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Fifty Forgotten Books
Fifty Forgotten Books is a very special sort of book about books, by a great bookman and for book-people of all ages and levels of experience. Not quite literary criticism, not quite an autobiography, it is at once a guided tour through the dusty backrooms of long vanished used bookstores, a love letter to bookshops and bookselling, and a browser’s dream wish list of often overlooked and unloved novels, short story collections, poetry collections and works of nonfiction.
In these pages, R. B. Russell, publisher of Tartarus Press, doesn’t only discuss the books of his life, but explains what they have meant to him over time, charting his progress as a writer and publisher for over thirty years . . . and a bibliophile for many more. Here is living proof of how literature, books, and book collecting can be an intrinsic part of one’s personal, professional and imaginative life, and as not only a solitary act, but a social one, resulting in treasured friendships, experiences, and loves one might never, otherwise, have enjoyed.
Filled with a lively nostalgia for the era when finding strange new books meant pounding the pavement and not just filling in search engines, Fifty Forgotten Books is for anyone who wishes they could still browse the dusty bookshelves of their youth, and who can't wait to get back out into the world in quest of the next text liable to change their life.
In these pages, R. B. Russell, publisher of Tartarus Press, doesn’t only discuss the books of his life, but explains what they have meant to him over time, charting his progress as a writer and publisher for over thirty years . . . and a bibliophile for many more. Here is living proof of how literature, books, and book collecting can be an intrinsic part of one’s personal, professional and imaginative life, and as not only a solitary act, but a social one, resulting in treasured friendships, experiences, and loves one might never, otherwise, have enjoyed.
Filled with a lively nostalgia for the era when finding strange new books meant pounding the pavement and not just filling in search engines, Fifty Forgotten Books is for anyone who wishes they could still browse the dusty bookshelves of their youth, and who can't wait to get back out into the world in quest of the next text liable to change their life.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2022
9 people are currently reading
470 people want to read
About the author
R.B. Russell
82 books46 followersR.B.RUSSELL has only recently started writing fiction seriously, having previously written lyrics, composed music, and drawn in pen and ink for his own amusement. He runs Tartarus Press with Rosalie Parker from their home in the Yorkshire Dales.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
January 7, 2024
This is a lovely book and a wonderful way to close out my year in reading. I felt such an affinity with this author! An odd affinity, as I imagine we are nothing alike, despite both of us being great readers since childhood. Perhaps the connection comes from so fully being able to imagine myself in his life. And that is all due to the author's talent when it comes to recollecting so many of the books he has collected and bookshops he has visited, places he's seen and people he's met, and most intensely, describing his long abiding love for the authors Sylvia Townsend Warner and (especially) Arthur Machen. Russell writes with such precision and nuance; there is a guarded yet palpable warmth and affection in this book, as well as some withering criticisms, but above all there is a clarity in his detailing of past events. Surely the man must be a intrepid diarist, careful to include the most microscopic of details if need be. Much as with Christopher Fowler's The Book of Forgotten Authors, one needs to read this from its start on through, rather than skipping about. This is in many ways a personal narrative: less of a guidebook, and despite its title, less of a series of recommendations, and more - in the author's own words - a "volume of reminisces."
The book made me consider my own life in my 20s, and compare it to the author's life back then. When younger colleagues of that age talk about their lives, what they do for fun, their social circles, their interests, etc., I'll admit that I often experience a bit of condescending pity towards them (kept tightly to myself of course!). That decade for me, and perhaps the half-decade that followed, was such a dizzying and rich experience, full of momentous events, some terrible and many wonderful, and thick with too many people, places, activities, and interests to ever successfully recount. Alas, I have become one of those tiresome older people with an anecdote about everything. I certainly couldn't imagine trading my younger life for another person's - that is, until this book! There's just something about a life that is full of literariness, exploring bookshops and attending readers' conferences, being a part of literary societies and a social scene where discussing often long-dead authors is par for the course... I became surprisingly envious when reading this book. I wouldn't trade lives, but in another reality, I'd certainly like to experience his. Well at least I have his book!
Not all of these books are forgotten, although the title is still a perfect one. The very well-received and widely-read The Loney is included, perhaps only because Russell published its first edition. The last chapter is on Richard Wright's classic of black fiction, The Outsider - a pleasing double to the first entry, Colin Wilson's equally classic The Outsider - which appears to be here to atone for the author mainly reading white writers, and as his rather ham-handed response to the dire racial reckoning of 2020. (That said, his analysis of the book is accomplished and thought-provoking.) Some favorite parts included his insightful chapter on Robert Aickman, his chapter on his wife Rosalie Parker, a visit to a bookshop-in-a-mansion The Lilies, and the comments he weaves throughout the book on his frenemy, the bookseller and publisher and all-around rapscallion George Locke.
Overall, Russell made certain that I now have quite a few more titles to add to the neverending list - and it should be mentioned that the author notes far more than 50 books between its slim 255 pages. Despite my saying earlier that this is neither a true guidebook nor a list of recommendations but rather a book of memories, Russell still writes about books in such an enticing way that by the end of it, I had a handful of post-its filled with suggestions for further discoveries:
Various Temptations by William Sansom
Widdershins by Oliver Onions
The Horse's Mouth by Joyce Cary
A Scots Quair: Sunset Song, Cloud Howe, Grey Granite by Lewis Grassic Gibbons
In Youth Is Pleasure by Denton Welch
The Supernatural and English Fiction by Glen Cavaliero
A Cage for the Nightingale by Phyllis Paul
Dromenon: The Best Weird Stories of Gerald Heard
Precious Bane by Mary Webb
The Wanderer by Henri Alain-Fournier
The Phantom Ship by Frederick Marryat
Lady by Thomas Tryon
Auriol; Or, the Elixir of Life by W. Harrison Ainsworth
The Deadly Dowager by Edwin Greenwood
"Xelucha" & "The House of Sounds" & "The Primate of the Rose" & Prince Zaleski & The Purple Cloud by M.P. Shiel
The Quest for Corvo: An Experiment in Biography by A.J.A. Symons
The book made me consider my own life in my 20s, and compare it to the author's life back then. When younger colleagues of that age talk about their lives, what they do for fun, their social circles, their interests, etc., I'll admit that I often experience a bit of condescending pity towards them (kept tightly to myself of course!). That decade for me, and perhaps the half-decade that followed, was such a dizzying and rich experience, full of momentous events, some terrible and many wonderful, and thick with too many people, places, activities, and interests to ever successfully recount. Alas, I have become one of those tiresome older people with an anecdote about everything. I certainly couldn't imagine trading my younger life for another person's - that is, until this book! There's just something about a life that is full of literariness, exploring bookshops and attending readers' conferences, being a part of literary societies and a social scene where discussing often long-dead authors is par for the course... I became surprisingly envious when reading this book. I wouldn't trade lives, but in another reality, I'd certainly like to experience his. Well at least I have his book!
Not all of these books are forgotten, although the title is still a perfect one. The very well-received and widely-read The Loney is included, perhaps only because Russell published its first edition. The last chapter is on Richard Wright's classic of black fiction, The Outsider - a pleasing double to the first entry, Colin Wilson's equally classic The Outsider - which appears to be here to atone for the author mainly reading white writers, and as his rather ham-handed response to the dire racial reckoning of 2020. (That said, his analysis of the book is accomplished and thought-provoking.) Some favorite parts included his insightful chapter on Robert Aickman, his chapter on his wife Rosalie Parker, a visit to a bookshop-in-a-mansion The Lilies, and the comments he weaves throughout the book on his frenemy, the bookseller and publisher and all-around rapscallion George Locke.
