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Classic Works of Horror: Poems Tales Criticism
320 pages, Paperback
Published August 27, 2024
65 people are currently reading
222 people want to read
About the author
Edgar Allan Poe
9,862 books28.8k followersThe 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...
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...
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December 19, 2025red death is best change my mind
October 31, 2024
I read a story every day or so, and some of this is incredibly dark. He was an interesting author - no question about that. I confess to Googling the true meaning of a couple of these stories, and I enjoyed my literature lessons. This is definitely the perfect time of year for Poe!
November 14, 2024
I haven’t read any Poe since high school English class, and my previous reading was limited to only a few poems and his tale Berenice, and wow have I been missing out. Edgar Allan Poe definitely earns his title of Master of the Macabre.
This collection contains 21 tales and five poems, it was a thrill to read through them. Some highlights include The Fall of the House of Usher, The Masque of the Red Death, The Premature Burial, and The Cask of Amontillado. Each were spine chilling, with excellent building of tension for pages and pages until the reader can hardly take it anymore. Then all at once a release, sometimes cathartic, sometimes horrific.
Of surprise was the twin stories of The Murders in the Rue Morgue, and The Purloined Letter. The reintroduction of the character of C. Auguste Dupin had me more excited than I would’ve expected. I was unaware that Poe had written short mystery stories, and while only the first is remotely solvable for the reader, it serves both as a change of pace between his horror stories, and as proof that he was more than a one trick pony. While I don’t think they reach the heights of his other stories he does maintain his excellent prose.
By far my favourite stories were The Pit and the Pendulum, and The Tell-Tale Heart. I read these back to back at 1:00 am and they petrified me. It’s amazing the depth of sheer terror he can conjure with just a few pages, you feel your blood freeze and your heart in your ears but you cannot look away from the page. I love it.
I’m not much of a poetry person but to my uneducated ear The Raven is still one of the best ever written. Not much more to say than that.
I didn’t love every story as much, none of them were particularly flawed, but they can’t all be masterpieces can they? I am curious to see if my opinion changes upon a second read, I plan to re-read this collection in a year or two, so we’ll see then.
This particular “Harper Perennial Olive Edition” was well bound with high quality paper and a gorgeous cover illustration of a Raven (what else). The ridges on the spine wore excessively but I don’t mind that kind of thing. I’ll happily have it on my bookshelf for years to come.
This collection contains 21 tales and five poems, it was a thrill to read through them. Some highlights include The Fall of the House of Usher, The Masque of the Red Death, The Premature Burial, and The Cask of Amontillado. Each were spine chilling, with excellent building of tension for pages and pages until the reader can hardly take it anymore. Then all at once a release, sometimes cathartic, sometimes horrific.
Of surprise was the twin stories of The Murders in the Rue Morgue, and The Purloined Letter. The reintroduction of the character of C. Auguste Dupin had me more excited than I would’ve expected. I was unaware that Poe had written short mystery stories, and while only the first is remotely solvable for the reader, it serves both as a change of pace between his horror stories, and as proof that he was more than a one trick pony. While I don’t think they reach the heights of his other stories he does maintain his excellent prose.
By far my favourite stories were The Pit and the Pendulum, and The Tell-Tale Heart. I read these back to back at 1:00 am and they petrified me. It’s amazing the depth of sheer terror he can conjure with just a few pages, you feel your blood freeze and your heart in your ears but you cannot look away from the page. I love it.
I’m not much of a poetry person but to my uneducated ear The Raven is still one of the best ever written. Not much more to say than that.
I didn’t love every story as much, none of them were particularly flawed, but they can’t all be masterpieces can they? I am curious to see if my opinion changes upon a second read, I plan to re-read this collection in a year or two, so we’ll see then.
This particular “Harper Perennial Olive Edition” was well bound with high quality paper and a gorgeous cover illustration of a Raven (what else). The ridges on the spine wore excessively but I don’t mind that kind of thing. I’ll happily have it on my bookshelf for years to come.
January 25, 2025
"'Listen to me,' said the Demon, as he placed his hand upon my head."
