The Worm:

by David H. Keller

This early work by David H. Keller was originally published in 1929 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography as part of our Cryptofiction Classics series. 'The Worm' is a short story about a giant worm that begins to eat a house and the occupant has to decide at what point to move out. David Henry Keller was born in Philadelphia in 1880. He studied neuroscience at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Medicine, graduating in 1903. He produced eleven novels and more than fifty short stories, as well as a body of poetry and some non-fiction. Most of his work is regarded as far more complex and literary than that of his contemporaries, thereby foreshadowing the science fiction 'golden age' of the mid-20th century.+The Cryptofiction Classics series contains a collection of wonderful stories from some of the greatest authors in the genre, including Ambrose Bierce, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Jack London. From its roots in cryptozoology, this genre features bizarre, fantastical, and often terrifying tales of mythical and legendary creatures. Whether it be giant spiders, werewolves, lake monsters, or dinosaurs, the Cryptofiction Classics series offers a fantastic introduction to the world of weird creatures in fiction.

Genres: Short Stories, Horror

34 pages, Paperback

First published February 16, 2015

About the author

David Henry Keller was a Doctor and a Lieut. Col., U.S.A., ret.

David Henry Keller (1880–1966) was most often published as David H. Keller, MD, but also known by the pseudonyms Monk Smith, Matthew Smith, Amy Worth, Henry Cecil, Cecilia Henry, and Jacobus Hubelaire. He was a writer for pulp magazines in the mid-twentieth century who wrote science fiction, fantasy and horror.

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

This thing is a mess. What a shame. This story could, and should, have been good. The idea sounded good, although I wouldn't say it was totally original. But what we've got here is a shambles of muddled ideas. Now, they blame it on the publishers or the execs or whoever. Fine. Publishers who publish the works of David H. Keller should know that they need to just stand back and let him do his thing. Don't interfere. He can be a creative genius and write some great stuff, so just let him do it. This thing seems to have been edited so strangely that it's hard to even follow. There are so many continuity errors that it really feels like they shouldn't have bothered publishing it. It feels unfinished. In amongst the muddle of scenes you can see moments of greatness, that give you an idea of what might have been. There's some great little science references in the first half that help set it up, but then it just falls apart in the second. And if you're going to publish a muddled puddle of crud, please at least make it short! This thing is pushing the mark, and since it doesn't make sense anyway it may as well have been a lot shorter. Why prolong the agony? Very disappointing. It's only like other disappointing works of fiction that you think should have been good, but aren't.

[Tony Ciak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Weird, horror,short story