at her current age, but I'll check back with her in a few years.

[Adam Reagan]

I’m a big Lovecraft fan and I had no idea something like this even existed! My wife got me this as a Christmas gift. And it 100% lives up to the cover. This beginning readers version of the tale covers all the important beats of the original story, except this time with the iconic rhyme scheme and artwork of a Dr. Seuss book. What’s not to love?

[Aragorn]

What a fun way to read a Lovecraft book. If you still have a little kid inside of you, and like horror, this is for you. I enjoyed it's Dr Seuss vibes and rhythms. The art work is so "Suessian" that it warms the cockles of my heart. I highly recommend it as a fun way to read Cthulhu.

[Lewis Szymanski]

Ok, this was fun.

A simplified retelling of The Call of Cthulhu in the writing and art style of Dr. Seuss.

It's mostly an interesting object to own.

[Ariel]

Adorable! Must read for kids of all ages.

[Sherlock Watson]

The Dr. Seuss art style/spoof was excellent

[Ellie Karnick]

My niece liked this book although i fear it will make us both go mad

[Jazmyn Laree]

Cute! Now I must re-read The Call of Cthulu.

[Tom]

It's deceptively difficult to pull off the Seuss style, but the rhymes don't feel too forced here and the art is varied and delightful. A novelty piece, to be sure, and I've probably griped about who the target audience is for other similar books, but I liked this one, so I guess the target audience is me.

[Kat (kvcatnip)]

The story is broken down for children. It rhymes. There's Dr. Suess-style artwork. What more could you want?

[Su]

Fabulous read. Words and pictures perfectly aligned.

[Michael Jones]

At 55 years of age, this is my first exposure to the actual Cthulu storyline. I loved it!

[Marshall A. Lewis]

Received this as an anniversary present. Very fun.

Would recommend to any parent who wants to introduce their beginning reader to Cthulhu.

For the adventurous and stout of heart.

[Evan Leister]

This is a great adaptation.

[David Kopaska-Merkel]

What Dread Zeppelin does for Led Zeppelin, Elvis, and reggae, this book does for H.P. Lovecraft and Dr. Seuss. This book could not exist without H.P. Lovecraft's iconic story, but it is actually better than the original story. Ivankovic has transformed Lovecraft's tale of horror into an eerily perfect imitation of Dr. Seuss' instantly recognizable illustrations and verse. Even the size and shape of the book are perfect for a Dr. Seuss book. I said perfect before, but this book, more than a decade in the making, could not be a better marriage of these two artists. The only defects, if it is a defect, is that the book will be incredibly funny to anyone who has read the original story. I think small children will enjoy it a lot, but just imagine what they will think when they, later in life, read Lovecraft's story. Well, order this book now. If you like weird fiction and have read The Call of Cthulhu, you owe it to yourself to buy this book. And if you know a child into the weird, scary, and peculiar, you will be the world's greatest uncle/aunt/friend if you buy them this book.

And if you have not listened to Dread Zeppelin, it is not too late. Do it now!