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Rating: After a period of obscurantism, it seems that lately something is moving in Italy regarding Algernon Blackwood even though, in comparison, Arthur Machen has had relatively more exposure. The publishing house Providence Press has just published two of his essential collections, namely La casa vuota e altre storie and Il Wendigo e altre storie. CatBooks has also released an edition (with a new translation by Alda Teodorani) of the splendid novella L’uomo che amava gli alberi. Previously, there were also releases like Discesa in Egitto by Edizioni Hypnos and La valle perduta by Dagon Press. The magazine Zothique then dedicated its third issue to a special devoted specifically to Algernon Blackwood. The dossier is curated by Matteo Mancini, an expert in the weird genre. The title of his article is very interesting: Algernon Blackwood: il profeta del Dio Pan. We usually associate the God Pan with Arthur Machen, but in Blackwood, this deity (Pan's Garden is the title of one of his collections) represents the symbol of a pantheistic terror that involves the entire nature. That being said, in my opinion, the prophet of the God Pan remains Arthur Machen, considering the importance of the book Il Gran Dio Pan at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries in bringing to light the Eros and Thanatos impulses that were smoldering beneath the surface of European society.
The mentioned La valle perduta (The Lost Valley – 1910) remains, in my opinion, a demonstration of his great ability to evoke an atmosphere of spiritual horror. Even in this instance, the untouched and wild "nature" serves as the backdrop to this dark and unsettling story set in the Jura, in southern France. The protagonists are two twins – Stephen and Mark – who live practically in symbiosis: each is emotionally involved in the life of the other. There might be something morbid in this seemingly solid relationship. The two travel a lot – Blackwood himself was a great traveler, drawing inspiration for his stories – and finally arrive in the Jura, isolating themselves in a chalet amidst unspoiled nature. They spend their days hiking and meticulously recording their impressions. However, something suddenly breaks: a phantom and exotic female presence disrupts their balance. Their lives will be overturned, and the two will end up dramatically separated.
Blackwood confirms himself as an artist of the unsettling atmosphere: the description of the so-called "lost valley," a non-place where all the spirits disfavored by traditional religions find shelter, is something that remains in mind and will not leave "weird" lovers indifferent. In the appendix, there is an interesting article by Blackwood himself entitled "The Psychology of Places" which is very relevant to the story presented, along with an accurate Italian bibliography including illustrations from old and historical editions.
Kudos to Dagon Press for unearthing this hidden gem by a great author like Algernon Blackwood: the hope is that maybe, in the future, other unpublished works will also be printed: much of his production remains unfortunately unpublished in Italy, which is a pity as it is undoubtedly material of interest, like the significant novel The Centaur (1911). In any case, here are the links to the publishers that have been releasing his material lately:
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