H.R. Wakefield
Burl Veneer
post my thoughts on them soon(ish), but if anyone wants to run with
one of these topics in the meantime please do--
By the end of OLD MAN'S BEARD Wakefield seems to be getting restless
with writing ghost stories.
THE CLOCK STRIKES TWELVE finds Wakefield as an apologist for the ghost
story, with a number of the tales straining under the weight of their
pleas for relevance "in this era of wireless and charabancs."
Bill B.
woolrich
As an unrelated matter, can anyone confirm for me whether the contents
of the 1976 Arno Wakefield GHOST STORIES edition coincides with any of
the 1932 Jonathan Capes GHOST STORIES edition or if the Arno one
happens to be reprint?
Jim Rockhill
It is a reprint of the Florin Books edition published by Jonathan Capes in 1932:
Messrs. Turkes and Talbot
A Peg on which to Hang
Used Car
Damp Sheets
The Cairn
Blind Man's Buff
'Look Up There!'
The Frontier Guards
Mr. Ash's Studio
Nurse's Tale
A Coincidence at Hunton
The Red Hand
An Echo
Day-Dream in Macedon
Knock! Knock! Who's There?
Epilogue by Roger Bantock
The Last to Leave
The Central Figure
Old Man's Beard
Present at the End
A Jolly Surprise for Henri
woolrich
Thanks, Jim, I couldn't seem to find a list of the contents for the
Arno edition...
By the by, my favorite Wakefield collection post- OLD MAN'S BEARD
(OTHERS WHO RETURNED) would be STRAYERS FROM SHEOL, "Ghost Hunt" found
therein or not. What's your estimation of that one?
Burl Veneer
> The Cairn
This tale demonstrates what I see as Wakefield's greatest strength,
which is adding details that make the story more than just a type.
Here is your basic "I'm going to flout local superstition" story; we
all know that's a bad idea, and we know the ending is grimly
inevitable. But Wakefield adds some extras, such as the one man
tracking the other's progress through a telescope, the nature of their
joint demise, and the very nature of the entity responsible, discerned
through no more than a glimpse and a set of footprints. This story
easily stands in the top ranks of the genre.
So does "The First Sheaf," an "isolated farming community's fertility
rite" story that Wakefield embellishes into excellence. We all know
more or less what happened to the little girl; but as we learn more it
becomes even more shocking. And I'd bet no one predicted correctly
how the storyteller lost his arm.
In "Lucky's Grove" Wakefield subverts the investigative ghost story;
instead of following a sleuth through the process of consulting parish
records and chatting up rustics in the local to discover the origin of
a "disturbance," he puts it right in the epigraph. Thus the
manifestations of the haunting, and not its appeasement, become the
focal point of the story, and he seems to take delight in the snake-
and wolf-play. Another great one.
> Blind Man's Buff
> 'Look Up There!'
> The Frontier Guards
> Mr. Ash's Studio
I remember being very impressed by this when in read it years ago in
one of the Robert Arthur/Alfred Hitchcock anthologies, enough so that
I bought the Ash-Tree STRAYERS upon its publication. Alas, it now
sits unread in a box somewhere, but summer should see its release from
book limbo into my eager hands.
> Nurse's Tale
> A Coincidence at Hunton
> The Red Hand
> An Echo
> Day-Dream in Macedon
> Knock! Knock! Who's There?
> Epilogue by Roger Bantock
> The Last to Leave
A charming tale of benevolent ghosts.
> The Central Figure
> Old Man's Beard
> Present at the End
I'm surprised this one made it into a "best of" collection; I found it
the only hands-down stinker in OLD MAN'S BEARD. "And the cute little
animals climbed into his death-bed and cuddled with him." GAG!
> A Jolly Surprise for Henri
The title adds a degree of amusement to this one when we get to the
end and learn what it means. This is in contrast to the instances in
which Wakefield gives away the ending with the title, e.g. "'I
Recognized the Voice.'" (Imagine Hodgson titling "The Voice in the
Night" "The Fungus-Man.")
