Amphigorey Again [Anglais] [Relié]

Perhaps only Edward Lear is the late Edward Gorey's peer among writer-artists. Lear considered himself an artist first, and Gorey thought of himself more as a writer. Yet Lear seemingly put greater effort into the texts; Gorey, into the pictures. Lear's drawings often look tossed-off, whereas Gorey's are dense patchworks of tiny patterns, before which his Edwardian personae and fanciful creatures disport, and into which, sometimes, they visually sink. Lear addressed children first; Gorey, adults; but both appeal to anyone with a taste for morbid absurdity. But for its much greater childishness, Lear's sublime "The Story of the Four Little Children Who Went round the World" could be one of Gorey's tales of addled travel, such as "The Headless Bust" in this final omnibus, after Amphigorey (1972), Amphigorey Too (1975), and Amphigorey Also (1983), of Gorey's work. There is less of Gorey at his best here, and some that seems or plainly is incomplete. Still, Gorey's unique talent should be represented as completely as possible in every collection of American art and literature. Ray Olson
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This latest collection displays in glorious abundance the offbeat characters and droll humor of Edward Gorey. Figbash is acrobatic, topiaries are tragic, hippopotami are admonitory, and galoshes are remorseful in this celebration of a unique talent that never fails to delight, amuse, and confound readers.

Amphigorey Again contains previously uncollected work and two unpublished stories-"The Izzard Book," a quirky riff on the letter Z, and "La Malle Saignante," a bilingual homage to early French silent serial movies. Rough sketches and unfinished panels show an ironic and singular mind at work and serve as a fitting celebration of Edward Gorey's unusual genius.

Edward Gorey (1925-2000) wrote and illustrated such popular books as The Doubtful Guest, The Gashlycrumb Tinies, and The Headless Bust. He was also a very successful set and costume designer, earning Tony Awards for his Broadway production of Edward Gorey's Dracula. Animated sequences of his work have introduced the PBS series Mystery! since 1980.