Poe is quintessential reading for a reason and most of the stories here are still so beautifully written and riveting no matter how familiar the material may be. Unfortunately, this collection is a bit uneven and it annoys me that it's called "Classic Works of Horror" but half of the work contained here is satire, humor, poetry, or detective stories. That gripe aside, "Silence - A Fable" altered my DNA and I read it three times in a row. Truly mesmerizing and haunting and I will never stop thinking about it.
Poe is quintessential reading for a reason and most of the stories here are still so beautifully written and riveting no matter how familiar the material may be. Unfortunately, this collection is a bit uneven and it annoys me that it's called "Classic Works of Horror" but half of the work contained here is satire, humor, poetry, or detective stories. That gripe aside, "Silence - A Fable" altered my DNA and I read it three times in a row. Truly mesmerizing and haunting and I will never stop thinking about it.
December 2, 2024
ok rip i'm truly a hater be omg i did not enjoy this at all 😵💫 i apologize to all the edgar allen poe stans out there. his writing style is just *too* much for me and that's saying lot bc i love the 19th century romanticism period😭 his stories were just very repetitive (lots of ~beautiful~ mentally ill women who never speak, lots of people being buried in their graves alive & then coming back, lots of hyperfixations on certain body parts). i think this entire collection just got boring 🥲
November 1, 2024
Reading a collection of Edgar Allan Poe horror tales seemed appropriate for Halloween this year. I was able to refresh my memory on a few classics as well as read some earlier work for the first time. This collection is interesting because it lacks annotation of any kind, leaving phrases in French, Latin, Greek, etc. untranslated. I never noticed before how often Poe used quotes in languages other than English. Still enjoyable and a bit of creepy fun for the holiday.
September 23, 2024
took off one star for every dupin story and every other time he manages to shove in an essay about shit i DO NOT CARE ABOUT!!!!
berenice, annabel lee, and the black cat >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
berenice, annabel lee, and the black cat >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
November 11, 2024
Absolutely loved these stories.
It was fun to reread The Purloined Letter, The Tell-Tale Heart, and the Raven, but it was also fun to read stories I had never read before. Among my favorites were Berenice, The Man of the Crowd, and The Premature Burial. These are fantastic stories for any lover of the horror genre.
I also love the idea that I am reading stories that people 200 years ago also read—and that I was probably just as moved and terrified by these stories as they were. I wish Mr Poe could have known the kind of impact his stories would have on so many people, even centuries later.
Then again, maybe he’s still out there, walking through the mist or lurking in the shadows…
It was fun to reread The Purloined Letter, The Tell-Tale Heart, and the Raven, but it was also fun to read stories I had never read before. Among my favorites were Berenice, The Man of the Crowd, and The Premature Burial. These are fantastic stories for any lover of the horror genre.
I also love the idea that I am reading stories that people 200 years ago also read—and that I was probably just as moved and terrified by these stories as they were. I wish Mr Poe could have known the kind of impact his stories would have on so many people, even centuries later.
Then again, maybe he’s still out there, walking through the mist or lurking in the shadows…
November 11, 2025
I have read a few of Edgar Allen Poe’s more famous works coming up through school several years ago, without many strong feelings lingering from the experience. I believed myself to have enjoyed much of it at the time but I was left with only vague remembrances of plots. This past experience did aid in my understanding of such applicable works, while for the others that were new to me I had to put in a little more work to actively understand. As I read more and more works of literature that far precede me (which use a version of english much harder to understand), it becomes clearer to me that the human experience has remained fundamentally unchanged for the most part. When you read a critique of the dangers of an industrialized society from almost 200 years ago, or someone describing physical sensations or mental health issues that only acquired a name a few decades ago, it feels strangely familiar and warm. Despite the sometimes gruesome or dreary subject matter of his short stories, Poe’s masterful ability to describe and evoke human emotion in the characters and the reader respectively reaches out across time in a way not many authors can.
