Paul Roland
Il sogno e l’incubo: vita e opere di H.P. Lovecraft

Many probably know Paul Roland as a musical author of dark and splendid psychedelic and gothic ballads, where often, in his texts, necrophilic themes resonate, reminiscent of Poe and Lovecraft. The English minstrel even dedicated a “concept” album (Reanimator – 2005 -) to Lovecraft, in which pieces titled “Charles Dexter Ward”, “Arkham”, “Valdemar” (a tribute to Poe), “Abdul Alhazred” and “Cthulhu” can be heard, which will delight fans of the solitary figure from Providence. After all, the figure of Lovecraft has always inspired many musicians from various genres.

However, not everyone might know that Paul Roland is also a writer: he is indeed the author of numerous books dealing with magic, Kabbalah, the occult, and grim criminal stories. Among his texts, I highlight The Nazis and the Occult, published by Reverdito in 2009, a fine volume that analyzes the subject without forced sensationalism, and Ghosts, published by Gremese in 2014, dedicated to ghosts and haunted places. It is not so surprising that Paul Roland, cultured and eccentric as he is, soaked in gothic culture, decided to focus his attention on the figure of H.P. Lovecraft by publishing, in 2014, The Curious Case of H.P. Lovecraft. Now Agenzia Alcatraz (after a first edition for Tsunami) reprints the revised and rewritten version for the Italian market of that book entitled The Dream and the Nightmare: Life and Works of H.P. Lovecraft in a beautiful hardcover edition.

The Italian expert on H.P. Lovecraft, Pietro Guarriello (curator of the magazines Lovecraftian Studies and Zothique), also collaborated on the English edition, taking care of the substantial illustrative part. This Italian edition is a summary of that original volume: it was expressly desired by Paul Roland, including the management of the iconographic part: he wanted to create a more agile version for the Italian market than what he had already done in the UK.

It is a volume of agile and pleasant reading: Roland shows a great understanding of the subject and writes about it with competence and passion. The English minstrel has mainly drawn his sources from HPL's vast correspondence. It is a biography that has the great merit of addressing both “Lovecraftian” followers and enthusiasts as well as those who wish to delve into an eccentric character of great fascination. Lovecraft's great strength and his narrative genius lie in having created a powerful mythology and an alien universe in which man is an insignificant particle: his so-called “cosmic horror” continues to fascinate legions of readers even today.

The Dream and the Nightmare: Life and Works of H.P. Lovecraft is a very well-constructed text. Lovecraft's life is retraced chronologically from his childhood in Providence: Lovecraft grew up in a wealthy family, but unfortunately, some unfortunate events, such as his father's hospitalization and his mother's death, undermined his character. His mother dominated him in every way, making him believe he was so ugly that he terrified his peers. Lovecraft inevitably sank into a dark period, and he symbolized his fears and traumas in the figures of the Night Gaunts, monsters that in his dreams would catch him and torment him with their tridents while flying him away. It is necessary, however, to partly dispel the cliché of him being a recluse (the so-called “Providence's Recluse”), but it is undeniable that we are faced with a particular personality of superior standing compared to the average. As a child, he played with his peers (among whom the Munroe brothers were important). During his childhood, the figure of his grandfather, Whipple V. Phillips, was fundamental for him (who took the place of his hospitalized father due to syphilis) and, with his vast culture, put the child on the right path, who also thanks to him, became passionate about the classical world and the history of ancient Romans. At that time, HPL considered himself a fervent Pagan. Whipple V. Phillips was also a lover of gothic literature (in particular of Radcliffe) and apparently less of Poe. However, it was the reading of Poe that truly shook Lovecraft mentally. Paul Roland also analyzes all the main stories of Lovecraft's production and provides a series of interesting anecdotes: from his marriage to Sonia Greene to his relationships with friends and correspondents. The result is a portrait of a great personality of the last century, despite all its contradictions. The volume is accompanied by several illustrations depicting book covers, of the mythical Weird Tales, and some photos of Lovecraft himself and Robert E. Howard.