Edgar Allan Poe's Tales of Death and Dementia

This graphic novel–style companion to Edgar Allan Poe's Tales of Mystery and Madness contains four condensed versions of classic Poe stories. Grimly's caricatured faces capture the macabre soul of Poe's work, while the text incorporates significant moments from the original works. When the speaker in The Tell-Tale Heart declares, “I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye forever,” he is rendered ghoulishly, as three panels close in on his own bulging, horror-struck eye. The essence of Poe with the accessibility and artistry of Grimly's gruesome images make it a sound introduction to the legendary writer—though, as with much of Poe's work, this collection is not for the timid. Ages 11–up. (Aug.)