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Content snapshot
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Violence
Some
Violence in numerous stories, from psychological menace to murder; varies by story
Language
Barely any
Occasional profanity; some stories use period-appropriate language
Sexual Content
Some
Some sexual content in contemporary selections; varies by author
Substance Use
Barely any
Occasional substance use in various stories
Emotional Intensity
A lot
Horror, psychological terror, and the uncanny are pervasive; some stories are extremely disturbing
What this book is about
Oates collects American Gothic short fiction spanning two centuries, from Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne through contemporary masters including Stephen King, Flannery O'Connor, and Oates herself. The anthology traces the Gothic tradition's obsessions: haunted houses, madness, doubles, the uncanny, and violence lurking beneath American surfaces. An essential survey of a distinctly American literary mode.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
Horror and psychological terror throughout
Violence in multiple stories
Some stories deal with madness and the supernatural
Reader Verification
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