Overall, Russell made certain that I now have quite a few more titles to add to the neverending list - and it should be mentioned that the author notes far more than 50 books between its slim 255 pages. Despite my saying earlier that this is neither a true guidebook nor a list of recommendations but rather a book of memories, Russell still writes about books in such an enticing way that by the end of it, I had a handful of post-its filled with suggestions for further discoveries:
Various Temptations by William Sansom
Widdershins by Oliver Onions
The Horse's Mouth by Joyce Cary
A Scots Quair: Sunset Song, Cloud Howe, Grey Granite by Lewis Grassic Gibbons
In Youth Is Pleasure by Denton Welch
The Supernatural and English Fiction by Glen Cavaliero
A Cage for the Nightingale by Phyllis Paul
Dromenon: The Best Weird Stories of Gerald Heard
Precious Bane by Mary Webb
The Wanderer by Henri Alain-Fournier
The Phantom Ship by Frederick Marryat
Lady by Thomas Tryon
Auriol; Or, the Elixir of Life by W. Harrison Ainsworth
The Deadly Dowager by Edwin Greenwood
"Xelucha" & "The House of Sounds" & "The Primate of the Rose" & Prince Zaleski & The Purple Cloud by M.P. Shiel
The Quest for Corvo: An Experiment in Biography by A.J.A. Symons
January 12, 2023
full post here:
http://www.nonfictionrealstuff.com/20...
Fifty Forgotten Books is, according to author and Tartarus Press co-founder R.B. Russell,
"intended to be a personal recommendation of often overlooked and unloved novels, short story collections, poetry and non-fiction."
If Fifty Forgotten Books had simply stopped there, it still would have been greatly appreciated, but it's within the discussions of these titles that the brilliance of this book shines through. Russell's idea here is
"not just to discuss the books, but to explain what they have meant to me over time, thus forming an oblique, partial memoir of my life."
He is overwhelmingly successful on both fronts.
I have had the great pleasure to have read more than a few fictional works written by this author (I'll be starting his Heaven's Hill here shortly), and I realized long ago just how very talented a writer he is, so I'm not surprised that he carries that quality over into this book. Each title the author includes in this volume elicits particular memories over different times in his life encompassing his reading, the joys of secondhand bookshops and booksellers, book collecting, the people he meets and more, recounted by someone who is obviously deeply passionate about all of the above. While I enjoyed reading about each book presented by the author in this volume, it's the autobiographical writing that makes Fifty Forgotten Books so engaging and in my humble opinion, exceptional.
I'm just a reader, not a critic, but I know when I have something extraordinary in my hands, and this book definitely falls into that category. Very, very highly recommended.
http://www.nonfictionrealstuff.com/20...
Fifty Forgotten Books is, according to author and Tartarus Press co-founder R.B. Russell,
"intended to be a personal recommendation of often overlooked and unloved novels, short story collections, poetry and non-fiction."
If Fifty Forgotten Books had simply stopped there, it still would have been greatly appreciated, but it's within the discussions of these titles that the brilliance of this book shines through. Russell's idea here is
"not just to discuss the books, but to explain what they have meant to me over time, thus forming an oblique, partial memoir of my life."
He is overwhelmingly successful on both fronts.
I have had the great pleasure to have read more than a few fictional works written by this author (I'll be starting his Heaven's Hill here shortly), and I realized long ago just how very talented a writer he is, so I'm not surprised that he carries that quality over into this book. Each title the author includes in this volume elicits particular memories over different times in his life encompassing his reading, the joys of secondhand bookshops and booksellers, book collecting, the people he meets and more, recounted by someone who is obviously deeply passionate about all of the above. While I enjoyed reading about each book presented by the author in this volume, it's the autobiographical writing that makes Fifty Forgotten Books so engaging and in my humble opinion, exceptional.
I'm just a reader, not a critic, but I know when I have something extraordinary in my hands, and this book definitely falls into that category. Very, very highly recommended.
January 20, 2023
This book was a disappointment. Russell is the owner of a small press in England and prowls used bookstores and is a pretty good writer. This was a memoir or sorts told through his reading and buying and publishing books. Nice as far as it went, but his list of fifty forgotten books were all from the horror and fantasy genres, so none of them appealed to me at all. Some of them sounded downright weird. That's what I get for not researching the book more, but falling for a pretty cover and attractive title.
October 9, 2022
I've read only a dozen of Russell's fifty forgotten books and have no great desire to read the rest, but I was still delighted with his explanation of their significance in his personal reading history. Even though my preferred reading matter may not coincide with Russell's, my extravagant book-buying habits undoubtedly do, confirming his belief that 'an overpriced book is invariably better value than most other pleasures at a discount' (95). I would not spend on fine dining what I'm willing to spend on a book that has so far eluded me, although a contrastingly underpriced charity-shop discovery of an unknown author or title brings a peculiar thrill of its own. I too have bought far more books than I could possibly read in however many years that remain. Following Russell, I now feel vindicated, happy to regard the still unread ones (and the numerous duplicates in more pleasing editions) not as a liability but as an asset providing a huge range of potential reading (176). It's a reassuring thought that one day the dispersed contents of my library will bring joy to a new generation of bibliophiles.
January 13, 2023
*FULL DISCLOSURE. I HAVE KNOWN THE AUTHOR FOR MANY YEARS AND FEATURE (VERY BRIEFLY) IN THIS VOLUME.*
If you are a collector, of anything, you probably a) have lists and b) associate certain acquisitions with times and places. Russell combines these elements to create an autobiography of sorts punctuated by various books. As he and his partner Rosalie Parker run Tartarus Press (which primarily publishes what might be termed ‘weird fiction’) one can expect an odd list of odd books.
As a reader and accumulator of books with similar (but not entirely overlapping) tastes in the byways of literature I can identify with Russell as he seeks out, finds (or perhaps misses) various volumes, buys other editions of the same book or engages with various (named) bookshops and dealers and I can imagine that this will also appeal to others irrespective of whether their field of interest is shared by Russell. It’s entertainingly written although perhaps a little bragging at times, although sometimes a great find is worth crowing about.
Now, what one considers ‘forgotten’ is entirely subjective. Of the ‘fifty books’ I have read thirty of them and have heard of virtually all the other authors/books so they are not ‘forgotten’ at least by me. Perhaps ‘cult’ would also be a useful word here, Arthur Machen, Robert Aickman, Anna Kavan and Aleister Crowley all have devoted, if perhaps small, followings and Russell’s enthusiasm for them (one must remember they are usually important to him in the autobiographical sense as well) gives his observations a certain charm as well as being informative about the books themselves. Even if one is not desperately inspired to track them down after reading about them one feels one has gained something from the encounter with them by proxy.
This is far more than a ‘fifty obscure books you must read before you die’ type list and although I initially thought of it in a Nick Hornby ‘High Fidelity’ type way, it is not that either, having more affinity with Mark Valentine’s literary sleuthings. If you like the latter then you will like this. If you like to peer inside the enthusiasms of small press publishers you will also like this. If you like odd books you will like this. There is quite a lot to like here.
