Radio Free Burrito Presents: Dagon by HP Lovecraft
wil, · Categories: BooksSince I started Radio Free Burrito Presents several weeks ago, lots of you have asked me if I would narrate something by HP Lovecraft.
I love the Cthulhu mythos, but I’m not crazy about Lovecraft’s storytelling. I feel like he spends a lot of time in the high concept and the world building, without ever really going more than skin deep on his protagonists and narrative characters. NB: I haven’t read a ton of Lovecraft, probably six or so short stories, so maybe he has a novel or novella with rich characters and narratives, but I haven’t found it.
None of this is to suggest that he wasn’t brilliantly creative and imaginative, just that his stories aren’t the most satisfying use of my time.
However, hundreds of you have reached out in comments and emails, asking me to narrate something from the Cthulhu Mythos, so today’s RFB Presents is a short, weird, lurid story called Dagon.
If I’ve done this correctly (I’ve been having some server issues), you should be able to download or stream using links below.
This is awesome Wil. Thank you from one of the 1 in 50. Please, please, please do more Lovecraft. BTW: you’re Ready Player One is my favourite audio book, ever.
Wil… so this is the first of your reading that’s come thru on the podcast feed! I knew you were doing readings from WWdN mentions, but they weren’t showing up in my podcatcher. So whatever you did differently for this one… keep doing that!
Wil, thank you so much for doing these. Going to give the Lovecraft one a listen to on my social distancing exercise walk tomorrow. Keep safe, and live long a prosper
You’re so welcome. I appreciate you saying so.
I recommend listening to Rene Auberjonois reading Poe’s “The Black Cat”. I had read the story before I heard him do the audio, but his work illuminated something for me: He would be normal and become more and more unsound as he read a segment; then suddenly, back to normal. I didn’t realize the work had been written is spasms in increasing madness. RA’s work brought it out.
Hey Wil,
Your podcast popping up in my feed (google podcast app) was a welcome surprise.
Considering the world/timeline we’re currently inhabiting it is…reassuring that one of my favorite honest voices is here too. The choice of stories was poetically appropriate. Lovecraft feels of this time but also removed just enough to be enjoyable, an escape rather than more salt in the wound🤔.
You made my day better Wil, thank you. If you do more of these I’d enjoy listening, please do more, if it’s enjoyable for you😊.
-e
Hi Wil! Thank you so much for doing this! I read a little HP Lovecraft for a vocal interpretation class in college many years ago. You mentioned that some of his work is pretty dense – some of it doesn’t read aloud well, either. Dagon – and your reading – is good to read and hear. If you read more HPL (and I hope you do), you might give some passing mention of his problematic social and political attitudes (racism, tbh) – even during his time. The Good Friends of Jackson Elias podcast once used the following in a description of one discussion. “Lovecraft was a complex figure, and while this episode is largely a celebration of what we love about his work, we try not to shy away from his negative aspects, most notably his racism. We hope the result is a balanced, reasonable discussion.”
Thanks again!
-Bill
Wil,
I am very appreciative of your willingness to do these readings. I now look forward to the daily walk to break up the day working remotely.
Stay safe and thanks for all you do!
Love the podcast (and excited it’s showing up in my feeder now), but let’s also not forget HP Lovecraft was white supremacist trash.
https://lithub.com/we-cant-ignore-h-p-lovecrafts-white-supremacy/