Best Selling Books by Edward Gorey

A rare and irreverent, previously unpublished story by the late author of The Wuggly Ump profiles offbeat Saint Melissa, whose canonization occurred despite her Miracles of Destruction, through which she would induce migraines, refine lust and set supernatural traps that have yet to be sprung. 15,000 first printing.

With his typically dark, droll humor, Edward Gorey presents the transformation of Maudie Splaytoe, a girl prone to staring at dead birds, into Mirella Splatova, a chic and mysterious prima ballerina. This woeful tale chronicles an ascent to the peak of fame, followed by an unexpected and dreadful demise. Gorey''s exquisitely crafted illustrations of magical ballets, elegant drawing rooms, and stark apartments set the stage for this melodrama starring a slightly peculiar heroine. Faithfully re-released in this superb new edition, The Gilded Bat is one of the hundred or so eerily fanciful illustrated tales created by Edward Gorey (1925-2000) to the delight of his adoring fans. Gorey was also a playwright, an award-winning set and costume designer, and the creator of the animated introductions to the PBS series Mystery!

A collection of plates featuring fantastical creatures, each accompanied by a witty Gorey couplet.

Profiles of 16 decisive struggles from ancient and modern times. Gripping accounts range from Alexander the Great''s overthrow of the Persian empire in the 4th century BC to World War II''s Battle of Midway. Pratt depicts the circumstances leading up to the decisive clashes, the personalities involved, and the historically important aftermath. 27 maps.

An umbrella is missing. A man is distressed. A thief scampers over rooftops. A child is in danger. A Harangued salesclerk weeks. A dog saves the day. The intriguing story of The Sopping Thursday is unlike any other Edward Gorey book, both because of its unique gray-and black illustrations and because it has a happy ending (if one is to dismiss any worry about the child featured inthe last frame). In just thirty imags and thirty short lines of text, Gorey manages to create a complex tableau of characters and a plot worthy of film noir. Long out of print, this new edition is faithful to the size of Gorey''s original drawings and wisely refrains from offering any editorial commentary...except to say this Gorey jewel is--to quote the eminent literary critic Edmund Wilson---A brilliant discovery.

In this curious tale, four children, accompanied by their faithful cat, stumble around in the dark and ask, "What''s going on when the lights go out?" A lot of imagination and a little bit of science (cue a flashlight and an orange) inspire a creative conclusion. To these young minds, why we have day and night is a big question that can only be answered by one (very hungry) little bug.

The late illustrator, theater designer, and author offers a macabre and surreal look at winter.

A happy, naive family enters the Evil Garden (free admission!) to spend a sunny afternoon in its inviting landscape, lush with exotic trees and flowers. They soon realize their mistake, as harrowing sounds and evidence of foul play emerge. When humongous hairy bugs, famished carnivorous plants, ferocious fruit-guarding bears, and a sinister strangling snake take charge, the family''s ominous feelings turn to full-on panic but where''s the exit? Edward Gorey leads us through this nefarious garden with a light step. His unmistakable drawings paired with engaging couplets produce giggles, not gasps. Perhaps "The Evil Garden" is a morality tale; perhaps it''s simply an enigmatic entertainment. Whatever the interpretation, it''s a prime example of the iconic storytelling genius that is Edward Gorey.

Astonishingly brief, captivating, decidedly engaging, for Goreyphiles: here. Its jolly, keen language meanders neatly. One ponders, quietly, rather strange tableaux. Uses verbs winsomely. Excited, you? Zowee! What''s this all about? In the mid-1990s Edward Gorey launched a numbered series of "Thoughtful Alphabets" featuring cryptic twenty-six-word stories wherein the first word begins with A, the last with Z. The first six Thoughtful Alphabets published (numbers 2, 3, 4, 10, 14, and 15) were hand-lettered posters with clip-art illustrations. Numbers XI and XVII, however, emerged as signed limited-edition books featuring happily for us Gorey''s own drawings. First published by The Fantod Press but long out of print, these two gems are revived in Thoughtful Alphabets: The Just Dessert and The Deadly Blotter. In each, Gorey''s inimitable drawings weave a tale of suspense and intrigue; the story proceeds as the alphabet progresses.

The inhabitants of the ever-so-popular "Haunted Tea Cozy" return in a new holiday tale looking forward to the turn of the millennium. Full color.

Jasper Ankle has succumbed to a passion for an opera singer Ortenzia Caviglia whose career skyrockets as Ankle''s life falls to ruin.

Gorey''s naughty, hilarious travesty of lust, now reissued in a special gift edition. "A master of the genre of graphic storytelling and a brilliant draftsman" (New York Times Book Review).

The critic Edmund Wilson, the first of many to extol Gorey''s work, described his world as "poisonous and poetic." Gorey made an indelible imprint on noir fiction; this journal is illustrated with characters from his many books and includes the text from his Thoughtful Alphabets.

The Quingawaga and Mork, Fidknop and Ampoo are among the fantastical imaginings of Edward Gorey''s Utter Zoo Alphabet. The twenty-six postcards (one for each letter of the alphabet) feature Gorey''s illustrations of unusual and biologically questionable creatures, each one described by a typically witty Gorey couplet.

"An artist and writer of genius" (New Yorker) gives us a small-format edition of one of his favorite tales-a deliciously twisted comedy of manners.

Calendar spanning Dec. 29, 2004 through Jan. 2, 2005.