British Weird: Selected Short Fiction 1893 - 1937

Handheld Weirds #2

by James Machin (Editor)

Following the success of Handheld Press's 2019 best-selling anthology Women's Weird, British Weird is a new anthology of classic Weird short fiction by British writers, first published between the 1890s and the 1930s. To be published alongside Melisa Edmundson's second anthology, Women's Weird 2, this collection - curated by James Machin, author of Palgrave Gothic's Weird Fiction in Britain, 1880-1939 - assembles stories to thrill, entertain, and chill.

The ten stories are: 'Man-Size in Marble' by Edith Nesbit (1893): immense church effigies walk at night;'No-Man's Land' by John Buchan (1900): man find prehistoric tribe in Scottish Highlands; 'The Willows' by Algernon Blackwood (1907): canoeing holiday on a haunted river; 'Caterpillars' by E. F. Benson (1912): really bad country house hallucinations; 'The Bad Lands' by John Metcalfe (1920): more hallucinations, but outdoors; 'All Hallows' by Walter de la Mare (1926): a haunted church is the only shelter for miles. 'Randalls Round' by Eleanor Scott (1927): a folk tune with deadly effect; 'Lost Keep' by L. A. Lewis (1934): a terrifying experiment with human scale; 'N' by Arthur Machen (1934): why looking for a lost London street can be dangerous; 'Mappa Mundi' by Mary Butts (1937): 20thC American student gets lost in medieval Paris.

British Weird also republishes an important 1933 essay by Mary Butts on the history of and recent work in supernatural writing, 'Ghosties and Ghoulies': Uses of the Supernatural in English Fiction. Machin's introduction describes the background for these excellent stories in the Weird tradition, and identifies their use of peculiarly British preoccupations in supernatural short fiction.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Short Stories, Weird Fiction

290 pages, Paperback

Published October 30, 2020

Reviews

[Mark Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some surprisingly good creepy stories in the British Weird collection of “things half-seen, or the things that should not have been there, but we’re most terrifyingly present.”

[Ben Peck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Personal Note:

For Christmas 2020, Nan gave me a little booklet and told me to circle the book I'd like for Christmas. This was the one I chose.

It took a long while to finally finish this book. It started off strong, then slowly became a chore to read. Many stories made no sense until the end, but by that time it was too late and no use. Mappa Mundi, for example, made no sense at all - long sentences, descriptions and interactions that meant nothing to me and by the end when I figured they must've both been visiting Purgatory in their sleep, it was over and I no longer cared.

The Willows, however, was one story that really stood out. Chilling and humorous and intriguing. It was to me the strongest of the bunch. Man-Size in Marble, No-Man's Land, Caterpillars and Lost Keep also made a lasting impression.

It may be because I felt I *had* to finish quickly that I didn't enjoy them all as much, which is why I gave it 4 stars instead of 3. It's definitely something I will come back to in the future.

[ClareT · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a 2 1/2 that I have pulled up to three. Having read Women's Weird by the same publisher (but different editor) I had high expectations, which were ultimately disappointed.
The book started off promisingly enough.
Man Size in Marble, an odd story by Edith Nesbit was probably 4 stars, she created a degree of tension, describing the idyllic life of a couple of newlyweds living in the country. But, the warnings about keeping the house locked on one day a year were bound to be unheeded and the reader knew it was going to end badly.
Then there was No-Man's Land, by John Buchan. Written with chase scenes reminiscent of his 39 steps this is definitely up there near the 5 stars.
I skipped The Willows by Algernon Blackwood as I had recently read it in another anthology, but it is a 5 star read.
Then it started to go downhill really. The Caterpillars by E.F. Benson was OK - probably 3 stars, but it never really delivered the tension that it could have done.
The Bad Lands by John Metcalfe was again a 3 star effort, telling an obsession with a house that ultimately leads to destruction.
Randall's Round, was a bit of a cliche - don't go near the burial ground type of a thing.
I enjoyed the Lost Keep a bit more, telling as it did the impact of too much power in quite an odd way.
But then the last two stories N by Arthur Machen and Mappa Mundi by Mary Butts I didn't enjoy at all and had to force myself to read them. I am not even sure I can remember what they were about and, at the time of reading I don't think I even worked out the point of them.
Finally there is an essay 'Ghosties and Ghoulies' by Mary Butts which I found quite dull and would have preferred another story rather than an essay.
Altogether disappointing considering other publications by Handheld Press.

[Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another collection of British weird tales from the classic era is always welcome in this household, and Handheld Press have done a superb job in bringing this small collection to publication. As a seasoned connossieur of the genre, many of the stories, like MAN-SIZE IN MARBLE, THE WILLOWS, CATERPILLARS and RANDALLS ROUND, are already well familiar to me and didn't require re-reading; all are well acknowledged classics of the genre. But I was delighted by the other inclusions.

