Cover Image: Manga Classics: The Stories of Edgar Allan Poe

Manga Classics: The Stories of Edgar Allan Poe

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I am typically not a fan of Manga books, but I was intrigued to read it in comparison to Gareth Hinds’s adaptation of Poe’s work, with both works coming out within months of each other.

The Tell-Tale Heart (art by Virginia Nitouhei)- The first story was challenging for me, as I felt the unnamed narrator was too perfect looking (aka Manga-like). But once I got past that, the illustrations told the story very effectively.

The Cask of Amontillado (art by Chagen)- The background of the festival where they two men meet and later the catacombs they enter were well drawn and really gave it a sense of atmosphere. The last page was chilling.

The Raven (art by Pikomaro)- The art work in this story is gorgeous. The visions that the narrator has of his lost Lenore were heartbreaking and the last page of the raven with the grieving man was perfect.

The Masque of the Red Death (art by Uka Nagao)- This ended up being my least favorite, for the story’s very essence centers around the colors of the rooms and what they represent. The lack of color affected the interpretation and it fell flat.

The Fall of the House of Usher (art by Linus Liu & Man Yiu)- I have never been a fan of this story, but the illustrated version of the story elevated it to me. The crumbling estate is aptly drawn and the madness of twins Roderick and Madeline is evident. The sense of impending doom and Gothic despair shine through.

This adaptation is the latest in a series of Manga classics, and I would recommend it if you enjoy Manga and already own previous classics from this collection. I would hope that readers would look at Poe’s additional works, if they enjoyed this strong version of five of his short-stories. I received the online book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, and the timing worked out well for me to compare both excellent adaptations of the premier horror writer’s work.

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It’s no surprise to me that Udon Entertainment is the publisher behind this collection of Edgar Allen Poe stories. This book is well done with carefully drawn illustrations that show so much of what the characters are thinking and what the setting looks like. I love how these books manage to convey more than the written word alone.

Students are drawn to graphic novels, and I think it’s wonderful that they can get so much enjoyment out of reading classics that they would ordinarily pass by. Often the pictures help those who might struggle a bit with reading because by looking at them, they get a sense of what is going on, and it helps them think about what words belong there.

I loved this edition, and I highly recommend it.

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Hmmm Edgar Allen Poe is a wonderful author and his stories are extremely dark. But in manga form it just doesn't come across the same way. It just took away from the actual stories.

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Another spooky interpretation of Poe, a stellar Manga adaptation, and such a wonderful addition to a solid series. The illustrations embody all of the original works' emotions and themes and the text is easy to follow. Great for Poe fans, Manga and retelling followers, and reluctant readers.

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I adore Edgar Allan Poe, and after reading this book I will now have a plethora of students that are going to love his work as well. The illustrations in this book are something to behold, and they truly bring this story alive. I have already purchased copies for my library and I cannot wait for them to arrive. Make sure that you do not miss the chance to read this book!! If you were not a Poe fan before, this might just change your mind!!

Quoth the Raven “Read this book.”

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The Tales of Edgar Allan Poe is a manga adaptation of many famous works of Poe. The stories included are The Tell-Tale Heart, The Cask of Amontillado, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Mask of the Red Death and The Raven. Each story is masterfully penned with the artist exploring what Poe may have wanted readers to experience in each story. I didn’t compare the dialogue word for word, but most of the stories stayed true to the original text and readers new to Poe will experience his dark works and probably go looking for the original afterward. The Tales of Edgar Allan Poe was a great read and I am glad I revisited these stories.

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This certainly isn't the only instance of Poe being converted to the graphic novel form, but it's one of the best. In only using five stories we don't get much beyond the household names among the stories he provided us with, but we get the full flavour of them at leisure in these adaptations. Visually, they're great - although I might have knocked off half a star for making the characters beyond the first two stories much too young, and only so as to appease the manga audience. With classics of the genre such as these you can't really go wrong as far as the text is concerned, so this is a highlight of this publisher's catalogue of adapted classics.