(Which reminds me of a recent Washington Post Style Invitational, in
which readers were asked to invent the first line of joke that
telegraphs the punchline, resulting in entries such as "Vincent van
Gogh travels to the future in a time machine, and the first person he
meets is Mike Tyson . . . " The full list of "winners" is at
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A16058-2002Feb15.html
for the next few days.)
Bill B.
Jim Rockhill
> jr...@locallink.net (Jim Rockhill) wrote in message news:<da490663.02022...@posting.google.com>...
> > grand_g...@hotmail.com (woolrich) wrote in message news:<2b4c9e85.02022...@posting.google.com>...
> > > burlv...@yahoo.com (Burl Veneer) wrote in message news:<ea57ae73.02022...@posting.google.com>...
(Snip)
>
> Thanks, Jim, I couldn't seem to find a list of the contents for the
> Arno edition...
>
> By the by, my favorite Wakefield collection post- OLD MAN'S BEARD
> (OTHERS WHO RETURNED) would be STRAYERS FROM SHEOL, "Ghost Hunt" found
> therein or not. What's your estimation of that one?
There are a lot of gems in that one, especially the recent expanded
edition from Ash-Tree. Since "Lucky's Grove" and "The First Sheaf" are
in TWELVE, "Mr. Ash's Studio" and "The Triumph of Death" in STRAYERS,
it's a pretty close call between that and its predecessor. "The
Alley", "Into Outer Darkness" and "Ghost Hunt" are not quite up to the
level of the stories they most resemble in the three earlier
collections--"The Red Lodge", "Blind Man's Buff", "The Frontier
Guards", "Look Up There!"--but few haunted house tales written by
ANYONE comes even this close.
Jim
(Still waiting for an opportunity to read the rest of the stories in
IMAGINE A MAN IN A BOX and kicking himself--repeatedly--for not
picking up THEY RETURN AT EVENING & OLD MAN'S BEARD while he had the
chance.)
Jim Rockhill
> > It is a reprint of the Florin Books edition published by Jonathan Capes in 1932:
>
> > The Cairn
>
> This tale demonstrates what I see as Wakefield's greatest strength,
> which is adding details that make the story more than just a type.
> Here is your basic "I'm going to flout local superstition" story; we
> all know that's a bad idea, and we know the ending is grimly
> inevitable. But Wakefield adds some extras, such as the one man
> tracking the other's progress through a telescope, the nature of their
> joint demise, and the very nature of the entity responsible, discerned
> through no more than a glimpse and a set of footprints. This story
> easily stands in the top ranks of the genre.
I agree. Why is Benson's pallid "The Horror Horn" so much better
known?
>
> So does "The First Sheaf," an "isolated farming community's fertility
> rite" story that Wakefield embellishes into excellence. We all know
> more or less what happened to the little girl; but as we learn more it
> becomes even more shocking. And I'd bet no one predicted correctly
> how the storyteller lost his arm.
>
One of my favorites. I think this tale and the next are the highlights
of THE CLOCK STRIKES TWELVE.
> In "Lucky's Grove" Wakefield subverts the investigative ghost story;
> instead of following a sleuth through the process of consulting parish
> records and chatting up rustics in the local to discover the origin of
> a "disturbance," he puts it right in the epigraph. Thus the
> manifestations of the haunting, and not its appeasement, become the
> focal point of the story, and he seems to take delight in the snake-
> and wolf-play. Another great one.
>
Yes!
> > Blind Man's Buff
> > 'Look Up There!'
> > The Frontier Guards
> > Mr. Ash's Studio
>
> I remember being very impressed by this when in read it years ago in
> one of the Robert Arthur/Alfred Hitchcock anthologies, enough so that
> I bought the Ash-Tree STRAYERS upon its publication. Alas, it now
> sits unread in a box somewhere, but summer should see its release from
> book limbo into my eager hands.
>
I think ALL 4 of those tales are excellent: 4 completely different and
equally successful methods of conveying a haunting.
>
> > Nurse's Tale
> > A Coincidence at Hunton
> > The Red Hand
> > An Echo
> > Day-Dream in Macedon
> > Knock! Knock! Who's There?
