August Derleth

A formidably talented author of regional and historical fiction set in his native Wisconsin, August Derleth was devoted correspondent of H. P. Lovecraft. After HPL's death, Derleth co-founded Arkham House Publishers to preserve Lovecraft's fiction in hardcover. The bulk of Derleth's Mythos stories were written as affectionate homages to his late friend, and also as a means to maintain and stimulate reader interest in Lovecraft's work. The best of his Mythos work is sadly underrated, and his philosophical viewpoint has generally been oversimplified by critics. An artist who deserves more recognition in multiple areas.

Quest for Cthulhu

Reprints the two primary collections of Cthulhu Mythos stories that Derleth wrote under his own name: The Trail of Cthulhu and The Mask of Cthulhu. This volume includes most of Derleth's best Mythos tales. Contents are: Something in Wood, The Black Island, The Gorge Beyond Salapunco, The House in the Valley, The House on Curwen Street, The Keeper of the Key, The Return of Hastur, The Sandwin Compact, The Seal of R’lyeh, The Watcher from the Sky, The Whippoorwills in the Hills.

The Cthulhu Mythos (used, rare)

This hardcover includes the complete contents of The Trail of Cthulhu and The Mask of Cthulhu, plus several rarities, including stories of the wind elementals. Contents are: Beyond the Threshold, Ithaqua, Something from Out There, Something in Wood, The Black Island, The Dweller in Darkness, The Gorge Beyond Salapunco, The House in the Valley, The House on Curwen Street, The Keeper of the Key, The Passing of Eric Holm, The Return of Hastur, The Sandwin Compact, The Seal of R’lyeh, The Thing That Walked On the Wind, The Watcher from the Sky, The Whippoorwills in the Hills.

The Lurker at the Threshold

The first of Derleth's "posthumous collaborations" with H. P. Lovecraft is the best. A short novel incorporating a couple of short Lovecraft fragments, this work is carefully constructed and has some chilling passages.

The Watchers Out of Time

The remainder of Derleth's "posthumous collaborations" with H. P. Lovecraft is almost entirely Derleth's own work, but it reflects a sincere spirit of homage and the desire to continue fostering interest in Lovecraft's oeuvre.

A Look Behind the Derleth Mythos

An exhaustive study of Derleth's Mythos stories, setting them in the context of Derleth's personality and worldview and his desire to continue stimulating interest in Lovecraft's work.

The Lurking Chronology: A Timeline of the Derleth Mythos

A careful and thorough reconstruction of the chronology of Derleth's mythos stories, along with an examination of their apparent differences from Lovecraft's own timelines.

Essential Solitude: The Letters of H. P. Lovecraft and August Derleth 1926-1931

In this first volume, Lovecraft's relations to one of his most prominent colleagues and disciples, August Derleth (1909-1971), are recounted in the hundreds of letters they exchanged beginning in 1926. The youthful Derleth first wrote to Lovecraft, via Weird Tales magazine, in regard to an obscure work of weird fiction, and their subsequent correspondence deals extensively with the history of weird fiction, the two authors' ongoing attempts to publish stories in pulp magazines, Derleth's evolution into a sensitive writer of regional fiction and of detective stories, and debates over such issues as spiritualism, occultism, the literary use of coincidence, points of language and style, and other matters. Especially noteworthy are several letters by Lovecraft that Derleth interpreted as giving him permission to elaborate upon Lovecraft's pseudomythology, which Derleth named the "Cthulhu Mythos." All the letters are exhaustively annotated by David E. Schultz and S. T. Joshi.

Essential Solitude: The Letters of H. P. Lovecraft and August Derleth 1932-1937

In this second volume of the letters of H. P. Lovecraft and August Derleth, the two authors—now noted luminaries in Weird Tales and the world of pulp magazines—continue to write letters on an almost weekly basis. Lovecraft, however, is plagued with self-doubt as a result of the rejection of At the Mountains of Madness by Weird Tales and other professional setbacks. Meanwhile, Derleth is beginning to make a name for himself in the realm of detective fiction with the creation of Solar Pons; he has also begun sensitive mainstream writing that is finding placement in prestigious little magazines of the period. Derleth himself surreptitiously submitted Lovecraft's "The Shadow over Innsmouth" and "The Dreams in the Witch House" to Weird Tales; the former was rejected, the latter accepted. In all, Lovecraft wrote nearly 400 letters to Derleth, but only about 40 of Derleth's letters to Lovecraft survive. All the letters are extensively annotated by David E. Schultz and S. T. Joshi.

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