Tales of Terror

American poet, critic, and short-story writer Edgar Allan Poe is universally recognized for his cultivation of the macabre in fiction. His stories are characterized by an original kind of supernatural horror, often using the awareness of death as a catalyzing force in its own right. His tales and poems brim with psychological depth and intense imagery, made vivid through his musical language and hypnotic rhythms, which are especially captivating when heard aloud. This special audio collection features some of Poe's best known classic stories, including "The Tell-Tale Heart," "Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar," "Hop Frog," "Murders in the Rue Morgue," "Masque of the Red Death," "The Pit and the Pendulum," "Fall of the House of Usher," "The Black Cat," and "The Cask of Amontillado."

About the Author :
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) quedó huérfano desde muy joven; su padre abandonó a su familia en 1810 y su madre falleció al año siguiente. Tanto su obra como él mismo quedaron marcados por la idea de la muerte, y la estela de la desgracia no dejó de acecharlo durante toda su vida. Antes de cumplir los veinte ya era un bebedor consuetudinario y un jugador empedernido, y contrajo enormes deudas con su padre adoptivo, además de causarletodo tipo de problemas. En 1827 publica Tamerlán y otros poemas y en 1830 se instala en la casa de una tía que vivía en Baltimore acompañada de su sobrina de once años, Virginia Clemm, con quien se acabaría casando siete años más tarde. Trabajó como redactor en varias revistas de Filadelfia y Nueva York, y en 1849, dos años después de la muerte de su esposa, cae enfermo y fallece preso de la enfermedad y su adicción al alcohol y las drogas. Su producción poética, donde muestra una impecable construcción literaria, y sus ensayos, que se hicieron famosos por su sarcasmo e ingenio, son destellos del talento que lo encumbraría a la posteridad gracias a sus narraciones. Poe, de hecho, es conocido sobre todo por sus relatos y por ser el predecesor, en cierto modo, de la novela policíaca moderna. Sus cuentos destacan por su belleza literaria y por fundir en ellos lo macabro con el humor, el terror y la poesía. David Thorn spent his childhood in the Channel Islands off the coast of France, was schooled in England, and then immigrated to the United States at the age of twenty-three. He is retired from international commerce and currently resides in California. David Thorn spent his childhood in the Channel Islands off the coast of France, was schooled in England, and then immigrated to the United States at the age of twenty-three. He is retired from international commerce and currently resides in California. Alcazar AudioWorks is an audiobook producer and publisher for all ages. Founded in 1999, they specialize in classical stories, many of which are specially commissioned for home school curricula.

Review :
"Certain of Poe's tales possess an almost absolute perfection of artistic form which makes them veritable beacon lights in the province of the short story...Poe's weird tales are alive in a manner that few others can ever hope to be." -- "H. P. Lovecraft, author of "The Call of Cthulhu"" "Each [of Poe's detective stories] is a root from which a whole literature has developed...Where was the detective story until Poe breathed the breath of life into it?" -- "Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes" "It's because I liked Edgar Allan Poe's stories so much that I began to make suspense films." -- "Alfred Hitchcock" "Poe constantly and inevitably produced magic where his greatest contemporaries produced only beauty." -- "George Bernard Shaw, author of Pygmalion" "With Tales of Terror by Edgar Allan Poe [as] narrated by David Thorne and Bruce Blau...kids may doze through the long introductory passage of 'Murders in the Rue Morgue, ' but 'The Tell-Tale Heart' and 'The Facts in the Case of Monsieur Valdemar' will have them on the edge of their car seats from the start." -- "New York Times"