Gorey has cast his readers as the villains knowing that we will draw the events of her demise within our own imaginations.īut akin to crouching behind the chair while peering out at a B-horror movie, the Tinies' reader can always close the book – and shut out the impending doom.
The horror inside waits: the reader is left to complete the action, filling in the pieces leading to Prue's fateful conclusion. The masterful Gorey instead shows vulnerable Prue reaching to open the door of a saloon bar. With “P is for Prue trampled flat in a brawl,” we see neither violence nor mayhem. However, the accompanying art only sets the stage for the tragedies. Robin Hoffman said it best: ".the most horrifying thing about The Gashlycrumb Tinies may be that which it declines to show." The text tells us that events have occurred. His work, which spans over six decades, is collected in four excellent volumes entitled Amphigorey - I, II, III, IV - a play on the word amphigory, meaning a nonsense verse or composition.What is it about this masterwork that has kept our attention for a half-century despite condemnation that it is far too dark? Perhaps A. The Gashlycrumb Tinies comes in a string of more than 40 gems Gorey published in his lifetime, including favorites like The Epiplectic Bicycle and The Doubtful Guest. Part Tim Burton long before there was Burton, part Edgar Allan Poe long after Poe, the book exudes Gorey’s signature adult picture book mastery, not merely adorned by the gorgeously dark crosshatched illustrations but narratively driven by them. D is for Desmond thrown out of a sleigh…”
“A is for Amy who fell down the stairs,” The Gashlycrumb Tinies begins.
In 1963, prolific illustrator and author Edward Gorey (February 22, 1925–April 15, 2000) published an alphabet book so grimly antithetical to the very premise of the genre - making children feel comfortable and inspiring them to learn - that it took the macabre humor genre to a new level. It’s no secret I have a massive soft spot for alphabet books.
0 kommentar(er)
