Where We Start From: Hope from the Narthex of the Apocalypse

Jackson the Cat "The Gothic tale, characterized by its setting and atmosphere--the former tending toward ill-storied mansions located in remote, rustic areas, the latter toward gloom and impending disaster--flourished for many years: from the age of Horace Walpole and Anne Radcliffe into the early twentieth century, when it died with Edith Wharton. The genre also typically featured an unlikely, melancholy hero who confronts a half-remembered legend concerning a dark presence who once terrorized the region in life and is still rumored to haunt the land in death, or an innocent who was tortured to death sometime in the distant past and who is said to still walk the land after nightfall." -James Person  From its awkward beginnings in the late 18th century with Horace Walpole's pseudo-medieval novel,  The Castle of Otranto ,  the literary style known as "Gothic"  has grown to become very popular. While there are pure Gothic stories, often elem...

“Beware the autumn people…For some, autumn comes early, stays late through life…For these beings, fall is the ever normal season, the only weather, there be no choice beyond. Where do they come from? The dust. Where do they go? The grave. Does blood stir in their veins? No: the night wind. What ticks in their head? The worm. What speaks from their mouth? The toad. What sees from their eyes? The snake. What hears with their ear? The abyss between the stars. They sift the human storm for souls, eat flesh of reason, fill tombs with sinners. They frenzy forth. In gusts they beetle-scurry, creep, thread, filter, motion, make all moons sullen, and surely cloud all clear-run waters. The spider-web hears them, trembles- breaks. Such are the autumn people. Beware of them.” – Ray Bradbury, “Something Wicked This Way Comes”

Thank you to my cousin, David, for these marvelous books from England.

"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving , first published in 1820, is the quintessential American ghost story. I read it every Autumn before Hallowe'en, and I am always impressed by Irving's abilities. Irving was a great tale-teller with a gifted imagination, and a talent for vivid, drawn-out descriptions. The Headless Horseman actually appears in the story only briefly. The rest of the time, Irving carefully develops a strong sense of place, mood, and character, three elements necessary for a successful ghostly tale. For instance, in helping the reader experience Sleepy Hollow, a real place quite familiar to him, Irving writes: "Not far from this village, perhaps about two miles, there is a little valley or rather lap of land among high hills, which is one of the quietest places in the whole world. A small brook glides through it, with just murmur enough to lull one to repose; and the occasional whistle of a quail or tapping of a woodpecker...

Ray Bradbury wrote many, many short stories, and several novels. From the Dust Returned is one of his "fix-up" novels, created by stitching together short stories that are loosely related, sometimes altering elements of the stories to make them fit better with each other. Despite its Frankenstein's-Monster origins, this is one of Bradbury's masterpieces, a five-star novel. The 2001 hardback edition is covered by a dust jacket with artwork done by Charles Addams, a friend of Bradbury's, and the father of The Addams Family. This illustration was included with "Homecoming," which was a stand-alone short story in Mademoiselle magazine in October, 1946, and is Chapter Nine in the novel. The beauty of this novel lies in the richness of the prose, the humanity of the non-human (but for one member) Elliott Family of rural Illinois, and the macabre and grim atmosphere that haunts each page. Elliott Family members include Cecy, an astral-projecti...

Writer Ashlee Cowles delves into Russell Kirk's novel Lord of the Hollow Dark to mine gems of the moral imagination. This piece of literary criticism is not to be missed.

Russell Kirk, the great American man of letters, wrote mostly non-fiction, but he also wrote twenty-two superb, unsettling ghostly tales. I maintain a web site called Ghostly Kirk that is dedicated to these stories. Enjoy this site, but, better still, read the marvelous tales! Happy All Hallows Eve, All Hallows (Saints) Day, and All Souls Day. Russell Kirk (1918-1994)

One way to cultivate and enrich the moral imagination is the reading of good stories. On Hallowe'en, we regularly gather at the house of some friends of ours after tricks and treats. For the last two years, we've read ghostly tales aloud. It started the first year with a story I had written. Last year, three of us read original tales, and I read some short ghostly fiction for the little people. This year, I don't think anyone has any original tales to offer, but I've selected a few stories to read, and may add a few more before the witching hour. I hope to read one of my favorites, appropriate for all ages, Walter R. Brooks's tale, "Jimmy Takes Vanishing Lessons," which I read and loved as a boy. I highly recommend reading sound ghostly tales aloud with family and friends as a way to help renew and enrich relationships, and grow your moral imagination. Happy Hallowe'en!

Jackson the Cat with some pumpkins grown by my uncle and aunt All Hallows' Eve approaches...the perfect season for ghostly reading to stimulate the moral imagination...and to scare yourself. Here are some literary recommendations: 1. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving The atmosphere of this tale is perfect. I've read it many times, and no longer feel very sorry for the vain Ichabod Crane. 2. The ghostly tales of Russell Kirk These are my favorite ghostly tales. After reading them, you will never look at life, or death, or the afterlife, in quite the same way again. Audio links here and here . 3. The ghostly tales of M.R. James The greatest English writer of ghostly tales. You will be scared out of your wits. Happy Hallowe'en!

"...that country where it is always turning late in the year. That country where the hills are fog and the rivers are mist; where noons go quickly, dusks and twilights linger, and midnights stay. That country composed in the main of cellars, sub-cellars, coal bins, closets, attics, and pantries faced away from the sun. That country whose people are autumn people, thinking only autumn thoughts. Whose people passing at night on the empty walks sound like rain..." From The October Country (1955) by Ray Bradbury   According to Mr. Bradbury, there is a country called "October." I am sure Mr. Bradbury has visited it many times. I've never been there, but I've seen glimpses of it, and have read much of its literature. Some of the best literature of the October Country ever written are ghostly tales. I'm not talking about horror tales, with blood and axes and maniacs. I'm talking about suspenseful tales told in whispers about things behind doors, ...