Review: The Evil Garden, by Edward Gorey

A bubbling pond, a malicious rock, an aunt-eating plant: all this and more await within The Evil Garden by Edward Gorey - or rather, by Eduard Blutig, translated by Mrs. Regera Dowdy, with pictures by O. Müde, as the book's preface would have it. Anyone already familiar with Gorey's brand of Edwardian crosshatchings knows what they're in store for here; for those unfamiliar, let's just say that your dictionary's entry for "dark, dry humor" should be illustrated with one of Gorey's images.

Told in rhymed couplets and wry illustrations, The Evil Garden is a pleasant diversion, made moreso by Pomegranate Communications' attention to detail (love the vegetative endpapers!). A quick but satisfying read, and a perfect gift book for that special someone who delights in the macabre.

The Evil Garden

by Edward Gorey

Pomegranate, 2011

ISBN-10: 0764958852

ISBN-13: 978-0764958854

32 pages, $12.95

A version of this review was originally published at LibraryThing.