Customer Reviews

The Fungal Stain And Other Dreams

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have had occcasion to read and to reread a great deal of Lovecraftian prose and poetry and prose-poetry in my many years of Mythos editing. Many writers can be fit without hesitation into certain ready categories, and this is in no way bad. I like to know there is another like So-and-so in mood or approach, etc, so I can enjoy him or her, too. But there are a few who are a classification unto themselves. Wilum Pugmire is certainly one of those. Reading him, as I have for many years, makes me realize at once that I am entering directly into the interior zone of his spirit. The tone of joyful sadness, or precious terror, of friendship with death and decay is powerful, and the distance separating the text on the page and the experience of the author is very, very short--much like Lovecraft's occasonal stories that were little more than dream transcripts written at bedside in the middle of the night. Pugmire himself is an event, and any collection of his wonderful work is therfore an event. This one sure is. You are lucky to have the opportunity to be a part of it!

I think it took me two good examinations of the cover to realize that the subtitle is "and Other Dreams". Nothing could be more appropriate for this delightful collection of Wilum's work. No other writer synthesizes the two aspects of Lovecraft's writings-his horror and his dream sequences, as interestingly and as thoroughly as Wilum Pugmire does. Which is not to say that this is a book of stories that are familiar to someone who has read Lovecraftian. They are not. These stories, although they owe a great debt to Lovecraft, are not imitations of his plots or tropes. Each of these stories is uniquely and originally Pugmirian.

Wilum has imagination to spare, and he brings it to bear with the a sharp intensity that makes his stories, whether a short piece of flash fiction like "His Splintered Kiss", or a longer piece such as "An Eidolon of Nothing", come alive. His imagery is lush and alive, neither smothering nor too light-just the right amount to establish the (usually decadent) atmosphere of the story.

The Fungal Stain-only two hundred pages or so-is remarkable in the time it takes to read and digest. Pugmire's prose doesn't slide away from the reader, allowing the pages slip by unnoticed. Something is always going on below the surface, like sharks under calm water, and this reader wanted to make sure he didn't miss any of it. His prose has a profundity and a complexity that is a welcome change from many of the facile, shallow books I have been reading.

Wilum is at his best in the Sesqua Valley. He is clearly comfortable there, and has a well-established dreaming, brooding atmosphere that soaks into his words. The difficulty in reviewing these stories is that they are so unique that the reviewer is tempted to summarize and explain them, a task that is nearly impossible.

The collection begins with "An Eidolon of Nothing," which therefore introduces the reader not only to the Sesqua Valley, but also some of Pugmire's recurring characters,

"Hour of their Appetite" is a dream sequence, strange and misty in its logic, and yet there is a curious sense of closure when the story is done. Of all of Pugmire's stories, this dream-logic story fascinates me the most. I do not dream as much as many writers seem to, and the ability to create a narrative, especially when it is not what one ordinarily thinks of as a story, out of the shattered fragments of sensation and vision that fill our minds as we sleep is something remarkable to me.

Long or short, there is always a poignance to Pugmire's work. "Jigsaw Boy" draws a brilliant, bitter portrait of an unnamed narrator who is in the last stages of metaphorically devouring himself, distanced from his humanity, sadly searching for the missing pieces of his life. "Blam of Nepthene" is as gently nihilistic a story as can be imagined, about a yearning for the peace of the grave. Unlike so many post-Poe stories with the same theme, Pugmire's story has some sense of aching weariness to it, rather than boredom. "Stupor Mundi" is an ekphrastic piece, writing about art, which has occasionally been compared to dancing about architecture. Yet Pugmire seems familiar enough, or able to fake it extremely well, that the reader can visualize the art described in the story.

Strangely, it is the last story, "Your Metamorphic Moan" that explores the Sesqua Valley to the fullest. Perhaps because several of the previous stories have been set in the Valley, it seems most familiar and realized in the "Metamorphic Moan." What I enjoy about Pugmire's plotting is the lack of conventional morality which dictates the ending of so many horror stories, rendering them predictable. In other hands, the story of a goth girl who finds a kindred spirituality with the Sesqua Vallery might come out to a happy ending in which she tries hard and earns herself place among the strange folk of the Valley. Pugmire is not so... predictable.

Some authors acknowledge their debt to Lovecraft with a simple "Cthulhu" or a "Yog-Sothoth" and merrily ignore Lovecraft's major themes. Wilum Pugmire, shows a deeper, more studied appreciation of Lovecraft, incorporating certain of his literary idol's themes and mixing them in with his own writer's voice. It's a combination that works; these stories are truly unique. Pugmire's prose rewards careful reading, and his stories stayed with this reader. Although he states that he wishes to always remain in Lovecraft's titanic literary shadow, Wilum Pugmire is clearly original and skilled enough that he casts his own.

