Recently, a video popped up on my YouTube feed: it's a video called "H.P. Lovecraft's Favorite Horror Story," by a channel called Liminal Spaces. He was reading Lovecraft's old essay "Supernatural Horror in Literature," and it got him to read the story "The Willows," by Algernon Blackwood.
Go check out that video, because Liminal Spaces does a great job introducing it, giving a concise plot synopsis, and also showing off some really cool old horror paraphernalia!
Bottom line, I hadn't ever read any Algernon Blackwood, and this got me interested!
And wow, Lovecraft was right. The story was originally published in 1907 in the book The Listener and Other Stories.
The story is a paragon of elevated, almost poetic prose. Blackwood's writing is almost hypnotic, like watching a line of trees sway gently in the wind. I found myself drifting several times while reading it, and needing to go back. Normally that doesn't sound like praise, but it's weird... it was... like... in a good way.
It's clear to me that Lovecraft was greatly inspired by the tone of "The Willows."
The story itself is a careful, slow, but steady advance of strangeness and tension onto the psyches of the two characters. An indefinite horror creeps into their minds, and their own confusion and isolated madness rises brilliantly to a satisfying peak. Blackwood occasionally slackens the tension for just a moment, and then ratchets it back up!
The ending is a fascinating combination: a climactic struggle, an unlikely coincidence, and a horrifying confirmation!
There is an innate and unsolved conflict between a naturalistic interpretation of the events and a supernatural one.
The story is filled with beautiful descriptions of nature and frequent short but illuminating examinations of the main character's state of mind. His friendship with the other character is questioned by suspicions of madness, and it successfully conveys feelings of deep isolation and despair.
In short, the writing is extremely solid but requires attention. The lyrical tone leads to a sense of repetition when the story isn't really repeating.
I highly recommend this story to anyone who likes Lovecraft, or any weird or wilderness horror. Take some quiet time out and give it a read. And don't forget to check out the Liminal Spaces channel! (Links up top)
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