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FULL REVIEW TO BE PUBLISHED ON INTRAVENOUS MAGAZINE.
I’ve been a fan of Poe’s work since I discovered both the author. and his creations. Even the life of this man has been of my interest. Also, manga and anime have taught me than even the simplest of the stories can have amazing artwork. “The Stories of Edgar Allan Poe,” which contains five of the most iconic tales of the author adapted by Stacy King, blends them both together with a great result.
Edgar Allan Poe was one the most underrated creators of the past, but this is one of those moments when you see that even with a Japanese look, he can send chills down your spine despite looking gorgeous and creepy at the same time. Yes, a weird, strange, mix, but a successful one.
I would recommend this to anyone that like darkly twisted stories that give you something to think about, but especially for fans of Poe. This manga was a delight to read and see! Looking forward for something like this in the future.

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I am a huge fan of Poe. His stories have life and color and a scare factor. This version fell flat for me. In black and white and the artwork didn't match the energy for me. It was a miss.

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Great manga version of the most famous of Poe’s tales.

This volume of Edgar Allen Poe tales includes The Raven, The Tell Tale Heart, The Cask of Amontillado, The Fall of the House of Usher and The Mask of the Red Death. All are famous as Poe’s best work. The adaptation of The Raven holds up the best as it is included in its entirety. Even though I have previously read this work many times and saw it as an adaptation on The Simpsons, I believe this is the best version that I have ever encountered. The Mask of the Red Death explains the plot much better than the original story or the silent movie with Lon Chaney. All of the stories still have a feeling of increasing dread as you read them.

If you have a young adult that can’t get through the old fashioned language used in the original stories, this would be the perfect gift. The pictures explain words that I just skimmed over when I originally read the stories in high school and college. In addition, the adapter’s notes for each story explain items even further. For example, I had no idea about the story behind the beetles in The Tell Tale Heart.

The artwork acts like manga (read back to front and right to left) and the characters look like manga characters while staying true to clothing styles from the 1840s when these stories were written. The artwork sets the mood for the psychological horror ambiance of the tales. 4 stars!

Thanks to the publisher, Udon Entertainment, and NetGalley for an advanced review copy.

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Edgar Allan Poe. The mention of his name brings up images of horror and ghost stories. Things that go bump in the night and scare the heck out of you. In the new Manga Classics collection of Poe stories, you will find plenty of chilling tales to read on a dark and stormy night!

This collection includes The Raven, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Masque of the Red Death, The Cask of Amontillado, and The Fall of the House of Usher.

Books in the Manga Classics series are all graphic novels that adapt classic tales into this format so that a new audience can enjoy them. Manga is read in the Japanese tradition from right to left and from the back of the book toward the front. Don’t worry; it’s very easy to get the hang of it!

The illustrations in this volume are superb. You can see the emotions on the characters’ faces and sense the atmosphere of the story by the settings in which the characters are drawn. The scenes are dramatic and haunting, such as the dark room in The Tell-Tale Heart, or the damp caves in The Cask of Amontillado. The masks worn by the characters are sufficiently creepy to give you the chills! The House of Usher is dark and creepy and an atmosphere that would not exactly be a welcoming place for a vacation. All this is conveyed by the artists’ touch in the richly-illustrated pages here.

The stories are told in their original language and the illustrations will help you understand the settings. It’s never been easy to picture the rooms in The Masque of the Red Death, but this graphic version really helped me see what Poe was describing. If you’ve ever read The Cask of Amontillado and wondered what one of those caves looked like, well now you can see for yourself.

Poe’s stories are perfect for anyone who loves to read scary stuff late at night. Grab a copy of this Manga version and start reading!

I thank NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

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Great illustrations and a must add to any libraries Graphic Novel collection.

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*thank you to NetGalley and Udon Entertainment for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

3 stars.
I really liked this version of "The Stories of Edgar Allen Poe". I have his books in paperback, but if you are anything like me, his books are a bit hard to read. So that is why I find this manga version a real gem. The illustrations make the stories easier to follow and understand and therefore, entertaining and enjoyable. This also really works as a manga. Id imagine there are some books that dont, but this does. The stories are still pretty creepy and they do capture what Edgar Allen Poe was saying in his storytelling. Definitely recommend this for manga lover, Edgar Allan poe fans and those who like me, want to read the main classic stories but need a bit of help to do so.

