How Does 'Amphigorey Also' Compare To Gorey'S Other Collections?

As someone who's collected Gorey's works for years, 'Amphigorey Also' stands out for its darker whimsy compared to his earlier collections. While 'Amphigorey' and 'Amphigorey Too' focus on macabre nursery rhymes and Victorian satire, 'Also' dives deeper into existential dread. The 'Leaves' sequence is pure visual poetry—gnarled trees whispering secrets you’ll never understand. 'The Stupid Joke' feels like a slapstick routine performed at a funeral. It’s less about punchlines and more about the void behind them. What fascinates me is how Gorey’s signature crosshatching gets looser here, like his pen was shaking with suppressed laughter (or screams). If you loved 'The Gashlycrumb Tinies' but wished it was more unhinged, this is your book.

Reading 'Amphigorey Also' after devouring Gorey’s other anthologies feels like discovering his private sketchbook. The earlier 'Amphigorey' volumes curated his most famous works—'The Doubtful Guest,' 'The Curious Sofa'—with polished storytelling. 'Also' strips away that structure. Pieces like 'The Universal Solvent' are barely narratives at all, just surreal images of melting reality. His linework becomes frantic, especially in 'The Iron Tonic,' where inky blots suggest landscapes crumbling under their own gloom.

What’s groundbreaking is how Gorey plays with silence. Earlier works relied on deadpan captions ('A is for Amy who fell down the stairs'), but 'The Retrieved Locket' lets the illustrations scream for themselves. A woman’s face dissolves into shadows while her hand clutches a locket—no words needed. This collection proves Gorey was evolving beyond gothic pastiche into something more abstract and personal. If 'Amphigorey' was his Beatles phase, 'Also' is his experimental solo album.

For newcomers, start with 'Amphigorey' to grasp his style, then let 'Also' warp your perception. It pairs well with 'The Haunted Tea-Cosy,' another late-career gem where his humor turns meta. The man didn’t just draw creepy stories; he built a universe where even the margins whisper jokes about mortality.

Gorey’s collections are like different flavors of the same poisoned candy, and 'Amphigorey Also' is the one that lingers. While 'Amphigorey Too' had the quirky 'The Insect God,' 'Also' gives us 'The Green Beads,' where a woman’s life unravels because of—you guessed it—green beads. Typical Gorey, turning trivial objects into existential threats. His earlier books felt like puzzles; this one feels like the pieces are deliberately missing.

The pacing shifts too. Stories like 'The Osbick Bird' (from 'Too') wrapped up neatly, but 'The Disrespectful Summons' in 'Also' ends mid-sentence, leaving you hanging over a cliff. It’s Gorey at his most mischievous. The illustrations get wilder—compare the tidy crosshatching in 'The Gashlycrumb Tinies' to the chaotic splatters in 'The Untitled Book.' Some fans argue it’s sloppy; I call it liberated. After decades of perfecting his craft, he finally let the ink bleed where it wanted. For a similar vibe, hunt down 'The Fantod Pack'—his tarot-esque cards that revel in uncertainty.