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Lewis Matthew
Matthew Lewis (1775 – 1818) is an English writer remembered for his novel. ‘The Monk’. Although not totally original, having been influenced by the writings of Ann Radcliffe and Hugh Walpole, ‘The Monk’ has nevertheless maintained its place in the early examples of Gothic horror, shocking its readers, and causing Jane Austen to send it up in ‘Northanger Abbey’.
Leroux Gaston
Gaston Leroux (1868 – 1927) was a French novelist, playwright and journalist. His principal claim to fame is to have written ‘The Phantom of the Opera’, but also he wrote a number of extremely popular detective stories, including the most notable ‘The Mystery of the Yellow Room’, the original murder-in-a-locked room mystery.
Le Fanu Sheridan
Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu (1814 – 1873) was an Irish novelist and short story writer. A moderately successful writer during his lifetime, he slipped into obscurity after his death, until the writer M.R. James published a collection of his stories under the title of ‘Madam Crowl and Other Tales of Mystery’. The success of the book led to greater popularity for a further collection, ‘In a Glass Darkly’, and the novels ‘The House by the Churchyard’ and ‘Uncle Silas.
James M.R.
M(ontague) R(hodes) James (1862-1936), the son of a Kent curate, enjoyed a glittering academic career, and was acknowledged as a leading authority on medieval manuscripts and biblical apocrypha. By way of diversion, over a period of time he wrote thirty four of what are acknowledged to be the best ghost stories ever written. The passing of time does not lessen their popularity or their ability to chill, and our edition of ‘Collected Ghost Stories’ remains the best-selling book in the series.
Crowley Aleister
The sub-title of the latest biography of Aleister Crowley (1875 – 1947), ‘Spiritual Revolutionary, Romantic Explorer, Occult Master – and Spy’, gives something of the flavour of his extraordinary life. Identifying himself with the ‘Great Wild Beast 666’, among his vast literary output was some fascinating short fiction which is gathered together in two Wordworth collections.
Chambers Robert W.
Robert William Chambers (1865 – 1933) was an American illustrator and writer, best known for his influential collection of strange short stories, ‘The King in Yellow’.
Yang Shang
Shang Yang (390 – 338BC) was an important Chinese statesman of Qin in the Warring States Period of ancient China. With the support of Duke Xiao of Qin, Yang enacted numerous reforms (in accordance with his legalist philosophy recorded in The Book of Lord Shang) in the state of Qin that helped to change Qin from a peripheral state into a militarily powerful and strongly centralised kingdom
Tzu Sun
Sun Tzu was an ancient Chinese military general, strategist and philosopher who is traditionally believed to have written ‘The Art of War’, an influential ancient Chinese book on military strategy. Sun Tzu has had a significant impact on Chinese and Asian history and culture, both as an author and through legend. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, ‘The Art of War’ grew in popularity and saw practical use in Western society, and his work has continued to influence both Asian and Western culture and politics.
Spinoza Benedict
Benedictus de Spinoza (1632 – 1677) was a Dutch philosopher of Portuguese-Jewish origin. While living quietly, working as a lens grinder, Spinoza wrote of highly controversial ideas which saw him expelled from his community. His ‘Ethics’, published posthumously, led him to be considered one of the great rationalists of 17th-century philosophy, laying the groundwork for the 18th-century Enlightenment and modern biblical criticism. Spinoza is considered to be one of Western philosophy’s most important philosophers.