> > Epilogue by Roger Bantock
> > The Last to Leave
>
> A charming tale of benevolent ghosts.
>
>
> > The Central Figure
> > Old Man's Beard
> > Present at the End
>
> I'm surprised this one made it into a "best of" collection; I found it
> the only hands-down stinker in OLD MAN'S BEARD. "And the cute little
> animals climbed into his death-bed and cuddled with him." GAG!
There is a later, darker variation on this tale in "The Animals in the
Case"; nothing cute going on in that one!
>
>
> > A Jolly Surprise for Henri
>
> The title adds a degree of amusement to this one when we get to the
> end and learn what it means. This is in contrast to the instances in
> which Wakefield gives away the ending with the title, e.g. "'I
> Recognized the Voice.'" (Imagine Hodgson titling "The Voice in the
> Night" "The Fungus-Man.")
>
> (Which reminds me of a recent Washington Post Style Invitational, in
> which readers were asked to invent the first line of joke that
> telegraphs the punchline, resulting in entries such as "Vincent van
> Gogh travels to the future in a time machine, and the first person he
> meets is Mike Tyson . . . " The full list of "winners" is at
> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A16058-2002Feb15.html
> for the next few days.)
>
>
> Bill B.
I look forward to reading your thoughts on the tales in THE CLOCK
STRIKES TWELVE after the "teaser" you wrote earlier. In particular,
what do you think of "Death of a Poacher"? Jack Sullivan loves it, but
I am not so sure about the tale.
Jim
Christopher & Barbara Roden
>
> I agree. Why is Benson's pallid "The Horror Horn" so much better
> known?
I'm glad others appreciate how good this story is: I think it, like EFB's
tale, capitalises on the then-current interest in anything mountaineering,
sparked off by the Everest ascents of the early 1920s, but scores over
Benson by setting the story in England rather than in the Alps: much more
immediate for readers. After all, how many people went climbing in the Alps?
Wakefield seems to be adhering to MRJ's dictum of setting tales in realistic
settings an audience would know, so that they would think 'If I'm not
careful, something similar might happen to me!'.
> > > Blind Man's Buff
> > > 'Look Up There!'
Two absolute classics of the genre. I can't think of too many ghost stories
any shorter than 'Blind Man's Buff' (which clocks in at under 1800 words)
that succeeds in being as all-out spooky and claustrophobic. Wakefield, who
could get rather wordy in later years, is absolutely in control here.
> > > Day-Dream in Macedon
It's a fairly obvious plot, but the execution is very thoughtful and
well-written; Wakefield (who served in Macedonia during the First World War)
is obviously drawing on experience here, lending a depth to the story which
can be absent in later tales.
> > > The Last to Leave
> >
> > A charming tale of benevolent ghosts.
And somewhat unexpected from this source! Again, Wakefield (who had a career
in publishing before going solo as a writer) is obviously drawing on
experience.
> > > Present at the End
> >
> > I'm surprised this one made it into a "best of" collection; I found it
> > the only hands-down stinker in OLD MAN'S BEARD. "And the cute little
> > animals climbed into his death-bed and cuddled with him." GAG!
Actually, I very much like this story: not gag-worthy at all, in my opinion,
but quite touching. Still, one man's meat and all. . . .
> > > A Jolly Surprise for Henri
> >
> > The title adds a degree of amusement to this one when we get to the
> > end and learn what it means. This is in contrast to the instances in
> > which Wakefield gives away the ending with the title, e.g. "'I
> > Recognized the Voice.'" (Imagine Hodgson titling "The Voice in the
> > Night" "The Fungus-Man.")
The winner for the prize of 'giving away the most in his titles' must go to
M. P. Dare: 'Borgia Pomade', 'The Demoniac Goat', 'The Haunted Drawers'
(about a piece of furniture, alas . . .), 'A Nun's Tragedy', 'The Beam',
'The Haunted Helmet', 'The Officer's Coat' - gee, no idea what THOSE stories
could be about, then!
Barbara