If you are a collector, of anything, you probably a) have lists and b) associate certain acquisitions with times and places. Russell combines these elements to create an autobiography of sorts punctuated by various books. As he and his partner Rosalie Parker run Tartarus Press (which primarily publishes what might be termed ‘weird fiction’) one can expect an odd list of odd books.
As a reader and accumulator of books with similar (but not entirely overlapping) tastes in the byways of literature I can identify with Russell as he seeks out, finds (or perhaps misses) various volumes, buys other editions of the same book or engages with various (named) bookshops and dealers and I can imagine that this will also appeal to others irrespective of whether their field of interest is shared by Russell. It’s entertainingly written although perhaps a little bragging at times, although sometimes a great find is worth crowing about.
Now, what one considers ‘forgotten’ is entirely subjective. Of the ‘fifty books’ I have read thirty of them and have heard of virtually all the other authors/books so they are not ‘forgotten’ at least by me. Perhaps ‘cult’ would also be a useful word here, Arthur Machen, Robert Aickman, Anna Kavan and Aleister Crowley all have devoted, if perhaps small, followings and Russell’s enthusiasm for them (one must remember they are usually important to him in the autobiographical sense as well) gives his observations a certain charm as well as being informative about the books themselves. Even if one is not desperately inspired to track them down after reading about them one feels one has gained something from the encounter with them by proxy.
This is far more than a ‘fifty obscure books you must read before you die’ type list and although I initially thought of it in a Nick Hornby ‘High Fidelity’ type way, it is not that either, having more affinity with Mark Valentine’s literary sleuthings. If you like the latter then you will like this. If you like to peer inside the enthusiasms of small press publishers you will also like this. If you like odd books you will like this. There is quite a lot to like here.
September 8, 2025
In this account of a lifetime’s worth of excavating rare books from the dingiest nooks of used bookshops, R.B. Russell selects 50 morsels for the spotlight, presented alongside an account of his own activities as a small press owner and member of the Arthur Machen society. The selections themselves are disappointing—Russell focuses on supernatural fiction for the most part, and indulges too much in Machen arcana for the selection to have a broader appeal. He also shamelessly plugs books published by his friends, colleagues, and his own Tartarus Press, including one from his own wife. The text itself is congenial, informative, and Russell’s enthusiasm for the titles on the list means the book is a delight in spite of the chosen 50 needing a rethink. Extra points too for The Fall, Mark E. Smith, and Stewart Lee cameos.
March 14, 2023
R.B. Russell has yet again delivered a delightful memoir of his lifelong love affair with strange old books, quirky bookshops and the colourful characters that haunt the overflowing shelves. Russell presents us with fifty forgotten (and not so forgotten) books and not only recommends them, but centres them around wonderful anecdotes on how they came into his life.
If one has read Russell’s earlier essay collection Past Lives of Old Books, some of the titles and authors should come as no surprise to you. However, Russell expands upon these titles, showing us how they have had an often profound effect on his life. One of the authors that is most central to the book and Russell’s life is Arthur Machen, and the book also becomes a chronicle of Russell’s involvement with The Friends of Arthur Machen and the lifelong friendships he has formed there.
I read the last pages of the book just before leaving for London for the annual meeting of The Friends of Arthur Machen, of which I have been a member for some time. Needless to say there is an added significance for me in reading many of these parts, as it also reflects my own wonderful experience with the society and all the lovely people I’ve come to know through it.
Obsessive collectors and book-hounds should come armed with pen and paper to note down authors and titles and be prepared to hunt for some of these elusive literary treasures. Fifty Forgotten Books is a lovingly crafted memoir and a true love-letter to literature.
If one has read Russell’s earlier essay collection Past Lives of Old Books, some of the titles and authors should come as no surprise to you. However, Russell expands upon these titles, showing us how they have had an often profound effect on his life. One of the authors that is most central to the book and Russell’s life is Arthur Machen, and the book also becomes a chronicle of Russell’s involvement with The Friends of Arthur Machen and the lifelong friendships he has formed there.
I read the last pages of the book just before leaving for London for the annual meeting of The Friends of Arthur Machen, of which I have been a member for some time. Needless to say there is an added significance for me in reading many of these parts, as it also reflects my own wonderful experience with the society and all the lovely people I’ve come to know through it.
Obsessive collectors and book-hounds should come armed with pen and paper to note down authors and titles and be prepared to hunt for some of these elusive literary treasures. Fifty Forgotten Books is a lovingly crafted memoir and a true love-letter to literature.
March 6, 2025
The great strength in this collection is that author R. B. Russell creates an autobiographical plot arc instead of merely a series of intellectual vignettes.
Crises, triumphs, and characters come and go and come back again as chapters accumulate. And not all these characters are friendly or heroic, which says something for Russell's patience and good humor. The book publishing and selling trade, for instance, seems to be leavened with many benighted souls.
To wit:
I quickly realised that Mr Locke was a mine of information on supernatural, strange and weird literature. He talked knowledgeably about William Hope Hodgson, M. R. James and H. P. Lovecraft. I proudly admitted that the large parcel I was carrying contained five copies of the newly published Tartarus Press edition of Ritual and Other Stories by Arthur Machen (originally published in 1936). I was hoping to drop them off at Smail’s Legal Deposit Office on Euston Street (to save the postage, which was considerable). George then proposed I exchange those five copies of Ritual (which, as editor and publisher, I would sign) for the book by Egan. I found myself agreeing, even though he explained that I would have to give him a generous discount because he was in the trade. Additionally, he was buying in bulk, and on top of this he was saving me the postage of sending him the books. I, however, was not entitled to any discount because I admitted I was buying the Egan for my collection. When I later paid to have another five copies of Ritual bound up and posted to Smail I realised just how out of pocket I had been in my deal with George. To add insult to injury, he was selling my copies of Ritual at more than the retail price because (as he explained in his Ferret Fantasy catalogue) it was rare to find copies signed by the editor/publisher!
George managed to get the better of me on a number of subsequent occasions, such as when I acquired his wonderful Spectrum of Fantasy volumes by trading Tartarus Press books of a much higher retail value. (To be fair, his reference books are still a delight, and I have completely forgotten which books he had in exchange.) I always grumbled, but usually admired the way he would end up with the better part of any deal.
The Outsider · Colin Wilson: This book explores the concept of creative artists who feel alienated from society.
The Hill of Dreams · Arthur Machen: This novel is about a young man who strives to write great literature, even at the expense of his love life, and who descends into madness.
The Most Haunted House in England · Harry Price: This book is a pseudoscientific account of investigations and events at Borley Rectory.
Diary of a Drug Fiend · Aleister Crowley: This novel is a cautionary tale about the dangers of drug addiction, but it also offers a message of hope and redemption.
The Other · Thomas Tryon: This novel is a folk horror story about twin boys with very different personalities.
Devil in the Flesh · Raymond Radiguet: This novel is a tragic love story about a young man who has an affair with a newly married woman whose husband is fighting at the front in the First World War.
The Tenant · Roland Topor: This novel is a study in paranoia and mental decline, caused by the protagonist's desperation to remain an insider.
Two Symphonies · André Gide: This book contains two novellas, Isabelle and La Symphonie Pastorale, both of which are love stories.
Dilemmas · Ernest Dowson: This collection of short stories is quietly decadent in its beauty and rhythm, and seems to imply that the religious life is no life at all.
