The Ghost in the Corner and Other Stories

The Anglo-Irish fantaisiste Lord Dunsany (1878–1957) was immensely prolific. Author of more than a dozen novels, hundreds of stories, essays, and poems, and more than fifty plays, he infused every single work with his unique blend of fantasy, weirdness, and subtle humor. S. T. Joshi and Martin Andersson, two of the leading authorities on Dunsany’s work, have spent years in unearthing uncollected works by Dunsany, and the present volume is the result of their labors. Here we find stories set in Dunsany’s native Ireland, evoking the real or imagined ghosts, leprechauns, and spirits that haunt that ancient land. Other tales are set in locales around the world, reflecting Dunsany’s far-flung travels through the Middle East and Asia. The core of the book is a presentation of an untitled short story collection that Dunsany assembled in 1956 but that was never published. Here we find some of the lost jewels of Dunsany’s output: “The Dwarf Holóbolos and the Sword Hogbiter,” a splendid sword-and-sorcery tale that evokes such early masterpieces as “The Sword of Welleran”; “The Dance at Weirdmoor Castle,” a delicate tale of ghosts; “The Stolen Power,” in which the horrors of the atomic age are pungently expressed; and “A Goat in Trousers,” a story of metempsychosis treading the borderline of humor and horror. Also included in this volume are several previously unpublished tales, found among the manuscripts at Dunsany Castle in County Meath, Ireland. No reader can fully appreciate the prodigal fertility of Lord Dunsany’s imagination without appreciating the diverse and unfailingly entertaining stories in this volume. CONTENTS Introduction Tales and Sketches, 1931-1957 1. The Use of Man 2. The Ghost in the Corner 3. Very Secret 4. Tales for the Dark Continent 5. Advance Regulations 6. A Modern Portrait 7. The Rations of Murdoch Finucan 8. A Day on the Bog 9. Little Tim Brannehan 10. The Burrahoola 11. Kind Pagan Lights 12. A Witch in the Balkans 13. A Talk in the Dark 14. Mid Snow and Ice 15. A Treasure of India 16. Two Young Officers 17. The Unforgivable Choice 18. The Old Detective's Story Tales from the 1956 Collection 19. Helping the Fairies 20. The Story of Tse Gah 21. The Dwarf Holóbolos and the Sword Hogbiter 22. Progress 23. One Night in Eldorado 24. The Traveller to Thundercliff 25. The Lucky Escape 26. How Mickey Paid His Debt 27. Lost Lyrics 28. The Dance at Weirdmoor Castle 29. As It Seems to the Blackbird 30. The Haunting of Whitebeams 31. The Romance of His Life 32. A Theory of Evolution 33. The Stolen Power 34. The Cook of Santamaria 35. The Awakening 36. A Goat in Trousers 37. A Breeze at Rest 38. A Channel Rescue 39. In the Governor's Palace 40. Hard Horses 41. The Blundering Curate 42. A Tale of the Irish Countryside 43. The Price of the World 44. When Mrs. Fynn Was Young 45. At the Scene of the Crime 46. A Tale of Bad Luck 47. In the Hotel Lounge 48. The Chambermaid of the Splendide 49. The Motive 50. The Quiet Laugh Bibliography * Selection and Introduction by S. T. Joshi and Martin Anderson Cover art from QUEEN OF THE SECRET CITY by Joseph J. Doke (1916) - artist unknown [Cover by Samuel Araya - ISFDB]