Of living creators of cosmic fear raised to its most artistic pitch, few if any can hope to equal the versatile Arthur Machen.H. P. Lovecraft

Classic tales of the fantastic, creepy and weird, with a foreword from the award-winning director ofThe Shape of WaterGuillermo Del Toro

Machen’s weird tales of the creepy and fantastic finally come to Penguin Classics. With an introduction from S.T. Joshi, editor ofAmerican Supernatural Tales,The White PeopleandOther Weird Storiesis the perfect introduction to the father of weird fiction. The title story “The White People” is an exercise in the bizarre leaving the reader disoriented and on edge. From the first page, Machen turns even fundamental truths upside-down, as his character Ambrose explains, “there have been those who have sounded the very depths of sin, who all their lives have never done an ‘ill deed'” setting the stage for a tale entirely without logic.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.