Xélucha and Others · M. P. Shiel: This collection of short stories contains some of Shiel's best work, including the stories 'Xélucha', 'The House of Sounds', and 'The Primate of the Rose'.
Tales of Horror and the Supernatural · Arthur Machen: This collection of short stories showcases Machen's skill in creating atmospheric and uncanny tales.
Widdershins · Oliver Onions: This collection of short stories contains the classic 'The Beckoning Fair One', as well as other excellent tales.
Lunch on the Grass · John Sewell: This collection of poetry is painfully honest, juxtaposing frank discussions of sex with wonderful observations of the natural world.
Le Grand Meaulnes · Alain-Fournier: This novel is a complex love story that explores themes of childhood, adolescence, and adulthood.
A Bibliography of Arthur Machen · Adrian Goldstone and Wesley D. Sweetser: This bibliography is an essential tool for Machen collectors.
Flowers of Evil · Charles Baudelaire: This collection of poetry is a heady mixture of sex and death.
The Salutation · Sylvia Townsend Warner: This collection of short stories contains the novella 'The Salutation', which is a quiet but powerful elegy to sadness and loss.
In Youth Is Pleasure · Denton Welch: This novel is a coming-of-age story about a young man named Orville Pym.
On the Edge · Walter de la Mare: This collection of short stories contains the classic 'Seaton's Aunt', as well as other excellent tales.
The Quest for Corvo · A. J. A. Symons: This biography of Frederick Rolfe is a classic of literary detection.
The Unspeakable Skipton · Pamela Hansford Johnson: This novel is a portrait of a narcissist, based on the author Frederick Rolfe.
The Cry of a Gull · Alyse Gregory: This book is a collection of diary entries that chronicle the author's life with her husband, Llewelyn Powys, and her life alone after his death.
Flower Phantoms · Ronald Fraser: This novel is a story of a fervent spiritual and erotic awakening.
A Little Treachery · Phyllis Paul: This novel is a dark and depressing story about two sisters who are haunted by their mother's madness.
Stenbock, Yeats and the Nineties · John Adlard: This biography of Count Stenbock is a fascinating look at the life of a decadent poet.
The Haunted Woman · David Lindsay: This novel is a Gothic romance about a woman who discovers a strange staircase in a remote house.
The Attempted Rescue · Robert Aickman: This autobiography is a fascinating look at the life of a writer who was also a passionate advocate for the preservation of Britain's canals.
The Doll Maker · Sarban: This collection of short stories explores themes of power, control, and domination.
Dromenon · Gerald Heard: This collection of short stories is a mix of science fiction, ghost stories, and philosophical fables.
Jean Rhys Revisited · Alexis Lykiard: This book is a memoir of the author's friendship with Jean Rhys.
The House of the Hidden Light · Arthur Machen and A. E. Waite: This book is a coded record of Machen and Waite's nocturnal adventures around London.
Fireman Flower · William Sansom: This collection of short stories is a mix of realism and surrealism.
Miss Hargreaves · Frank Baker: This novel is a dark comedy about two friends who invent a character who comes to life.
Sleep has his House · Anna Kavan: This experimental novel is a series of dreams that explore the dark side of human experience.
The Brontës Went to Woolworth's · Rachel Ferguson: This novel is a light-hearted comedy about a family who have imaginary friends.
The Fallen · Dave Simpson: This book is a record of the author's quest to talk to all the surviving members of Mark E. Smith's band The Fall.
The Saint Perpetuus Club of Buenos Aires · Eric Stener Carlson: This novel is a mystery about a man who finds a diary that claims to reveal the secret of time travel.
The Old Knowledge · Rosalie Parker: This collection of short stories explores the dark side of human experience, often with a focus on the supernatural.
The Beetle · Richard Marsh: This novel is a Gothic thriller about a shape-shifting Ancient Egyptian entity that seeks revenge on a British politician.
At Dusk · Mark Valentine: This collection of prose poems is a homage to a variety of different writers and poets.
Rupetta · N. A. Sulway: This novel is an alternative history about an automaton who is created in a small town in rural France.
The Loney · Andrew Michael Hurley: This novel is a dark and atmospheric story about two brothers who go on a pilgrimage to a remote island.
Copsford · Walter J. C. Murray: This book is a memoir of the author's year spent living in a derelict cottage in the Sussex countryside.
The Paris Notebooks · Quentin S. Crisp: This book is a diary of the author's short time in Paris.
Swastika Night · Murray Constantine: This novel is a dystopian vision of a future in which the Nazis have won the Second World War.
The House of Silence · Avalon Brantley: This novel is a Gothic horror story inspired by William Hope Hodgson's The House on the Borderland and The Night Land.
Shadows of the State · Lewis Bush: This book is a guide to numbers stations, which are shortwave radio stations that are used to transmit coded messages to spies.
The Military Orchid · Jocelyn Brooke: This book is a lyrical evocation of the author's childhood and adolescence.
The Child Cephalina · Rebecca Lloyd: This novel is a haunting and unsettling story about a man who becomes obsessed with a young girl who claims to have psychic powers.
The Outsider · Richard Wright
I will be on the lookout for most of these.
Crises, triumphs, and characters come and go and come back again as chapters accumulate. And not all these characters are friendly or heroic, which says something for Russell's patience and good humor. The book publishing and selling trade, for instance, seems to be leavened with many benighted souls.
To wit:
I quickly realised that Mr Locke was a mine of information on supernatural, strange and weird literature. He talked knowledgeably about William Hope Hodgson, M. R. James and H. P. Lovecraft. I proudly admitted that the large parcel I was carrying contained five copies of the newly published Tartarus Press edition of Ritual and Other Stories by Arthur Machen (originally published in 1936). I was hoping to drop them off at Smail’s Legal Deposit Office on Euston Street (to save the postage, which was considerable). George then proposed I exchange those five copies of Ritual (which, as editor and publisher, I would sign) for the book by Egan. I found myself agreeing, even though he explained that I would have to give him a generous discount because he was in the trade. Additionally, he was buying in bulk, and on top of this he was saving me the postage of sending him the books. I, however, was not entitled to any discount because I admitted I was buying the Egan for my collection. When I later paid to have another five copies of Ritual bound up and posted to Smail I realised just how out of pocket I had been in my deal with George. To add insult to injury, he was selling my copies of Ritual at more than the retail price because (as he explained in his Ferret Fantasy catalogue) it was rare to find copies signed by the editor/publisher!
George managed to get the better of me on a number of subsequent occasions, such as when I acquired his wonderful Spectrum of Fantasy volumes by trading Tartarus Press books of a much higher retail value. (To be fair, his reference books are still a delight, and I have completely forgotten which books he had in exchange.) I always grumbled, but usually admired the way he would end up with the better part of any deal.
The Outsider · Colin Wilson: This book explores the concept of creative artists who feel alienated from society.
The Hill of Dreams · Arthur Machen: This novel is about a young man who strives to write great literature, even at the expense of his love life, and who descends into madness.
The Most Haunted House in England · Harry Price: This book is a pseudoscientific account of investigations and events at Borley Rectory.
Diary of a Drug Fiend · Aleister Crowley: This novel is a cautionary tale about the dangers of drug addiction, but it also offers a message of hope and redemption.
The Other · Thomas Tryon: This novel is a folk horror story about twin boys with very different personalities.
Devil in the Flesh · Raymond Radiguet: This novel is a tragic love story about a young man who has an affair with a newly married woman whose husband is fighting at the front in the First World War.