This book is an essential purchase for any serious mythos collector. Wilum Hopfrog Pugmire is a unique voice among modern Lovecraftian writers. Unfortunately, he is really only known to a select few as his books have not been widely circulated. Dreams of Lovecraftian Horror was a paperback from Mythos Books in 1999; Sesqua Valley and Other Haunts was a 2003 limited edition hardcover from Delirium Books. Both still may be acquired from used bookstores online, but for handsome prices. Unless you picked these up or you subscribe to an assortment of esoteric magazines devoted to horror and Lovecraft you will not have heard of him. Now that unique voice among the small presses interested in HPL, Hippocampus Press, has released a new collection of stories by Mr. Pugmire and this will hopefully gain him a wider audience. And his voice is very worth hearing! I truly became lost in the words, I was so enamored of the prose. For those who are unfamiliar with him, Mr. Pugmire is not exactly a recluse but more an antiquarian, like his favorite author, Lovecraft. For the most part he eschews modern conveniences, not having a personal connection to the internet. He dislikes the pace of modern life and prefers the more flowery language of bygone days. His attire is similar to Boy George during public appearances; there is a photograph of him on the cover, which may be seen at www.hippocampuspress.com (he calls himself the Queen of Eldritch Horror). The fortunate few who live in the Seattle area may run into him at the annual Lovecraft Film Festival.

Some housekeeping: The Fungal Stain and Other Dreams is a nice trade paperback, up to Hippocampus Press' high standards. Editing was tight; I think I saw only a few scattered typos. Page count is 179, with the stories starting on page 9. Cover art is by Robert H. Knox. It depicts a scene from one of the stories but didn't really jazz me at all. Augie Wiedemann's cover for Sesqua Valley and Other Haunts was much more moody and evocative. The price at Amazon is $15.00, and it is available for free shipping if you buy $25 worth of stuff (like, say, Black Sutra by DeBill).

Pugmire is most famous for his cycle of stories set in the Sesqua Valley. I highly recommend this book as an introduction to the Sesqua Valley for those who cannot find his earlier stories. Stepping into this collection is like coming into a saga already well begun. The environs of Mount Selta, the twin white peaks of which dominate the Sesqua Valley, have been around for a long, long time. Mr. Pugmire has more meticulously and lovingly developed this world than any other Lovecraftian location, like, say, Braving, MN or Goatswood. You quickly get to know the prominent citizens of Sesqua, the not exactly human Simon Gregory Williams and the Whateley sisters, transplanted citizens from Dunwich via Arkham. But you also really do have a sense that they have a history and have been carefully developed by the author. This world building alone is strikingly original to Mr. Pugmire among Lovecraftian authors and worthy of wider notice from genre fans.

Most of the stories in The Fungal Stain and Other Dreams are set in the Sesqua Valley, but not all. I am a great fan of Clark Ashton Smith and alone among contemporary mythos authors Pugmire's prose approaches the poetry of Smith. Often language and imagery assume more importance than specifics of the plot. Mr. Pugmire strives to create a mood, capture a feeling. He loves elaborate vocabulary. Here is a sample of words you may need to look up (well, I needed to look them up!): plash, ataraxic, nubilation, fuliginous, atramentous, caliginous, threnodial, eremitic, pleached, theophany, effete, hoary, brume, empyrean, porphyry, supernal, lissome, thole, hypogeal, quiddity. There are certain themes that recur in Mr. Pugmire's work, characters who wish to dispense with existence or who have been touched by the Great Old Ones and are going to be swept away from this destiny but only gradually realize this. They either eagerly embrace their fate or become resigned to it. His writing is almost poetic; he tries to create visceral imagery so you can imagine the sights, sounds, smells, textures and tastes of this valley where the borders between competing realities become frayed. None of the stories are potboilers. In fact, unlike Hard Boiled Cthulhu, I don't suggest anyone try to devour this book in one sitting. Pugmire's prose is best savored one or two stories at a time, read and reread as fancy strikes. If you have the opportunity to get his other books then you can appreciate almost the entire sweep of time in the Sesqua Valley. Otherwise I urgently recommend you come and spend a few hours here in the shadow of Mount Selta. Just make sure, however, you can find your way home. Few people visit Sesqua and fewer still return.

W.H. Pugmire's work is not for everyone; he has his own unique slant on Lovecraftian writing that embraces a classical, flamboyant and, at times, archaic style. In this new book, he continues to explore the theme of death's allure without resorting to the extremes of splatter and gore. Many of his early tales were short, atmospheric vignettes, but his tales have become longer and more complex now that he has chosen to delve into the peculiar natures of his characters as never before.