John Buchan's NO-MAN'S-LAND is a delightfully offbeat travelogue in which a man finds himself kidnapped by an ancient troglodyte race in Scotland. THE BAD LANDS sees John Metcalfe heading to north Norfolk for an uncanny story of a hidden landscape with a generally 'bad' feeling, and makes a great companion to stories by James and Wakefield with similar settings.

L.A. Lewis' LOST KEEP is a superb little effort about a miniature castle and mysterious magnifying glass. A great combination of the magical mixed with what has been termed the 'banality of evil'. Then there's Arthur Machen's 'N', my favourite story collected here, an elaborate exploration of a mystical lost garden in Stoke Newington; the writing is excellent. Mary Butts' MAPPA MUNDI is a letdown, an obtuse and overwritten description of a sojourn in Paris, but short enough not to spoil things.

BRITISH WEIRD is bookended by a couple of fine pieces of prose which place the collected stories into a greater whole. Editor James Machin writes a lengthy introduction which is scholarly and insightful, while the final essay by Mary Butts is much like a British version of Lovecraft's SUPERNATURAL HORROR IN LITERATURE. It's not quite as good as the famous Lovecraft piece, but I found it made for engrossing reading. The footnotes are also very helpful throughout.

[Lynsey Walker · Rating 3 out of 5]

A high three, pulled down as towards the end the stories didn’t do it for me as much, and there is also a flouncely written essay that I just couldn’t finish.

When I told people the name of the book I was reading most decided it was a perfect fit for me, as I am indeed both British and Weird (a compliment for sure). And it must be admitted that Weird Fiction has, since my discovery of it, become my favourite genre.

I can often be found shouting the words antediluvian, cyclopean and eldritch into the void just for the sheer fun of it. 🐙

I didn’t realise when I brought this book that I had read a few of the stories it contains, but this was no problem as they are corner stones of Weird Fiction and it was like welcoming home a peculiar friend.

As well as the stories I had already read were a lovely selection of early (my fave kind) weird tales that flirted with a bit of Folk Horror and were pleasingly strange. This book taps into a somewhat overlooked genre and time period and includes stories and authors I am sad to say I have never heard of.

And I call myself a fan.

A must read if this kind of thing tickles your fancy, and you’d like to discover some hidden gems, such as the skin crawling Caterpillars, as well as some of the best out there, I’m looking at you The Willows.

Man-sized in Marble 🖤🖤🖤
No-man’s Land 🖤🖤🖤
The Willows 🖤🖤🖤🖤
Caterpillars 🖤🖤🖤🖤
The Bad Lands 🖤🖤🖤🖤
Randalls Round 🖤🖤🖤🖤
Lost Keep 🖤🖤🖤
N 🖤🖤
Mappa Mundi 🖤
Essay 🖤

[Chris Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good collection of stories from a range of authors, some well known, others less so. Most of the stories are quite disturbing and some just weird - which satisfies the title. I feel that it would help if the reader had a sense of Britain during this era as some pieces rely on what life was like in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The only thing that let's this collection down for me is that I found a couple of the stories a little predictable. Well worth a read however.

[Stephen Burridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some very good stories, a good Introduction by the editor, and an interesting essay from the 30s by Mary Butts, author of one of the stories.

There is a strange production problem that mars the text: Someone apparently did find-and-replace of “st” with “St” in parts of the book, so that we get things like “firSt” and “leaSt”.

Still a good book.

[Simon Evans · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first few stories were really enjoyable - creepy and haunting - engaging and eerie. The final few stories were less accessible and were not pleasurable to read. The final essay was so dry and dull that I gave up, which is rare for me.

[Michael John Paul McManus · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've only given British Weird: Selected Short Fiction 1893-1937 four stars as I found one or two of the stories hard to get my head around. But all in all if you want weird stories, then this is a book you should read.

[Jay Rothermel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many oft reprinted tales, but a few surprises. The Mary Butts material is worth the price alone!

[Christopher Vowles · Rating 2 out of 5]

Underwhelming collection of weird fiction.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not many surprises in this anthology, but it's a very good survey of British Weird in the early twentieth century. Blackwood's 'The Willows' is a classic, of course, and has certainly put me off canoeing down the Danube this summer, but mention should also be made of Machen's visionary masterpiece, 'N', and one of my all-time favourite stories, John Metcalfe's 'The Bad Lands'. I'd have liked a Walter de la Mare story though...there's plenty to choose from, after all. There's a sensible introduction from the editor and useful (though rather skimpy) notes.

[Ben Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

brilliant book
gives great overview of weird Edwardian fiction