The Tenant · Roland Topor: This novel is a study in paranoia and mental decline, caused by the protagonist's desperation to remain an insider.
Two Symphonies · André Gide: This book contains two novellas, Isabelle and La Symphonie Pastorale, both of which are love stories.
Dilemmas · Ernest Dowson: This collection of short stories is quietly decadent in its beauty and rhythm, and seems to imply that the religious life is no life at all.
Xélucha and Others · M. P. Shiel: This collection of short stories contains some of Shiel's best work, including the stories 'Xélucha', 'The House of Sounds', and 'The Primate of the Rose'.
Tales of Horror and the Supernatural · Arthur Machen: This collection of short stories showcases Machen's skill in creating atmospheric and uncanny tales.
Widdershins · Oliver Onions: This collection of short stories contains the classic 'The Beckoning Fair One', as well as other excellent tales.
Lunch on the Grass · John Sewell: This collection of poetry is painfully honest, juxtaposing frank discussions of sex with wonderful observations of the natural world.
Le Grand Meaulnes · Alain-Fournier: This novel is a complex love story that explores themes of childhood, adolescence, and adulthood.
A Bibliography of Arthur Machen · Adrian Goldstone and Wesley D. Sweetser: This bibliography is an essential tool for Machen collectors.
Flowers of Evil · Charles Baudelaire: This collection of poetry is a heady mixture of sex and death.
The Salutation · Sylvia Townsend Warner: This collection of short stories contains the novella 'The Salutation', which is a quiet but powerful elegy to sadness and loss.
In Youth Is Pleasure · Denton Welch: This novel is a coming-of-age story about a young man named Orville Pym.
On the Edge · Walter de la Mare: This collection of short stories contains the classic 'Seaton's Aunt', as well as other excellent tales.
The Quest for Corvo · A. J. A. Symons: This biography of Frederick Rolfe is a classic of literary detection.
The Unspeakable Skipton · Pamela Hansford Johnson: This novel is a portrait of a narcissist, based on the author Frederick Rolfe.
The Cry of a Gull · Alyse Gregory: This book is a collection of diary entries that chronicle the author's life with her husband, Llewelyn Powys, and her life alone after his death.
Flower Phantoms · Ronald Fraser: This novel is a story of a fervent spiritual and erotic awakening.
A Little Treachery · Phyllis Paul: This novel is a dark and depressing story about two sisters who are haunted by their mother's madness.
Stenbock, Yeats and the Nineties · John Adlard: This biography of Count Stenbock is a fascinating look at the life of a decadent poet.
The Haunted Woman · David Lindsay: This novel is a Gothic romance about a woman who discovers a strange staircase in a remote house.
The Attempted Rescue · Robert Aickman: This autobiography is a fascinating look at the life of a writer who was also a passionate advocate for the preservation of Britain's canals.
The Doll Maker · Sarban: This collection of short stories explores themes of power, control, and domination.
Dromenon · Gerald Heard: This collection of short stories is a mix of science fiction, ghost stories, and philosophical fables.
Jean Rhys Revisited · Alexis Lykiard: This book is a memoir of the author's friendship with Jean Rhys.
The House of the Hidden Light · Arthur Machen and A. E. Waite: This book is a coded record of Machen and Waite's nocturnal adventures around London.
Fireman Flower · William Sansom: This collection of short stories is a mix of realism and surrealism.
Miss Hargreaves · Frank Baker: This novel is a dark comedy about two friends who invent a character who comes to life.
Sleep has his House · Anna Kavan: This experimental novel is a series of dreams that explore the dark side of human experience.
The Brontës Went to Woolworth's · Rachel Ferguson: This novel is a light-hearted comedy about a family who have imaginary friends.
The Fallen · Dave Simpson: This book is a record of the author's quest to talk to all the surviving members of Mark E. Smith's band The Fall.
The Saint Perpetuus Club of Buenos Aires · Eric Stener Carlson: This novel is a mystery about a man who finds a diary that claims to reveal the secret of time travel.
The Old Knowledge · Rosalie Parker: This collection of short stories explores the dark side of human experience, often with a focus on the supernatural.
The Beetle · Richard Marsh: This novel is a Gothic thriller about a shape-shifting Ancient Egyptian entity that seeks revenge on a British politician.
At Dusk · Mark Valentine: This collection of prose poems is a homage to a variety of different writers and poets.
Rupetta · N. A. Sulway: This novel is an alternative history about an automaton who is created in a small town in rural France.
The Loney · Andrew Michael Hurley: This novel is a dark and atmospheric story about two brothers who go on a pilgrimage to a remote island.
Copsford · Walter J. C. Murray: This book is a memoir of the author's year spent living in a derelict cottage in the Sussex countryside.
The Paris Notebooks · Quentin S. Crisp: This book is a diary of the author's short time in Paris.
Swastika Night · Murray Constantine: This novel is a dystopian vision of a future in which the Nazis have won the Second World War.
The House of Silence · Avalon Brantley: This novel is a Gothic horror story inspired by William Hope Hodgson's The House on the Borderland and The Night Land.
Shadows of the State · Lewis Bush: This book is a guide to numbers stations, which are shortwave radio stations that are used to transmit coded messages to spies.
The Military Orchid · Jocelyn Brooke: This book is a lyrical evocation of the author's childhood and adolescence.
The Child Cephalina · Rebecca Lloyd: This novel is a haunting and unsettling story about a man who becomes obsessed with a young girl who claims to have psychic powers.
The Outsider · Richard Wright
I will be on the lookout for most of these.
December 3, 2023
I have several issues with this book:
1. Machen is mentioned 154 times. 154. Times.
2. As regards the choice of books:
- Russell chooses several books written by friends, and even one written by his wife.
- Russell includes ‘The Loney’, which is a recent and award-winning book. How this qualifies as a ‘forgotten book’ is beyond me. That he is the publisher must be a coincidence.
- Of the 50 books, only 12 were written by women.
- Of the 50 books, only 1 was written by a person of color. Russell actually adresses this issue near the end of his book, but in a very unsatisfactory way, which he concludes by saying:
“The reason I have read so few books by writers from non-white cultures is obviously cultural, complicated and potentially contentious.”
Ok then.
Now, it is obviously not a crime to read mostly white men. However, I question the value of such a reader publishing a book of ‘forgotten books’. Such a book seems to me to be the perfect opportunity to cast a light upon authors history has silenced. To instead list a bunch of white, mostly English, men feels like a waste.
3. Russell shares quite a bit of his personal life. In the nicest way possible: why should I be interested in that?
1. Machen is mentioned 154 times. 154. Times.
2. As regards the choice of books:
- Russell chooses several books written by friends, and even one written by his wife.
- Russell includes ‘The Loney’, which is a recent and award-winning book. How this qualifies as a ‘forgotten book’ is beyond me. That he is the publisher must be a coincidence.
- Of the 50 books, only 12 were written by women.
- Of the 50 books, only 1 was written by a person of color. Russell actually adresses this issue near the end of his book, but in a very unsatisfactory way, which he concludes by saying:
“The reason I have read so few books by writers from non-white cultures is obviously cultural, complicated and potentially contentious.”
Ok then.
Now, it is obviously not a crime to read mostly white men. However, I question the value of such a reader publishing a book of ‘forgotten books’. Such a book seems to me to be the perfect opportunity to cast a light upon authors history has silenced. To instead list a bunch of white, mostly English, men feels like a waste.
