The Green Book 2
Samhain 2013
Brian J. Showers (ed.)
Availability: Out of Print
As I write this, the newly constructed bridge spanning the River Liffey here in Dublin remains yet unnamed. The short-list is comprised of five Dubliners and includes trade unionist Rosie Hackett, who participated in the 1913 Lockout; and camogie player Kay Mills. But one name among them will stand out to devotees of horror and gothic literature the world over: Bram Stoker.
Since Dracula was chosen for One City, One Book in 2009, public awareness of Stoker’s connections with Ireland (he was born in Dublin, so he was!), and Irish acceptance of his importance to world literature, has approached fever pitch. In addition to being short-listed for the new bridge, Dublin now hosts an annual Bram Stoker Festival, the first of which was held in 2012 to mark the centenary of Stoker’s death; the illuminating “Lost Dublin Journal”, edited by Elizabeth Miller and Dacre Stoker, saw publication; and Dublin UNESCO City of Literature proudly lists Stoker alongside Yeats, Shaw, Joyce, and Beckett. So too did the Stoker family rally to establish the Bram Stoker Estate, and embarked upon their mission to spread awareness of Bram Stoker’s life and achievements—and with a man like Stoker, even leaving Dracula aside, there’s much to explore.
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Cover art by Alan Corbett
Editor’s Note by Brian J. Showers
ISSN: 2009-6089 (pbk)
Editor’s Note #2
As I write this, the newly constructed bridge spanning the River Liffey here in Dublin remains yet unnamed. The short-list is comprised of five Dubliners and includes trade unionist Rosie Hackett, who participated in the 1913 Lockout; and camogie player Kay Mills. But one name among them will stand out to devotees of horror and gothic literature the world over: Bram Stoker.
Since Dracula was chosen for One City, One Book in 2009, public awareness of Stoker’s connections with Ireland (he was born in Dublin, so he was!), and Irish acceptance of his importance to world literature, has approached fever pitch. In addition to being short-listed for the new bridge, Dublin now hosts an annual Bram Stoker Festival, the first of which was held in 2012 to mark the centenary of Stoker’s death; the illuminating “Lost Dublin Journal”, edited by Elizabeth Miller and Dacre Stoker, saw publication; and Dublin UNESCO City of Literature proudly lists Stoker alongside Yeats, Shaw, Joyce, and Beckett. So too did the Stoker family rally to establish the Bram Stoker Estate, and embarked upon their mission to spread awareness of Bram Stoker’s life and achievements—and with a man like Stoker, even leaving Dracula aside, there’s much to explore.
But this interest in Stoker didn’t happen overnight: efforts to “repatriate” the author of Dracula as a Dubliner started as early as 1980 with the founding of the Bram Stoker Society. The tireless efforts of its members perhaps culminated with the installation of a memorial plaque dedicated to Stoker on Kildare Street. I should also point out that the Society’s journal, and its editorial decision to embrace the broader Irish fantastic, was a key influence on The Green Book’s similarly inclusive scope.
With Ireland’s pivotal genre writer increasingly recognised in the Irish literary world, now is the perfect opportunity to champion and bring to the fore Ireland’s other masters of the fantastic—their stories and novels.
The lead piece in this issue is Richard Dalby’s fascinating overview of the work of satirist Mervyn Wall, whose novel The Unfortunate Fursey is a wrongly neglected classic that is invariably held in high-regard by those who have read it. Albert Power gives us the second instalment of his on-going survey of Irish gothic literature, while Steve Gronert Ellerhof revisits Ray Bradbury’s often overlooked Irish novel Green Shadows, White Whale. And finally, in addition to numerous book reviews, I am pleased to present Nicola Gordon Bowe’s fascinating article on Lord Dunsany and his connections with the Irish Arts and Crafts Movement.
With Bram Stoker currently in the spotlight, now is the time to illuminate another gothic writer whose bicentenary we will celebrate next year. At the moment nothing official is planned by any local institution, so we may have to do it ourselves. Haven’t guessed? How about a clue . . .
Brian J. Showers
Rathmines, Dublin
28 August 2013
Brian J. Showers
Brian J. Showers is originally from Madison, Wisconsin. He has written short stories, articles, and reviews for magazines such as Rue Morgue, Ghosts & Scholars, and Supernatural Tales. His short story collection, The Bleeding Horse, won the Children of the Night Award in 2008. He is also the author of Literary Walking Tours of Gothic Dublin (2006), the co-editor of Reflections in a Glass Darkly: Essays on J. Sheridan Le Fanu (2011), and the editor of The Green Book. Showers also edited four volumes of Uncertainties anthology series, and co-edited with Jim Rockhill, the Ghost Story Award-winning anthology Dreams of Shadow and Smoke. He lives in Dublin, Ireland.
Read moreThe Green Book 2 (Samhain 2013) edited by Brian J. Showers. Cover art by Alan Corebett (“Dualachan”, 2012); cover design by Meggan Kehrli; editor’s note by Brian J. Showers; copyedited by Jim Rockhill; typeset by Ken Mackenzie; published by Swan River Press.
Paperback: Published on 20 October 2013; limited to 350 copies; 108 pages; digitally printed on 80 gsm paper; ISSN: 2009-6089.
About The Green Book
Aimed at a general readership and published twice-yearly, The Green Book is Swan River Press’s house journal that features commentaries, articles, and reviews on Irish Gothic, Supernatural and Fantastic literature.
Certainly favourites such as Bram Stoker and John Connolly will come to mind, but hopefully The Green Book also will serve as a pathway to Ireland’s other notable fantasists: like Fitz-James O’Brien, Charlotte Riddell, Lafcadio Hearn, William Allingham, J. Sheridan Le Fanu, Cheiro, Harry Clarke, Dorothy Macardle, Lord Dunsany, Elizabeth Bowen, C. S. Lewis, Mervyn Wall, Conor McPherson . . . and this list is by no means exhaustive.
It should be noted that the word “Irish” in the journal’s title should be understood as inclusive rather than exclusive. The Green Book will also feature essays on Irish themes—even if by non-Irish authors. We hope that you will find something of interest here, for there is much to explore.
The Green Book is open for submissions.
Praise for The Green Book
“A welcome addition to the realm of accessible nonfiction about supernatural horror.” – Ellen Datlow
“Serious aficionados of the weird should also consider subscribing to The Green Book.” – Michael Dirda
“An exceptionally well-produced periodical.” – S. T. Joshi
“[A] wonderful exploration of a weird little corner of literature, and a great example of how careful editing can make even the most obscure subject fascinating and entertaining beyond all expectations.” – The Agony Column
“Eminently readable . . . [an] engaging little journal that treads the path between accessibility and academic depth with real panache.” – Black Static
“The overall feel here is not of fusty excavation in a small corner of the literary world, but of exploration on a broad front that continues to unearth intriguing finds.” – Supernatural Tales