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Post by Shrink Proof on Dec 17, 2019 8:14:52 GMT
Triggered by Dem's suggestion in the Advent Calendar 2019 thread, I thought I'd open a DIY anthology thread on fear of heights, speaking as someone who is very bad with heights (and not even that great with widths...). I'll open the bidding with "The Tower" by Marghanita Laski. My introduction to this was hearing it read by Joss Ackland in a BBC Radio 4 broadcast. In a sense, it's just about a woman walking up an old tower in Tuscany. At dusk. Alone. But it's chilling. It reminded me of St Mary's Lighthouse in Whitley Bay, Tyneside. From the outside it seemed just like any other lighthouse, but it doesn't have floors except at the very top, so the stairs spiral round the wall, circling this vast space. A photo doesn't really do the vertiginous space justice but it's wretched... Any other suggestions for this one?
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Post by dem bones on Dec 17, 2019 8:46:31 GMT
Five to be getting along with: William Sansom - The Vertical Ladder Brian Lumley - The Viaduct Mary Ann Allen - The Cambridge BeastJack Finney - Notebook Found In The Dead Man's Pocket Stephen King - The Ledge And for a full length treatment: Chris Fowler's Roofworld
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Post by Shrink Proof on Dec 17, 2019 9:13:26 GMT
I forgot about Brian Lumley's "The Viaduct". Good call. His tale "Fruiting Bodies" is set on the North Yorkshire coast and the description of the viaduct fits very closely with a couple of now-demolished structures on the railways of that area. Gave me the creeps...
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Post by ropardoe on Dec 17, 2019 9:27:10 GMT
Triggered by Dem's suggestion in the Advent Calendar 2019 thread, I thought I'd open a DIY anthology thread on fear of heights, speaking as someone who is very bad with heights (and not even that great with widths...). I'll open the bidding with "The Tower" by Marghanita Laski. My introduction to this was hearing it read by Joss Ackland in a BBC Radio 4 broadcast. In a sense, it's just about a woman walking up an old tower in Tuscany. At dusk. Alone. But it's chilling. It reminded me of St Mary's Lighthouse in Whitley Bay, Tyneside. From the outside it seemed just like any other lighthouse, but it doesn't have floors except at the very top, so the stairs spiral round the wall, circling this vast space. A photo doesn't really do the vertiginous space justice but it's wretched... Any other suggestions for this one? "The Tower" is one of the most terrifying stories I've ever read. Good variations on the theme have followed from the likes of Christopher Fowler and Tom Disch (though neither of their stories, I think, qualifies for this vertigo thread).
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Post by johnnymains on Dec 17, 2019 10:40:13 GMT
Another is Stephen King's 'Last Rung on the Ladder'
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Post by David A. Riley on Dec 17, 2019 11:33:26 GMT
The Stones of Muncaster Cathedral by Robert Westall - Viking, 1991; Valancourt, 2015
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Vertigo
Dec 17, 2019 20:25:49 GMT
via mobile
Post by Jojo Lapin X on Dec 17, 2019 20:25:49 GMT
Triggered by Dem's suggestion in the Advent Calendar 2019 thread, I thought I'd open a DIY anthology thread on fear of heights, speaking as someone who is very bad with heights (and not even that great with widths...). I'll open the bidding with "The Tower" by Marghanita Laski. My introduction to this was hearing it read by Joss Ackland in a BBC Radio 4 broadcast. In a sense, it's just about a woman walking up an old tower in Tuscany. At dusk. Alone. But it's chilling. It reminded me of St Mary's Lighthouse in Whitley Bay, Tyneside. From the outside it seemed just like any other lighthouse, but it doesn't have floors except at the very top, so the stairs spiral round the wall, circling this vast space. A photo doesn't really do the vertiginous space justice but it's wretched... Any other suggestions for this one? "The Tower" is one of the most terrifying stories I've ever read. Good variations on the theme have followed from the likes of Christopher Fowler and Tom Disch (though neither of their stories, I think, qualifies for this vertigo thread). Where can I find this most excellent story, which I have never read? And is the Disch story you have in mind "The Asian Shore"? If it is, I may already have enough clues to experience "The Tower" without actually reading it.
