Nevermore: A Graphic Adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's Short Stories (Illustrated Classics Series) »

“These versions of Poe’s best-loved and less familiar tales are destined to capture the imagination of a generation new to the master of terror, as well as delight long-time admirers of Poe.”—Roger Corman, Film Director and Producer

This haunting graphic anthology features the most famous stories of terror and suspense by Edgar Allan Poe, adapted by nine teams of celebrated writers and illustrators. Each story is translated in a different visual style, but they all succeed in capturing Poe’s macabre blend of doomed romanticism, gothic melodrama, and ghoulish destiny. Inside you’ll find an illustrated biography of Poe and his most memorable stories, including: “The Raven,” “The Pit and the Pendulum,” “The Facts in the Case of Mr. Valdemar,” “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” “The Fall of the House of Usher,” “The Black Cat,” “The Oval Portrait,” “The Tell-Tale Heart,” and “The Masque of the Red Death.”

Martha Cornog - Library Journal

The foreword by Roger Corwin, who brought many of Poe's tales to the screen, characterizes this anthology as "fresh interpretations" to "recast the tales for a modern audience, applying Poe's themes to contemporary conflicts and moral ambiguities." Indeed, "The Fall of the House of Usher" shows us a fading rock star's last days, "The Oval Portrait" an obsessed photographer, "The Masque of the Red Death" the sleazy emcee of a comic con, and "The Pit and the Pendulum" the penumbra of a terrorism-fearful society. The most intriguing plot variation occurs with "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" in a futuristic setting, where a court-appointed personal optronic encoder-basically, an android-assists detective Dupin in uncovering an "en-gram mind transfer" motivating an unwittingly homicidal ape. All of the stories are well drawn to unsettling effect, evoking a semblance of Poe's atmospheric build-ups, but several seem to end too fast with plot revisionings that do not quite satisfy. With horror more implied than presented and a discreet sex scene, this is recommended for older teens and up. It's also good fodder for classes in graphic narrative.