Of course with the book being a collection of short stories and poems, not all of them are winners, and as with Dubliners or Kafka, jumping between stories can be disorienting, especially given the difficulty of the writing and its use of antiquated terms and phrasing. It often took several pages of a story to truly understand the happenings being told, and in a few instances the story ended before that could happen. Specifically with shadow and silence, the second and third short story. However, once over that ‘hump’ there would be a sort of click that would happen where the story would begin to accelerate forward and the build of suspense toward the end aided in this significantly.
Berenice: good.
Shadow: eh
Silence: eh
House of Usher: very good
William Wilson: good and interesting
Man of the crowd: good, interesting, not scary
Rue morgue: very good, Sherlock holmes copied its whole flow, was not as scary as i expected
Maeltrom: good, intense
Monos and una: very slow start, good ending
Never bet the devil your head: good, interesting
Oval portrait: too short
Red death: classic, good
Pit and pendulum: very interesting
Tell tale heart: classic
Black cat: this dude was evil and legitamately hard to read but good ending
Ragged mountains: very interesting
Premature burial: a little too introspective, but good
Purloined letter: not as good as rue morgue but fun sequel
Mummy: bizzare but thought provoking
Imp: too much discussion on the perverse which was discussed in other stories like the black cat, which did it better
Cask of amontillado: classic
With regard to the poetry that consisted of the last 50 or so pages in the book, this was hard to get through. If i was going into it looking to analyze the poetry it would have been better, but I was trying to finish the book and it was even more disjointed reading even shorter unrelated stories with even an harder to understand use of the english language. I am inexperienced in reading poetry as well and so besides some of the poems with a very typical and regular rhyming and rhythmic structure, they just didnt read right. Besides many of them i couldnt even describe what was being discussed, sure the language was vivid but to what end was it being used. I would need to analyze each one one by one and use the internet to help in describing and understanding what is written to appreciate much of it. The few i did enjoy were: Lenore, the Raven, to science, israfel, city in the sea, dream-land, the bells, eldorado, and for annie. These were the ones that either read easily or/and i understood very early on the point of the poem and what it was describing. With some of them being genuinely interesting, but largely these were just the ones that didn’t drain me.
Because of the inconsistency of the experience i give the book a 4, but at times some of these stories and their writing are hard to beat anywhere and going back for particular passages is something i may legitimately consider in the near future.
Of course with the book being a collection of short stories and poems, not all of them are winners, and as with Dubliners or Kafka, jumping between stories can be disorienting, especially given the difficulty of the writing and its use of antiquated terms and phrasing. It often took several pages of a story to truly understand the happenings being told, and in a few instances the story ended before that could happen. Specifically with shadow and silence, the second and third short story. However, once over that ‘hump’ there would be a sort of click that would happen where the story would begin to accelerate forward and the build of suspense toward the end aided in this significantly.
Berenice: good.
Shadow: eh
Silence: eh
House of Usher: very good
William Wilson: good and interesting
Man of the crowd: good, interesting, not scary
Rue morgue: very good, Sherlock holmes copied its whole flow, was not as scary as i expected
Maeltrom: good, intense
Monos and una: very slow start, good ending
Never bet the devil your head: good, interesting
Oval portrait: too short
Red death: classic, good
Pit and pendulum: very interesting
Tell tale heart: classic
Black cat: this dude was evil and legitamately hard to read but good ending
Ragged mountains: very interesting
Premature burial: a little too introspective, but good
Purloined letter: not as good as rue morgue but fun sequel
Mummy: bizzare but thought provoking
Imp: too much discussion on the perverse which was discussed in other stories like the black cat, which did it better
Cask of amontillado: classic
With regard to the poetry that consisted of the last 50 or so pages in the book, this was hard to get through. If i was going into it looking to analyze the poetry it would have been better, but I was trying to finish the book and it was even more disjointed reading even shorter unrelated stories with even an harder to understand use of the english language. I am inexperienced in reading poetry as well and so besides some of the poems with a very typical and regular rhyming and rhythmic structure, they just didnt read right. Besides many of them i couldnt even describe what was being discussed, sure the language was vivid but to what end was it being used. I would need to analyze each one one by one and use the internet to help in describing and understanding what is written to appreciate much of it. The few i did enjoy were: Lenore, the Raven, to science, israfel, city in the sea, dream-land, the bells, eldorado, and for annie. These were the ones that either read easily or/and i understood very early on the point of the poem and what it was describing. With some of them being genuinely interesting, but largely these were just the ones that didn’t drain me.