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Post by dem bones on Dec 17, 2019 20:50:27 GMT
"The Tower" is one of the most terrifying stories I've ever read. Good variations on the theme have followed from the likes of Christopher Fowler and Tom Disch (though neither of their stories, I think, qualifies for this vertigo thread). Where can I find this most excellent story, which I have never read? And is the Disch story you have in mind "The Asian Shore"? If it is, I may already have enough clues to experience "The Tower" without actually reading it. The Tower is originally Cynthia Asquith's The Third Ghost Book (1955). It should be very easily & cheaply obtainable via The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories (1984) which seems to have gone through several editions, including a ludicrously oversized instant remainder.
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Post by Jojo Lapin X on Dec 17, 2019 20:58:55 GMT
The Tower is originally Cynthia Asquith's The Third Ghost Book (1955). It should be very easily & cheaply obtainable via The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories (1984) which seems to have gone through several editions, including a ludicrously oversized instant remainder. Thanks! But what if I need it right this very minute?
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Post by helrunar on Dec 17, 2019 21:16:08 GMT
Wonderful photo, Dr Shrink Proof. I have never heard of Marghanita Laski or "The Tower."
cheers, Helrunar
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Post by Swampirella on Dec 17, 2019 21:21:28 GMT
Where can I find this most excellent story, which I have never read? And is the Disch story you have in mind "The Asian Shore"? If it is, I may already have enough clues to experience "The Tower" without actually reading it. The Tower is originally Cynthia Asquith's The Third Ghost Book (1955). It should be very easily & cheaply obtainable via The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories (1984) which seems to have gone through several editions, including a ludicrously oversized instant remainder. It can also be found in The Oxford Book of Twentieth Century Ghost Stories at archive.org.
Edit: When I posted this, there wasn't a waitlist; now there is, also for "The Norton Book of Ghost Stories" which also has the story.
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Vertigo
Dec 17, 2019 21:25:21 GMT
via mobile
Post by Jojo Lapin X on Dec 17, 2019 21:25:21 GMT
I have never heard of Marghanita Laski or "The Tower." Thanks; this is very useful information.
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Vertigo
Dec 17, 2019 21:26:51 GMT
via mobile
Post by Jojo Lapin X on Dec 17, 2019 21:26:51 GMT
The Tower is originally Cynthia Asquith's The Third Ghost Book (1955). It should be very easily & cheaply obtainable via The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories (1984) which seems to have gone through several editions, including a ludicrously oversized instant remainder. It can also be found in The Oxford Book of Twentieth Century Ghost Stories at archive.org. Ok! Thanks! Edit: "Join the waitlist." Right.
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Post by Shrink Proof on Dec 17, 2019 23:12:20 GMT
Wonderful photo, Dr Shrink Proof. I have never heard of Marghanita Laski or "The Tower." cheers, Helrunar The photograph isn't one of mine. The one other thing I remember about my visit to St Mary's Lighthouse (apart from the utter awfulness of the staircase in that space) is that my camera packed up earlier that day. The picture I posted was found online. "The Tower" is, as Ro Pardoe says, quite uniquely terrifying.
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Post by cauldronbrewer on Dec 17, 2019 23:53:23 GMT
"The Tower" is one of the most terrifying stories I've ever read. Good variations on the theme have followed from the likes of Christopher Fowler and Tom Disch (though neither of their stories, I think, qualifies for this vertigo thread). Where can I find this most excellent story, which I have never read? And is the Disch story you have in mind "The Asian Shore"? If it is, I may already have enough clues to experience "The Tower" without actually reading it. "The Tower" is a spooky one, for sure. The first Disch story I thought of was "Descending," but all I remember about "The Asian Shore" is the sense of confusion it left me with. Speaking of Disch, I can't pass up the chance to mention how much I love "The Roaches," even if it has nothing to do with vertigo.
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