3. Russell shares quite a bit of his personal life. In the nicest way possible: why should I be interested in that?
October 1, 2022
Usually, the pleasure of reading this kind of collection of forgotten or unappreciated books is finding new books that you want to read. I did not find a single book that I added to my to-be-read list.
Russell is a collector and publisher of older horror and weird stories. He recommends books like "an experimental novel of an unhappy childhood, told through a series of dreams" ("Sleep Has His House" by Anna Kaven, 1948) or "a story of a fervent spiritual and erotic awakening that is vivid and passionate, while sensitively written." ("Flower Phantasms " by Ronald Fraser ,1926)
This is not my cup of tea. I am not a fan of the supernatural or occult. One of my shortcomings is that I have no desire to read detailed analysis of the love lives of strangers.
Despite my lack of appreciation for the 50 forgotten books discussed, I really enjoyed the book. Russel is excellent on the peculiarities of bibliophiles. He explains why we want multiple copies of a book we love. He understands the difficulty of walking away from a book you have to have but you cannot afford, or not walking away from it. He explains the need to have everything from an author you collect, including the weak or even embarrassing stuff.
He is also very good on booksellers. He describes his favorite booksellers, and he paints the eccentric, difficult and rude types who are attracted to that world.
He also covers the beginning of the internet world, although he argues, against much contrary evidence, that used booksellers are still doing well.
He is also very good on the political ins and outs of the tiny literary work; He is the founder or co-founder of several small societies for the appreciation for examples. he was a founder of the John Machan and Sylvis Townshend Warrner Association for example,
Russell has a modest and curious style that make him a good storyteller.
Russell is a collector and publisher of older horror and weird stories. He recommends books like "an experimental novel of an unhappy childhood, told through a series of dreams" ("Sleep Has His House" by Anna Kaven, 1948) or "a story of a fervent spiritual and erotic awakening that is vivid and passionate, while sensitively written." ("Flower Phantasms " by Ronald Fraser ,1926)
This is not my cup of tea. I am not a fan of the supernatural or occult. One of my shortcomings is that I have no desire to read detailed analysis of the love lives of strangers.
Despite my lack of appreciation for the 50 forgotten books discussed, I really enjoyed the book. Russel is excellent on the peculiarities of bibliophiles. He explains why we want multiple copies of a book we love. He understands the difficulty of walking away from a book you have to have but you cannot afford, or not walking away from it. He explains the need to have everything from an author you collect, including the weak or even embarrassing stuff.
He is also very good on booksellers. He describes his favorite booksellers, and he paints the eccentric, difficult and rude types who are attracted to that world.
He also covers the beginning of the internet world, although he argues, against much contrary evidence, that used booksellers are still doing well.
He is also very good on the political ins and outs of the tiny literary work; He is the founder or co-founder of several small societies for the appreciation for examples. he was a founder of the John Machan and Sylvis Townshend Warrner Association for example,
Russell has a modest and curious style that make him a good storyteller.
September 24, 2022
[And Other Stories] (2022). 1/1. PB/J. 255 Pages. Signed. Pre-ordered from [AOS].
Ray Russell, a polymath, founded the much-acclaimed [Tartarus Press] during 1990. They continue to publish beautifully produced books to this day; a rum mixture of fine writing; excavated and fresh material.
This volume showcases fifty somewhat less(er)-known titles, of particular appeal, from the author’s own library.
The entries are set in context through a discontinuous autobiographical narrative.
This is a literary primer, served up with a hodgepodge of fascinating background information.
The anecdotes regarding Gerald Suster and George Locke, for example, were interesting and hilarious. They (postally) cursed and (habitually) counfounded him, respectively. Sean Manchester seemed destined to pop up at some point… (he didn’t).
I found myself reminiscing about visiting Two Way Books (Brighton) and attending closing down drinks at The Fantasy Centre (Holloway Road)… recalling being enthralled by ‘The Tenant’ (small, portable telly)… mind wandering off to Renfield (pass the flies) in Herzog’s ‘Nosferatu the Vampyre’… hundreds of great buys from Richard Dalby’s Library… happy tangents with melancholy veins.
High expectations were surpassed. Strongly recommended.
Fingers crossed for a ‘Volume 2’ or similar.
Ray Russell, a polymath, founded the much-acclaimed [Tartarus Press] during 1990. They continue to publish beautifully produced books to this day; a rum mixture of fine writing; excavated and fresh material.
This volume showcases fifty somewhat less(er)-known titles, of particular appeal, from the author’s own library.
The entries are set in context through a discontinuous autobiographical narrative.
This is a literary primer, served up with a hodgepodge of fascinating background information.
The anecdotes regarding Gerald Suster and George Locke, for example, were interesting and hilarious. They (postally) cursed and (habitually) counfounded him, respectively. Sean Manchester seemed destined to pop up at some point… (he didn’t).
I found myself reminiscing about visiting Two Way Books (Brighton) and attending closing down drinks at The Fantasy Centre (Holloway Road)… recalling being enthralled by ‘The Tenant’ (small, portable telly)… mind wandering off to Renfield (pass the flies) in Herzog’s ‘Nosferatu the Vampyre’… hundreds of great buys from Richard Dalby’s Library… happy tangents with melancholy veins.
High expectations were surpassed. Strongly recommended.
Fingers crossed for a ‘Volume 2’ or similar.
August 2, 2024
Fifty Forgotten Books (2022) by R.B. Russell is as enjoyable as browsing in a dusty old book shop on a rainy day.. Much of the book mirrors that experience, as Russel, the protagonist, takes us back to these long gone places through a series of books that have shaped his literary lifetime, often verging on bibliomania. Along the way, it’s not just the places that are fondly recalled, but the idiosyncratic booksellers and collectors he befriended, each happy to slip a book into the author’s hand.
As he states in his introduction, the list provided here is “a personal recommendation of often overlooked and unloved novels, short story collections, poetry and non-fiction”, and they come not with concise summaries, but instead explore the value of the books, whether that be for their rarity, the literary history behind them, or purely sentimental reasons. Depending on who you are, some of these books have never been forgotten or maybe they’ve never been known about to forget, but most fall into “the less frequented byways of literature”.
For the most part, these byways are in the literary supernatural, which is not unexpected as Russell, along with his partner, Rosalie Parker, runs Tartarus Press, boutique publisher of such. Here he recalls the first meeting, in print, with Arthur Machen, hoping for existentialism in The Hill of Dreams (1907) and finding something greater. Tartarus would later publish plenty of Machen’s work, and along the way other writers like Robert Aickman (Russell is also his biographer), Denton Welch, and Sarban, the pen name of British diplomat, John William Wall, all of whom are represented.
While each chapter is dedicated to a specific book, they tend to follow the pattern of first discussing the work and its meaning to Russell then honing in on a slice of his life. Thus the book becomes a memoir just as much as it is a healthy helping of suggestions, showing the writer as a renaissance man, where the books he’s loved have led him, in addition to publishing, into writing fiction, translation, and musical composition. This life is intertwined with the books. The author happily talks of old publishers, first editions, author societies and dinners, and befriending other avid collectors and, in the case of Machen, his daughter, Janet.
