Worming the Harpy and Other Bitter Pills

Afterword by E.F. Bleiler

Imagine (if you dare) a whimsical marriage of Lord Dunsany and S.J. Perelman, and you have something approaching the tales of Rhys Hughes, filled with gaudy colour, slapstick, puns, fantastic creatures, and the occasional unexpected chill. Hughes' world is a magical one - and his language if the most magical thing of all. - Ted Klein, author of The Ceremonies

The tales contained within Worming the Harpy and other Bitter Pills are set in a surreal world of nightmares all too closely identifiable with real life. If The Cabinet of Dr Caligari was retouched by Ralph Steadman, with The Rolling Stones 'Sympathy for the Devil' as a soundtrack, you would have only the slightest inkling of the scintillating and horrific world conjured by Rhys Hughes. For too long out of print, we are pleased to make this collection available once again, now in paperback.

As E.F. Bleiler states in his Afterword: "What do I like about Rhys Hughes's work? Fun. Hughes sees and precipitates in words the latent humour in almost anything."

Contents: "Cat o' Nine Tales", "Worming the Harpy", "The Falling Star", "Quasimodulus", "The Good News Grimoire", "The Forest Chapel Bell", "Flintlock Jaw", "Velocity Oranges", "A Carpet Seldom Found", "The Chimney", "One Man's Meat", "The Man Who Mistook His Wife's Hat for the Mad Hatter's Wife", "Cello I Love You", "What To Do When the Devil Comes Round For Tea", "Arquebus for Harlequin", "Éclair de Lune", "Grinding the Goblin", "Afterword" by E.F. Bleiler .

Limited Published in 1995 this hardcover unsigned limited edition was limited to 200 copies, this copy has a few spots on the page edges

Paperback