Are you planning on searching for Cthulhu this October?
If you are, you might want to think again. Seriously, Cthulhu does not like being woken up. The majority of people who have gotten on Cthulhu’s bad side are dead and the one who survived have gone insane. Add to that, it’s not always easy to track down Cthulhu. I mean, sometimes it can be difficult to tell one lost city from another. I guess you could try to track down your local Cthulhu cult or maybe you could summon Nyarlathotep and ask him for directions. If I remember correct, I think that’s what Randolph Carter used to do.
If, despite all the warnings, you’re really determined to track down Cthulhu this summer, you need to order yourself a copy of Anthony Pearsall’s The Lovecraft Lexicon. First published in 2005, The Lovecraft Lexicon contains all the information that you could possibly want about all of the persons, places, and things in the tales of H.P. Lovecraft.
It’s set up like an encyclopedia, with entries on …. well, everything. You want to know about Charles Dexter Ward? He’s in here. Curious about Azathoth? This book has all the information that you need to find. Pearsall details the adventures of Randolph Carter and also sorts through the many legends about the Necronomicon. This book is the next best thing to taking a course at Miskontic University.
However, the Lovecraft Lexicon is more than just an encyclopedia. It’s also a reader’s guide, one that examines just what may have been going through Lovecraft’s mind when he wrote about some of his most infamous creations. The book not only takes a look at Lovecraft’s work but also at the man himself and, to its credit, it’s honest about both Lovecraft’s flaws as a person and his strengths as a writer. In the end, the book celebrates Lovecraft’s imagination and his influence on future writers. Whether you’re a reader who is just now starting in on the works of H.P. Lovecraft or a writer looking to continue to tales of Cthulhu, The Lovecraft Lexicon is an invaluable resource.
