Can you help me remember what this book is?

[heavypieces]

Hello all,

Lovely to be here. I've just joined this fascinating forum and, like an annoying newbie, my first post will be a question.

There was this book. I had it when I was a kid but now it's gone. In fact I haven't seen it in many years; so many that I've forgotten what it's called, and who wrote it. But I would love to find it again.

I can say this much. It was a hardback volume, and I think it was a U.K. title. I'm pretty sure it was published in the 70s. It was, essentially, a collection of horror paintings. It was dressed up as some sort of story - one of those lame 'let's try to link all the paintings together' narratives.

Vaguely, I recall that the story was something to do with visiting Dracula's family. No, I'm not kidding.

And now here's the biggest clue. I'm pretty sure that the cover art was a hand holding a bunch of eyeballs.

So - hardback, horror paintings, 'fiction' but really a ruse to put a whole bunch of paintings in a book, and the dust jacket was a hand holding a whole bunch of eyeballs.

Over to you, helpful reader!

[dem bones]

Hi Mr. Pieces!

Pretty sure this is your cover ....

Charles Osborne (ed.) - The Bram Stoker Bedside Companion: Ten Stories By The Author Of Dracula (Quartet, 1974)

Introduction: Bram Stoker And His Work - Charles Osborne

The Secret Of The Growing Gold
Dracula's Guest
The Invisible Giant
The Judge's House
The Burial Of The Rats
A Star Trap
The Squaw
Crooken Sands
The Gombeen Man
The Watters Mou'


.... but not so certain it's the book you're after.

(i'm sure we identified the cover artist, but i can't remember .... Les Edwards?)

[heavypieces]

Wow, that's the cover alright! Well done. But... the wrong book.

Still, that might be just the thing to jog someone's memory.

While washing the dishes a few minutes ago, a couple more specifics popped into my head. Must be some connection between warm soapy water and memory... or the smell of 'Palmolive', a detergent that was huge in the 70s.

Anyway, I remembered two more paintings that were in the book. In one, we see a portrait of a man in period costume; his eyes are missing. Just empty sockets. In another, a huge pig-like entity lurks in the background, dwarfing a man who turns, startled, to see what's behind him.

Also, I think I've remembered a bit more about the narrative - I think it's something to do with the paintings in Dracula's mansion; or perhaps the paintings themselves depict Dracula's relatives, and the text is a sort of 'report' on them. I seem to recall that it's written in quite a campy, jokey tone. Odd for a horror book. The pictures themselves are all grand-guignol and wildly overstated; combined with the silly narrative, I suppose it's actually quite a lame book.

[heavypieces]

Hello all,

The good news is that I found the book.

The bad news is that I need to offer a mea culpa; I was wrong about the cover image. The 'eyeballs' painting is in the book - I remember it distinctly - but my memory has evidently taken it from its page and placed it prominently on the cover.

Instead, the actual cover of this book is a rather cliché portrait of - I assume - Dracula.



So my half-remembered book is in fact 'The Dracula Collection: Selected paintings from the unique gallery of the prince of darkness', published by Octopus books around 1981.

The book isn't scarce second-hand; I've already bought a copy online for $12 NZD. Will give my impressions when it arrives!

Regards,
Heavypices.

[dem bones]

Thanks for the update; can safely say i'd never have identified it! Is this the other picture you refer to ......

Lee Brown Coye (for William Hope Hodgson's The Hog)

..... or is it a full colour effort? If the latter, it's likely this painting, used for a late 'seventies edition of Hodgson's The House On The Borderland.

hope you enjoy your book. Please let us know how you get along with it!

[heavypieces]

Apr 12, 2012 19:36:19 GMT dem bones said:

Thanks for the update; can safely say i'd never have identified it! Is this the other picture you refer to ......

It's neither image, although I love that Coye illustration. Coincidentally I'm reading the 'Carnacki' stories of Hodgson right now, and I'm just about to start 'The Hog'.

No, it's the Terry Oakes painting below - which is reminiscent of 'The Hog' also.

My review of the book will follow soon!

[Dr Strange]

Apr 18, 2012 11:59:53 GMT heavypieces said:

the Terry Oakes painting below - which is reminiscent of 'The Hog' also.

It was the cover of a Sphere edition of Carnacki.

[ramseycampbell]

Apr 12, 2012 19:36:19 GMT dem bones said:

Thanks for the update; can safely say i'd never have identified it! Is this the other picture you refer to ......

Lee Brown Coye (for William Hope Hodgson's The Hog)

..... or is it a full colour effort? If the latter, it's likely this painting, used for a late 'seventies edition of Hodgson's The House On The Borderland.

hope you enjoy your book. Please let us know how you get along with it!

Strange! I'd have mistaken that for an illustration for "The House of the Nightmare" if it hadn't been captioned (though admittedly the creatures in White's tale appear at the foot of the bed).