The Pit and the Pendulum by Harry Clarke, 1919
“I was sick-sick unto death with that long agony; and when they at length unbound me, and I was permitted to sit, I felt that my senses were leaving me.”-The Pit and the Pendulum, Edgar Allan Poe
Ligeia by Harry Clarke, 1919.
“I cannot, for my soul, remember how, when, or even precisely where, I first became acquainted with the lady Ligeia.”-Ligeia, Edgar Allan Poe
The Black Cat by Aubrey Beardsley, 1894-1895.
“For the most wild, yet most homely narrative which I am about to pen, I neither expect nor solicit belief.”-The Black Cat, Edgar Allan Poe
The Cask of Amontillado by Harry Clarke, 1919.
“The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as best I could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge.”-The Cask of Amontillado, Edgar Allan Poe
The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe. Cover illustration by Gustav Doré, 1884.
“Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary”-The Raven, Edgar Allan Poe
The Fall of the House of Usher illustrated by Aubrey Beardsley, 1894-1895.
“During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singular dreary tract of country; and at length found myself, as the shades of the evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher.”-The Fall of the House of Usher, Edgar Allan Poe
The Tell-Tale Heart by Harry Clarke. From Tales of Mystery and Imagination by Edgar Allan Poe, 1919.
“True!-nervous-very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad?”-The Tell-Tale Heart, Edgar Allan Poe
Where laughter, learning, and literature meet.
James Thurber was born and raised in Columbus. He attended the Ohio State University and later worked for the main local newspaper. All in all, except for a brief stint with the American Embassy in Paris, he called Ohio’s capital home until his 31st year. Even then, he never really left. Thurber lived with his parents and brothers at 77 Jefferson Avenue during his college years, from 1913-1917. This is the building that houses the museum.
Thurber House and Museum. 77 Jefferson Avenue.
The first two floors are open for tours; the top floor is reserved for the current Writer-in-Residence.
Entryway chair. Go ahead and try it out, if you please.
The house is furnished and decorated in appropriate period style. Unlike typically uptight museums, at the Thurber House you are encouraged to make yourself right at home. You can touch (most) things, play the piano, even sit on chairs. Such intimate interaction makes the experience personal and human, even humorous. I think that James would approve. Thurber memorabilia is spread throughout, with the largest concentration displayed in an upstairs room.
You can sit down and play a tune here.
Come on, I know that you want to give No, No, Nanette a try.
Adorable Thurber dog.
James Thurber’s dog illustrations are iconic, in all their forms. There are several of these yellow fellows around the museum. I think they are cookie jars, but I do not really know. Continue reading
Dear Scott,
Another year has gone by, and I still find you as enigmatic and problematic as ever. You, who could write such beautiful words, ruffle my feathers like few others. You, who squandered such exemplary gifts, frustrate me to the point of madness. Although I’ve never loved you, not even a bit, I have spent some wonderful time in your company. At this point in the game, I realize that I will never stop questioning you and, in questioning you, relentlessly, learn more about myself than I ever cared to know. Happy birthday, you beautiful bastard.
Yours (but not really),
Maedez
F. Scott Fitzgerald by Gordon Bryant. Shadowland, 1921.
“I don’t want to repeat my innocence. I want the pleasure of losing it again.”-This Side of Paradise, F. Scott Fitzgerald
9 of Literature’s Most Beloved Heroines [courtesy HUFF POST BOOKS]
Do you have a favourite?
A Small Press Life: Books. Art. Writing. Life. Tea. 