Somewhat Gothic and ostensibly grim, these images are usually accompanied by macabre stories of death, dread, and gore or by humorous verses detailing situations of horror" (Silvey, 278). Folio, original pictorial cloth, original dust jacket, publisher's slipcase from the limited edition with printed paper label.įirst trade edition of this anthology of 15 of Gorey's early works, inscribed and signed by him to noted editor and bibliophile William Targ on the title page, "For Bill Targ, without whom…" and he has crossed his printed name out and signed over it.Įdmund Wilson described Gorey's work as "surrealistic and macabre, amusing and somber, nostalgic and claustrophobic, poetic and poisoned." Gorey is known for his "distinctive, instantly recognizable style: intricately detailed pen-and-ink drawings capture characters, fur-coated, turtle-necked, or dressed in 1920s or Edwardian garb, frozen in moments of stoicism. In any case, reading Ambphigorey was a reading experience unlike any other I’ve had."SURREALISTIC AND MACABRE, AMUSING AND SOMBER, NOSTALGIC AND CLAUSTROPHOBIC, POETIC AND POISONED": AMPHIGOREY, 1972 FIRST EDITION, INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY GOREY Some of the dark satire of these narrative does seem to have a purpose for example, The Bug Book is a commentary on xenophobia, and The Curious Sofa comments on Victorian notions of sexuality however, I don’t necessarily see the “point” of narratives like The Gashlycrumb Tinies, except to entertain people with a very dark sense of humor. I’d never imagined that someone could come up with a way for children to die that corresponds to each letter of the alphabet. The Gashlycrumb Tinies is a ghastly and perverse satire of alphabet books. In this sense, Gorey is a dark-humored genius in visual textuality, even if he would not have defined his humor as “dark.” On the other hand, many of his narratives struck me as simply horrible.
The Curious Sofa and The Bug Book, specifically caught me off guard with their extremely dark endings and meanings-as I believe they are meant to. On the one hand, I’m impressed by the apparent ease with which Gorey uses innuendo to surprise the reader and incorporate dark plot twists in his narratives. It’s such a dark and strange collection, and every narrative we’ve read has left me with many conflicting emotions. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about Edward Gorey’s Amphigorey.
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