Because of the inconsistency of the experience i give the book a 4, but at times some of these stories and their writing are hard to beat anywhere and going back for particular passages is something i may legitimately consider in the near future.
September 19, 2025
A timeless travel-sized horror book!
We are almost to the Halloween month, hence it is very fitting that I recently completed reading "Classic Works of Horror", a wonderful collection of horror stories and poems by the late great horror writer Edgar Allen Poe. This book contains the most iconic of his short stories, followed by his poems including "The Raven" which he was most famous for writing.
Each story in the book clearly inspired themes that are prominently found nowadays in modern thrillers and horror media. The literature versions of jump-scares are vividly portrayed in written form; readers follow characters that suddenly encounter frightening moments or painful experiences, eventually leading them to finally understanding what is going on around them (even when it's too late to make amends). Some of the stories play out as Sherlock Holmes' styled mysteries but with a scary gory twist. Others lean more on the comedy-horror side as characters attempt to comprehend supernatural creatures or psychopaths. Whichever the theme, every story is a nice mix of horror.
The poems are also fantastic and have a rhythm unique to Poe's writings. The deep dark meanings within the poems flow so well and so effectively that they linger in the mind long after reading. Like the short stories, these poems also offer a blend of different aspects found in the literary horror genre. They are easy to read and understand which is surprising given the timeline of when Mr. Poe had written them.
For those looking for classic horror stories that are easy to read on the go, look no further than this book. Look for the limited Olive Edition which is a nice size for travelling, and enjoy reading as we head towards the spooky month of Halloween!
We are almost to the Halloween month, hence it is very fitting that I recently completed reading "Classic Works of Horror", a wonderful collection of horror stories and poems by the late great horror writer Edgar Allen Poe. This book contains the most iconic of his short stories, followed by his poems including "The Raven" which he was most famous for writing.
Each story in the book clearly inspired themes that are prominently found nowadays in modern thrillers and horror media. The literature versions of jump-scares are vividly portrayed in written form; readers follow characters that suddenly encounter frightening moments or painful experiences, eventually leading them to finally understanding what is going on around them (even when it's too late to make amends). Some of the stories play out as Sherlock Holmes' styled mysteries but with a scary gory twist. Others lean more on the comedy-horror side as characters attempt to comprehend supernatural creatures or psychopaths. Whichever the theme, every story is a nice mix of horror.
The poems are also fantastic and have a rhythm unique to Poe's writings. The deep dark meanings within the poems flow so well and so effectively that they linger in the mind long after reading. Like the short stories, these poems also offer a blend of different aspects found in the literary horror genre. They are easy to read and understand which is surprising given the timeline of when Mr. Poe had written them.
For those looking for classic horror stories that are easy to read on the go, look no further than this book. Look for the limited Olive Edition which is a nice size for travelling, and enjoy reading as we head towards the spooky month of Halloween!
Currently reading
January 10, 2025Using this review to track the short stories I check out in this collection:
"Berenice"
"Shadow—A Parable"
"Silence—A Fable"
"The Fall of the House of Usher"
"William Wilson"
"The Man of the Crowd"
"The Murders in the Rue Morgue"
"A Descent Into the Maelstrom"
"The Colloquy of Monos and Una"
"Never Bet the Devil Your Head. A Tale with a Moral"
"The Oval Portrait"
"The Masque of the Red Death"
"The Pit and the Pendulum" - read on 1/10/25
5/5. One of the most claustrophobic stories ever written. Poe's style of horror really shines here and while this isn't maybe the best example of his most gothic work, the macabre sense of dread is ever present throughout.
