Oh, what glory, Edward Gorey

I have since decided to add Edward Gorey to my collection of rare books. I have been concentrating my efforts on such authors as; Bram Stoker, Virginia Woolf, Edgar Allan Poe and Margaret Atwood. This may not sound like much but when you anticipate that the aim is to collect most, if not all, of the first edition copies of each author's book, then that is a great deal.

At the moment I have three of Gorey's wonderful, yet quirky little books. One is a first edition but the others are later copies which I bought just for the sake of owning anything by Edward Gorey. I also prefer to have some newer editions for my reading enjoyment as I do so worry while reading some of my more collectible books.

I remember the day we met, or should I say I stumbled upon Gorey's work. I picked up a later edition of Bram Stoker's Dracula at Half Price Books in Capital Hill. After arriving home I noticed that the book had some wonderful illustrations throughout, these were done by Edward Gorey, of course.

I then did some research and found that Edward Gorey has quite the cult following. With his strangely enticing characters, dark depictions of life and his macabre humour I had no choice but to be enthralled by him.

Just a taste of Goreyography:

"A is for Amy who fell down the stairs. B is for Basil assaulted by bears. C is for Clara who wasted away. D is for Desmond thrown out of a sleigh..." from The Gashlycrumb Tinies.