Title: The Terrifying Tales
Author: Edgar Allan Poe
Pages: 150
This is a collection of some of Poe’s most popular short stories. While I love Poe’s work, there are a few that I don’t really love and sadly, two of them were included in this collection, but I do enjoy the rest.
The Tell-Tale Heart
“I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before I killed him”
A case of a caretaker killing his older charge because he doesn’t like the look of his blind eye. Ever since I originally read this story in middle school, it has always stuck with me because of how powerful the prose of this story was. It also is very human-like to kill someone because you don’t like their appearance and then to deny madness.
The Case of Amontillado
This is a chilling tale of revenge. Every time I read this I am amazed at Poe’s haunting description and how plausible his character’s actions are. Also the opening line in this story is so captivating and just pulls you in.
The Masque of the Red Death
This is a poignant and descriptive story about not being able to cheat death. I really enjoy the idea that the Red Death was a being who was pissed that the rich were able to evade its spread so they disguise themselves as a party goer and infect everyone. Also the description of this Red Death character sounds so gruesome. I love how Poe describes and creates such creepy scenes.
The Fall of the House of Usher
The House of Usher was a haunting story about two siblings who were mentally and physically ill. Every time I read this story I am amazed by the imagery that Poe conjures with his descriptions of this house, the storm, and the book. It’s just a wonderful and haunting story of mental illness.
The Murders in the Rue Morgue
This is one of Poe’s stories that I actually don’t really like. This is one of Poe’s three detective stories and sadly for me It just seems to go on forever and lacks a lot of his really descriptive imagery that his short stories have. Yes it’s an interesting murder but I think the way this was presented was boring and I actually ended up listening to this online because I find reading it really hard to get through.
The Purloined Letter
This is another detective story of Poe’s and sadly, I am again not a fan. I am just not a fan of his detective stories. This story sees the return of Detective Dupin and this time he uses his skills to find out who stole a letter. Like The Murders in the Rue Morgue, I found this pretty boring and didn’t really enjoy Dupin’s recounting of his thought process of finding the criminal. Also again, I listened to this one online because I cannot get through reading this story.
The Pit and the Pendulum
This is a story about a prisoner of the Spanish Inquisition who is describing his experiences being tortured. This has heavy emphasis on the senses and really describes the horror of the dark, the small space, the air from the pendulum, etc. While I enjoy this story for the descriptive horror that this individual is experiencing, I think I would have enjoyed it better if he hadn’t been rescued at the end. I feel like the rescue at the end pulled me from the horror of this torture and showed how historically inaccurate this story is. I do still like this story though.
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Red-Haired Ash Reads 