Personally I’ve only read two of the books here - The Devil in the Flesh (1923) by Raymond Radiguet and The Tenant (1964) by Roland Topor - though I have copies of several more. It’s not a list for completists, as some of these are more than a little out of reach to the casual buyer. But each recommendation is invariably dripping with other titles to explore. There are a few Tartarus books, which may be seen as self-serving, but they clearly mean something to the author and nobody’s getting rich off limited edition hardbacks that sold out years ago.
Though a memoir, there’s practically a subplot running through the book as the character of Noel Brookes, a Brighton bookseller rumoured to be a spy, regularly pops up in Russell’s journey. Other people mentioned, some known from their own artistic endeavours, like Mark Valentine and David Tibet, add pleasing texture. However, the occasional name drop of someone previously unannounced who will, most likely be unknown to those not in Russell’s circle, is at times distracting.
As the works listed in Fifty Forgotten Books are recounted, it’s clear this is a tribute to the obscure and overlooked. There's no denying that Russell is the epitome of bibliophilia. He doesn’t just read the works but delights in the world around them, the stories beyond them, the hunt for them in defiance of the internet, and the shared enthusiasm of those other travellers on the lonely byways. One may say that this book is an attempted rescue of such works.
As he states in his introduction, the list provided here is “a personal recommendation of often overlooked and unloved novels, short story collections, poetry and non-fiction”, and they come not with concise summaries, but instead explore the value of the books, whether that be for their rarity, the literary history behind them, or purely sentimental reasons. Depending on who you are, some of these books have never been forgotten or maybe they’ve never been known about to forget, but most fall into “the less frequented byways of literature”.
For the most part, these byways are in the literary supernatural, which is not unexpected as Russell, along with his partner, Rosalie Parker, runs Tartarus Press, boutique publisher of such. Here he recalls the first meeting, in print, with Arthur Machen, hoping for existentialism in The Hill of Dreams (1907) and finding something greater. Tartarus would later publish plenty of Machen’s work, and along the way other writers like Robert Aickman (Russell is also his biographer), Denton Welch, and Sarban, the pen name of British diplomat, John William Wall, all of whom are represented.
While each chapter is dedicated to a specific book, they tend to follow the pattern of first discussing the work and its meaning to Russell then honing in on a slice of his life. Thus the book becomes a memoir just as much as it is a healthy helping of suggestions, showing the writer as a renaissance man, where the books he’s loved have led him, in addition to publishing, into writing fiction, translation, and musical composition. This life is intertwined with the books. The author happily talks of old publishers, first editions, author societies and dinners, and befriending other avid collectors and, in the case of Machen, his daughter, Janet.
Personally I’ve only read two of the books here - The Devil in the Flesh (1923) by Raymond Radiguet and The Tenant (1964) by Roland Topor - though I have copies of several more. It’s not a list for completists, as some of these are more than a little out of reach to the casual buyer. But each recommendation is invariably dripping with other titles to explore. There are a few Tartarus books, which may be seen as self-serving, but they clearly mean something to the author and nobody’s getting rich off limited edition hardbacks that sold out years ago.
Though a memoir, there’s practically a subplot running through the book as the character of Noel Brookes, a Brighton bookseller rumoured to be a spy, regularly pops up in Russell’s journey. Other people mentioned, some known from their own artistic endeavours, like Mark Valentine and David Tibet, add pleasing texture. However, the occasional name drop of someone previously unannounced who will, most likely be unknown to those not in Russell’s circle, is at times distracting.
As the works listed in Fifty Forgotten Books are recounted, it’s clear this is a tribute to the obscure and overlooked. There's no denying that Russell is the epitome of bibliophilia. He doesn’t just read the works but delights in the world around them, the stories beyond them, the hunt for them in defiance of the internet, and the shared enthusiasm of those other travellers on the lonely byways. One may say that this book is an attempted rescue of such works.
November 7, 2022
This was nice - a lot of books that are very dear to the author (who also published/reprinted a number of them) and his circle, but that I was unfamiliar with (and a number are horror, so not my particular wheelhouse). But it's very clear how much he really values these titles as a reader, and in some cases these copies of these books in particular, which is how a bookworms favorite books should be.
Read
December 27, 2024"I tried to visit different bookshops every time. In this particular shop I remember there being an atmosphere like syrup, or liquid amber. Perhaps it was just a dark winter afternoon and the lights were on."
"I was annoyed that people who called themselves Goths had never read Mrs Radcliffe, Horace Walpole or Charles Maturin."
"In the front of my paperback, I long ago copied a quote originally from Le Figaro describing Les Fleurs du mal: 'Everythingin it which is not hideous is incomprehensible, everything one understands is putrid.'"
"The trouble is that Grimoire is a bookshop about which I really remember the books I didn't buy."
"I was annoyed that people who called themselves Goths had never read Mrs Radcliffe, Horace Walpole or Charles Maturin."
"In the front of my paperback, I long ago copied a quote originally from Le Figaro describing Les Fleurs du mal: 'Everythingin it which is not hideous is incomprehensible, everything one understands is putrid.'"
"The trouble is that Grimoire is a bookshop about which I really remember the books I didn't buy."
September 25, 2022
I loved this book. I could turn around and read it again. But Ray Russell has written other books.
July 6, 2024
The synopsis does not mention this is largely about supernatural fiction, a genre which I enjoy.
July 4, 2025
A real joy to read. A book lover’s reminiscences. What more could one want?
December 16, 2022
At the end the author calls this “a volume of reminiscences”, and that's what it is. A very idiosyncratic look at some books that influenced the author's life and work. He founded Tartarus Press some years ago to champion more obscure books and authors, and recounts many of these episodes.
Russell has an affinity for older works of authors of suspense and strangeness, especially Arthur Machen. Machen's influence permeates this book, as the author ran the Arthur Machen literary society for some years. Being English and living in Yorkshire, he has had access to a number of British authors of this type, prowling secondhand bookstores throughout his life for forgotten treasures. Sometimes he had to pay a lot to get a book in the first edition as that was the only one available. There is one line in the book that will warm the heart of every book-lover: "An overpriced book is invariably better value than most other pleasures at a discount."
As such, this is a very slanted few of 'forgotten' books, leaning heavily on the supernatural, experimental writing, and obscure authors of (sometimes questionable quality) old books. People who are fans of Walter de la Mare, Sylvia Townsend Warner, and others like that will enjoy reading about similar authors and works. However, Russell's intermittent descriptions of his bookish life and the travails of publishing can be wearing. Sometimes you just want him to get back to the books. There are a number of featured books that were published by him, so that he could be accused of being somewhat self-serving, but it's his book and he can profile those authors he favors, even if they've been published so recently they can hardly have been 'forgotten' yet.
Still, it's one of those 'books about books' that bibliophiles and ardent readers find enjoyment in browsing. I confess that while I've read some of the cited authors, I've never read any of these fifty books. I may have to pick up a copy of Machen's “The Hill of Dreams” or Murray (Katherine Burdekin) Constantine's “Swastika Night”. And I may have to find a copy of Warner's collection “The Salutation”, as I have enjoyed her other work.
Russell has an affinity for older works of authors of suspense and strangeness, especially Arthur Machen. Machen's influence permeates this book, as the author ran the Arthur Machen literary society for some years. Being English and living in Yorkshire, he has had access to a number of British authors of this type, prowling secondhand bookstores throughout his life for forgotten treasures. Sometimes he had to pay a lot to get a book in the first edition as that was the only one available. There is one line in the book that will warm the heart of every book-lover: "An overpriced book is invariably better value than most other pleasures at a discount."
