Alyce from At Home With Books features one of her favorite reads each Thursday and this week my pick is…

The Tales of Edgar Allan Poe.

Description: The leather bound version that is my book does not have a description on the back or inside cover.  It’s a collection of short stories by the author, 61 stories in fact, and includes a number of his well-known pieces that many are probably familiar with such as: Ligeia, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Mask of the Red Death: A Fantasy, The Pit and the Pendulum, Tell-Tale Heart, and The Cask of Amontillado among many others.

If you would like more information on Edgar Allan Poe, the Wikipedia page has a lot of information about his life and work, the Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore allows one to read his stories, and Poestrories.com lists several as well.

My thoughts: Being that it is the month of October, I thought this book of short stories would be an interesting one to highlight.  At some point, we’ve all probably read a Poe tale or two, most likely in high school/college English classes.   When I’m craving a good, creepy story and one that will leave me wondering hours later, I pick this one off the shelf.  Earlier this year I re-read Ligeia and The Fall of the House of Usher both of which were originally read in high school.  I believe I also wrote a paper on Ligeia in college for an English class.

Each time I re-read these stories I find something new to appreciate — the use of language, the stillness of the stories, and the gothic nature.  I don’t think these stories are for everyone but for me they scream Halloween (yes, pun intended).

There is a Poe House and Museum in Baltimore that I have yet to get to but someday I plan to make the short drive up and visit.  He’s a writer that always seems to fascinate and give me the creeps.