Tales of Terror from Edgar Allan Poe

August 1, 2005
Gr. 6-9. This collection includes six of Poe's most famous tales, unabridged: "The Masque of Red Death," "The Black Cat," "The Pit and the Pendulum," "The Tell-Tale Heart," "The Cask of Amontillado," and "The Fall of the House of Usher." In the introduction, McCurdy discusses of Poe's life and remarks on the darkness of Poe's nature, reflected in his work, and the physical darkness of his world after sundown, reflected in the illustrations. The 18 full-page, black-and-white scratchboard-style pictures are suitably dramatic and often macabre. This handsome volume, to be accompanied by a CD that features readings of four of the tales, offers a good introduction to Poe's fiction.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2005, American Library Association.)