As such, this is a very slanted few of 'forgotten' books, leaning heavily on the supernatural, experimental writing, and obscure authors of (sometimes questionable quality) old books. People who are fans of Walter de la Mare, Sylvia Townsend Warner, and others like that will enjoy reading about similar authors and works. However, Russell's intermittent descriptions of his bookish life and the travails of publishing can be wearing. Sometimes you just want him to get back to the books. There are a number of featured books that were published by him, so that he could be accused of being somewhat self-serving, but it's his book and he can profile those authors he favors, even if they've been published so recently they can hardly have been 'forgotten' yet.
Still, it's one of those 'books about books' that bibliophiles and ardent readers find enjoyment in browsing. I confess that while I've read some of the cited authors, I've never read any of these fifty books. I may have to pick up a copy of Machen's “The Hill of Dreams” or Murray (Katherine Burdekin) Constantine's “Swastika Night”. And I may have to find a copy of Warner's collection “The Salutation”, as I have enjoyed her other work.
May 18, 2023
As I tend to read off the beaten path and always broaden my literary horizons, I picked up the book for the list of these fifty books that I can research and add to my "to-read" list. However, this proved to be a unique journey regardless of anything. At first I had a hunch that these books would be horror or fantasy, which most of them were, but I appreciated the deep insight into largely obscure or forgotten primarily British authors and works despite not reading widely in this genre.
What I really enjoyed most was the way the author interspersed his autobiography and the role that these books play in his life. Despite knowing only 2 or 3 of the mentioned books (the French ones), the author opens a door to his world and invites anyone willing to look in and discover the world of haunting and weird stories for themselves.
Adding to the already present list of obscure books and personal sentimentality, the author also discusses at lengths his love for second-hand bookshops, book collecting, running a small printing press, interacting with book dealers, hunting rare firsts, organizing literate societies, and living a bookish life in a circle of like-minded people. This all made for a incredibly personal and honest journey and not only piqued my curiosity for the books discussed, but held my attention and fascination with the bookish lifestyle throughout the entire book.
What I really enjoyed most was the way the author interspersed his autobiography and the role that these books play in his life. Despite knowing only 2 or 3 of the mentioned books (the French ones), the author opens a door to his world and invites anyone willing to look in and discover the world of haunting and weird stories for themselves.
Adding to the already present list of obscure books and personal sentimentality, the author also discusses at lengths his love for second-hand bookshops, book collecting, running a small printing press, interacting with book dealers, hunting rare firsts, organizing literate societies, and living a bookish life in a circle of like-minded people. This all made for a incredibly personal and honest journey and not only piqued my curiosity for the books discussed, but held my attention and fascination with the bookish lifestyle throughout the entire book.
May 12, 2023
Great moments in English bookstores finding rare books and first editions to treasure for life. A kind of excitement really does pulse on every page. But also pathos, the lonely pathos of romantic youth. This took me back to my own haunted early bookstore years before I met someone and things got better.
The actual books he lists are mostly fantasies ranging from George Macdonald to H. P. Lovecraft to Michael Moorcock. But I found a good one, a book of stories, Dilemmas, by the fin-de-siecle English poet Ernest Dowson, who died at thirty-three, and whose most famous poem was:
Vitae Summa Brevis....
They are not long, the weeping and the laughter,
Love and desire and hate:
I think they have no portion in us after
We pass the gate.
They are not long, the days of wine and roses:
Out of a misty dream
Our path emerges for a while, then closes
Within a dream.
The actual books he lists are mostly fantasies ranging from George Macdonald to H. P. Lovecraft to Michael Moorcock. But I found a good one, a book of stories, Dilemmas, by the fin-de-siecle English poet Ernest Dowson, who died at thirty-three, and whose most famous poem was:
Vitae Summa Brevis....
They are not long, the weeping and the laughter,
Love and desire and hate:
I think they have no portion in us after
We pass the gate.
They are not long, the days of wine and roses:
Out of a misty dream
Our path emerges for a while, then closes
Within a dream.
July 3, 2023
Russell is a dedicated book collector turned small press publisher. His taste tends to run to older British supernatural fiction and French existentialism, with a particular passion for the works of English occultist Arthur Machen. The book is a peak into a world of small literary societies devoted to largely forgotten authors, and competitive collectors hunting down rare books, often with specific pedigrees such the copy of a particular book that was owned by another well known author.
I was familiar with only six of the fifty books Russell discusses, most of which are fiction, but there are a few non-fiction works. Since starting this book I have acquired copies of five more, and have added another seven to my never ending search list. I am always grateful to anyone who adds another interesting obscure author to my to-read list, and Russel has added several.
I was familiar with only six of the fifty books Russell discusses, most of which are fiction, but there are a few non-fiction works. Since starting this book I have acquired copies of five more, and have added another seven to my never ending search list. I am always grateful to anyone who adds another interesting obscure author to my to-read list, and Russel has added several.
September 30, 2022
What a beautiful book! Russell takes the reader on a friendly and extremely well written journey through the history of his love of books. The love turns into an incredible amount of learning and preservation of books that, as the title says, are largely forgotten. Living at this point in history, we have many spoils of incredible art produced by past minds. It is wonderful that Russell and his friends are preserving some if this (mainly a segment of late 19th and early 20th century English literature), and also promoting it for new readers. If you like books and literature, there is a good chance you will LOVE THIS BOOK! If you are not sure, check out some of his youtube videos on this book -- they will give you a very good sense of what the book is like.
January 31, 2023
I8 enjoyed this book - it was interesting to see how books had fallen out of favour and diappeared from the bookshelf.
I remembered the books of Arthur Machen, one of the author's favourite, and will try and obtain copies to read again. There are also some authors in the book that I recognised their names but not the books so that gives me some to explore. The book is part memoir and part book detection /discovery.It is a patchwork of memories and the author's love for books - a humourous and entertainig tale
I remembered the books of Arthur Machen, one of the author's favourite, and will try and obtain copies to read again. There are also some authors in the book that I recognised their names but not the books so that gives me some to explore. The book is part memoir and part book detection /discovery.It is a patchwork of memories and the author's love for books - a humourous and entertainig tale
October 30, 2022
A lovely book that as soon as I had finished I started to read again. While everyone's experiences are unique, Ray Russell's memoir in a curious way reflects everyone's - I've read a book like that, I remember a bookseller like that, I had a reading experience like that. As a publisher Ray has also come across a number of authors and these often outre stories add spice to the telling (I, too, met Gerald Suster). Overall, a really enjoyable book that I shall come back to again and again.
November 28, 2025
To say that this book rubbed my fur the wrong way would be an understatement. The 2 star rating in no way reflects the intensity of my irritation but there were a few - a very few - useful bits of information and I want to acknowledge them. Note to self: never read another book by this author even if the T. Lobsang Rampa biography seems too enticing to ignore. You know you'll hate it so just...resist.
January 28, 2023
an interesting way to write a memoir of sorts, n certainly filled my ‘want to read’ list, but felt boring n was deffo written for ppl within the social n collector circles - not good for outsiders
February 8, 2023
Not sure the 50 books reviewed here would appeal to me, but the author's chase after his rarities was an interesting read.
July 24, 2023
3.5 Most of the books that Russell identifies are not my usual genre, but I did like reading about his "hunt" for the books and the booksellers and shops he patronized.
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