If you've enjoyed Pugmire's earlier work, you'll definitely appreciate this latest effort. His writing has matured over the course of several years and a number of collections. Readers unfamiliar with his work owe it to themselves to take a look and decide for themselves.

From all the material I've read since I began editing and reviewing in 1997, I have found few contemporary writers who can successfully create pieces of dark, poetic prose. W. H. Pugmire is one of them and he does it in a mesmerizing style all of his own.

Whether set in the beguiling landscape of his Sesqua Valley locale or in the shadows of more urban surroundings, Pugmire crafts his tales into enchanting threnodies of prose. This book is no exception. You can feel the sinister overtones in the background, the narrative is lyrical and guides you deeper into each piece. Pugmire easily handles themes from punk, gothic, and the everyday world. He handles the transition between these radically different cultures easily and invisibly.

For the Pugmire afficionado, I'm not saying anything they don't already know. However, if you're new to dark literature then I heartily offer that this book (and other Pugmire books) are must have items for your collection. His work is unique--it resonates in the mind long after you've read it. This book should be placed on your bookshelf next to Blackwood, Dunsany, Lovecraft, and Clark Ashton Smith.

I'm not a verbose individual. I will simply recommend this, and W.H.P.'s other works, to any lover of the weirdest of fiction. Pugmire's books will always have a place on my bookshelf.

I'm proud of having written this book because I feel that it showcases a great maturity of voice and vision. The main reason I write fiction is to pay homage to H. P. Lovecraft, and to do so with weird fiction that is traditional and atmospheric. The remark that the book contains bleeding corpses and "sick love" is an absurd over-reaction. The opening story does have a bit of violent gore, but it is the only story in the book that does so. Because I am a gay horror author, my perception of love may be less than typical, but there is absolutely no sex in this book -- I have no interest in writing such scenes, or reading them.

The book contains some tales that are emphatically Cthulhu Mythos stories, and yet my Mythos tales in this book takes its cue primarily from the writings of H. P. Lovecraft rather than other Mythos writers such as August Derleth and Robert Bloch. Because I am an absolute Outsider in this world, my viewpoint is strange and skewed. My horror is an emotional horror -- and yet I write about those who desire to find some kind of place within the world, and some kind of love within their soul. Learning the art of self-love is my constant theme.

Among the tales that are outright Mythos fiction are those that attempt to be Lovecraftian without using any Mythos elements. With such stories as "The Sign That Sets the Darkness Free," "A Phantom of Beguilement" and "Your Metamorphic Moan" I feel that I have succeeded in writing tales of pure LOVECRAFTIAN horror, yet which also wear my own perverse and dark personality. My writing style is very strange compared to most modern horror in that it has been deliciously and absolutely influenced by the prose style of my favourite writers, Oscar Wilde, Henry James and H. P. Lovecraft. Like those quaint gentlemen, I try to write fiction that is beautifully and poetically expressed -- the style is closer to that of the prose poem than regular fiction. I am over-concerned with the Art of writing. I combine beauty and horror, a rich brew indeed.

This is the first of my books that was written with S. T. Joshi as my editor. That was a wee bit intimidating, as one can imagine, but I don't think it changed my approach to the Cthulhu Mythos or Lovecraftian horror. Here's the contents of the book and a little explanation of each tale:

"An Eidolon of Nothing" -- This is a title that I had scratching at my brain for quite a while, so I finally had to write a story to go with it. Although not set in Sesqua Valley the story concerns its first-born beast, Simon Gregory Williams. This tale is tainted with an influence from THE CASE OF CHARLES DEXTER WARD and involves creatures, mostly human and some semi-human, who have been "raised up" by the magic formulae found by Joseph Curwen in HPL's fantastic novel.

"Hour of Their Appetite" -- This is a complete rewrite of an earlier tale, but this new version has been significantly influenced by the H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival that takes place every year in Portland, Oregon at the historic Hollywood Theatre. It was at this festival that I was fortunate to meet the film/tv actor, Christopher Heyerdahl, who portrayed H. P. Lovecraft (superbly!) in the Canadian movie, OUT OF MIND: THE STORIES OF H. P. LOVECRAFT. His stunning portrayal of Lovecraft so beguiled me that I added that cinematic role as a wee portion of this story, and I've dedicated this new version to Chris.

"The Sign That Sets the Darkness Free" -- This is my attempt to write a tale of Lovecraftian horror that contains nothing of the Cthulhu Mythos and yet is Cosmic. It was inspired by Lovecraft's sonnet cycle, FUNGI FROM YUGGOTH, and by his sonnet "The Messenger," in which I found the story's title.