"The Tell-Tale Heart"
"The Black Cat"
"A Tale of Ragged Mountains"
"The Premature Burial"
"The Purloined Letter"
"Some Words with a Mummy"
"The Imp of the Perverse"
"The Cask of Amontillado"
"Spirits of the Dead"
"Lenore"
"The Raven"
"Ulalume—A Ballad"
"Annabel Lee"
"Berenice"
"Shadow—A Parable"
"Silence—A Fable"
"The Fall of the House of Usher"
"William Wilson"
"The Man of the Crowd"
"The Murders in the Rue Morgue"
"A Descent Into the Maelstrom"
"The Colloquy of Monos and Una"
"Never Bet the Devil Your Head. A Tale with a Moral"
"The Oval Portrait"
"The Masque of the Red Death"
"The Pit and the Pendulum" - read on 1/10/25
5/5. One of the most claustrophobic stories ever written. Poe's style of horror really shines here and while this isn't maybe the best example of his most gothic work, the macabre sense of dread is ever present throughout.
"The Tell-Tale Heart"
"The Black Cat"
"A Tale of Ragged Mountains"
"The Premature Burial"
"The Purloined Letter"
"Some Words with a Mummy"
"The Imp of the Perverse"
"The Cask of Amontillado"
"Spirits of the Dead"
"Lenore"
"The Raven"
"Ulalume—A Ballad"
"Annabel Lee"
October 7, 2025
3.5 rounded up to 4. Some were an absolute blast to read. I can picture old school gentleman saying his tales are blasphemous or something and pearls being clutched. Honestly, he is actually kind of funny too. The story of betting the Devil his Head had me smiling waaay too much.
And at other times his writing felt like a very boring essay lol. I figured I’d really enjoy the nautical one, but lord have mercy, I couldn’t finish it fast enough. I wasn’t a huge fan of the murder mystery guy, but I do wonder if it inspired Sherlock Holmes? Perhaps my timeline is off there, though.
And at other times his writing felt like a very boring essay lol. I figured I’d really enjoy the nautical one, but lord have mercy, I couldn’t finish it fast enough. I wasn’t a huge fan of the murder mystery guy, but I do wonder if it inspired Sherlock Holmes? Perhaps my timeline is off there, though.
November 10, 2025
Great collection of Poes short stories. Was a really cool experience to read the material that has inspired other works. A good pick for spooky season!
My favorites were The Raven, Fall of House Usher. Honorable mention to The Black Cat for creeping me out immensely.
My favorites were The Raven, Fall of House Usher. Honorable mention to The Black Cat for creeping me out immensely.
January 28, 2026
While some of these peices were lack luster and forgetful, many stand out and I get why they feel timeless. Poe's horror element isnt usually personified in a villain or monster, but in some way or another, the horror comes from the reality of the brokenness that is our own humanity.
December 5, 2024
Sick and twisted (obsessed)
May 29, 2025
decent collection
October 2, 2025
“The Black Cat” me sigue traumando como cuando lo leí a los 14 años
October 16, 2025
i do not like this man’s writing. this was not an enjoyable read and i’m very disappointed. skipped the last several short stories and even a few poems.
October 28, 2025
I feel like I'm back in high school reading stories I don't understand, and I don't like that.
"A Tell-Tale Heart" is still my favorite of Poe's works.
"A Tell-Tale Heart" is still my favorite of Poe's works.
November 2, 2025
Some i really enjoyed some i really did not. The standouts:
*berenice
*shadow
*silence
*the fall of the house of usher
*the masque of red death
*the tell-tale heart
*the black cat
*berenice
*shadow
*silence
*the fall of the house of usher
*the masque of red death
*the tell-tale heart
*the black cat
December 4, 2025
‘Long—long I read—and devoutly, devotedly I gazed. Rapidly and gloriously the hours flew by and the deep midnight came’
January 11, 2026
Oh yea baby, took me one whole semester to read a book let’s go! It’s ok we back in it now, the flow can’t be stopped.
December 28, 2025
Poe’s lexical bag is deep; he is a master wordsmith. some of his short stories verge on verbosity for the sake of verbosity. overall glad to be acquainted with his catalogue.
December 30, 2024
Absolutely amazing. Altered my brain chemistry. The writing is written my so beautifully. Poe was an amazing writer with such an amazing imagination. The way he was able to bring all of his stories to life was amazing.
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