"Jigsaw Boy" -- I wrote this is memory of my dear friend Todd, who died on the Ides of March, 1995 (Lovecraft died on the Ides of March, 1937).

"The Fungal Stain" -- this is another one where I had the title long before I had ye tale (I like to jot down potential title ideas into my Commonplace Book and then dream up stories that go with the titles). My favorite of Lovecraft's creepy towns is Kingsport. and this new story is set there and features the weird old house that was the home of "The Terrible Old Man."

"Balm of Nepenthe" -- an extensive rewrite of the story as it appeared in an earlier book of mine, and I've added a new sonnet. The tale is semi-related to Lovecraft's gay pal, Samuel Loveman, the guy who inspired HPL's "The Statement of Randolph Carter."

"Some Darker Star" -- a Sesqua tale inspired by a story by my old pen-pal Joseph Payne Brennan. In this version I added some additional scenes, with which I have since become disenchanted and thus they have been removed for the version to appear in my Centipede Press omnibus; thus you can read this longer version in this paperback alone.

"The Saprophytic Fungi" -- the first of my long prose-poem sequences, of which I have now penned many. The theme in this first one is masks, in particular the mask of flimsy flesh that covers our skulls.

"A Phantom of Beguilement" -- my first tale set in Kingsport, and a story that tries to be purely Lovecraftian with no Mythos elements. It is schedule to be reprinted in a Cthulhu Mythos anthology edited by S. T. Joshi, forthcoming from Mythos Books.

"Stupor Mundi" -- a total rewrite of a very early story called "Graffiti Flow."

"Past the Gates of Deepest Slumber" -- an extremely confused and not very good story -- indeed I think it really sucks. Thus I was surprised when Ellen Datlow gave it an honorable mention in YBF&H. It's always nice to get an Honorable Mention -- but the story still sucks!

"His Splintered Kiss" -- a wee poetic-decadent vignette that I wrote about my buddy, Ghostboy.

"Oh, Baleful Thephany" -- a major lengthy new Sesqua Valley story that concerns the Mythos Great Old One invented by Clark Ashton Smith, Tsathoggua." It is a Mythos story to the core, and one in which I reveal much concerning the weird supernatural wonders that thrive in Sesqua Valley. Simon Gregory Williams is a majot character.

"The Strange Dark Folk" -- a Sesqua tale that no longer pleases me, it's a bit boring; but I like the ending image.

"Your Metamorphic Moan" -- I like this story a lot. It was inspired by a way rad goth girl I used to work with, Aubrey. The writing of this tale was interesting. I needed one new story to fill the book. I decided I was gonna write a story that was fifty pages long -- something I've never done before. Weirdly, after I finished it, the thing came to EXACTLY fifty pages! It was the longest piece I've ever written, but now I've written one new tale that is even longer, "Inhabitants of Wraithwood" (soon to be published in S. T. Joshi's anthology of modern Lovecraftian tales, BLACK WINGS). This novella really investigates many elements of the Sesqua Valley mythos and reveals lots of new information about my creation. It is illustrated on the cover by that rad and wonderful artist, Robert Knox, who has my Mount Selta looking very Cthulhu-ish indeed!

The book has fabulous illustrations by the superb weird artist, Robert H. Knox. I am at present working on many new books of Mythos fiction, the newest of which will be WEIRD INHABITANTS OF SESQUA VALLEY, which I hope to see published around the end of summer of early autumn.

I have to say that this is one of my two favorite mythos reads this year. The words are eloquent and the visions are eerie and sublime. If you like weird fiction with succulent prose, then sink your teeth into Pugmire.

Pugmire's short and flash fiction is one of the most atmospheric, poetic and literate being published today. His highly sensitive stories are

"mystical" journeys through emotional, psychological and spirituals landscapes that leaves a deep and lasting impression on readers. Expertly

mixing elements of 18th century decadent literature, classic horror authors like Henry James, vintage lovecratean weird fiction, goth/punk

subculture and modern angst, Pugmire's work is one of the more idiosyncratic and original of the last fifteen years. Pieces like The Hour of Their Appetite, Jigsaw Boy and The Sign That Sets the Darkness Free are beautiful poetical short-shorts of existencial anguish and gentle nihilism, while the femme fatale short story The Fungal Stain is an accomplished and wholly original mix of aesthetic decadence with elements of classic, traditional weird fiction.

If you like your weird fiction with a poetical bent, gentle obfuscation, sly humour and a decadent sensibiliby, do yourself a favor and read Mr. Pugmire.

I have to be honest that I didn't like this book.

I guess I'm used to HPL & others like Cody Goodfellow

(Radiant Dawn). The writing style & narrative was

very confusing to me.

Not trying to criticize the author just a warning

that author has a very unique style that everybody

may not enjoy.