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I loved this so much. I didn't expect it, actually. I mean, I always love these Manga Classics but I never thought I would actually be interested in these Edgar Allan Poe stories, I don't know why, cause I love getting to know these classics.

They were so amazing. Seriously. I loved The Tell Tale Heart, didn't care much about The Cask of Amontillado, loved The Fall of the House of Usher. The Mask of the red Death, was okay, I liked it, didn't love it. The Raven. THE RAVEN. Loved this one so so SO much. My favorite out of all these stories.

Also, can I once again say how insanely gorgeous the art in these Mangas are. Bloody hell.

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I love Manga and was excited to see Edgar Allan Poe's work in manga form. The illustrations are beautiful and fit the stories perfectly. This is a great way to get younger readers to read more classics and they might be able to understand his work better as well. I look forward to reading more classics in this format.

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Really the only reason this got 4 stars instead of 5 for me is because I haaate the Fall of the House of Usher. I get that it's one of Poe's famous works and I totally understand the decision to include it in this volume but it's just so much longer than the other stories and I feel like there's a ton of unnecessary rambling in it that makes my eyes glaze over. I would have rather seen the Pit and the Pendulum but that's just my personal preference. Other than that I really enjoyed this. The art was great and I love reading graphic novel adaptations of Poe's works. The stories themselves are so descriptive and it's always interesting to see an artist interpret that and bring it to life. Also it's been awhile since I read the originals but it seems like most of the text has been faithfully reproduced so that's always good.

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As a big fan of both Poe’s short stories and graphic novels, this book did not disappoint. The adaptation of the writing was done very well, using Poe’s own words, and does not read as though it were just thrown together with bits and pieces of sentences like shorter adaptations from other publishers often do. The illustrations were in classic manga style, and were clearly drawn by talented artists. I definitely recommend this book and the others in the Manga Classics series.

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Gothic, eerie, and beautiful. I liked this Manga version of Poe's classics a lot. I haven't read all these stories in their original version but the dark atmosphere from them seems to have been well translated into this format. The art was overall well done and the classic stories dark and eerie depth strengthened it.

My favorite stories were The Cask of Amontillado, The Raven and The Mask of the Red Death.

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4.5 stars

Once again, I never read the original book and to be honest I don't really know what to think of it. The manga is divided into 5 short stories. And some of them are really tiny! I have no idea how they are in the original classic but in this one, although some are a bit difficult to understand since there's not much of a context, they are fascinatingly terrifying!

Also, I have to mention that all the short stories are drawn by a different artist, which I thought to be really interesting. Not only because we can see different styles but because it makes it easier to separate the stories...

I will talk about them briefly in separate:

The Tell-Tale Heart - This one was quite short and not the easiest to understand but it was just so dark and fascinating! I'm not sure I understood it at all because in manga format it's really a bit too tiny but it seems to be about guilt? Basically, it's about a guy that is trying to show that he is sane. In his brain, for him to commit such a calculated murder he has to be sane... The victim was an old man with a "vulture-eye" and he explains how everything happened. It's quite macabre.


The Cask of Amontillado - Okay after reading this one, I think this manga is better enjoyed if you've read the original stories or if you at least have heard of them, otherwise it will probably get confusing. This one is basically about revenge. And if you are wondering, Amontillado is the name of a wine, that was used by Montresor to lure Fortunato to his end. It's quite a messed-up story and not the easiest to have the whole idea in manga...


The Raven - I really liked this one, it's the only one I fully knew before reading the manga and I'm impressed. It's amazing how they managed to still maintain the poem aspect! I was literally reading it as a poem. This seems to be about grief. The main character is suffering the loss of his love, Lenore. And the poem shows him falling into madness. I really love this poem and it was quite unique to see it in a manga format, this is for sure a first and I think it was really well done.


The Masque of the Red Death - This one was scary and unsettling... I was holding my breath for the whole story even tho I was expecting the end due to the title... What an intense story! This one is about the plague and our main character is a prince. He is trying to escape the plague by staying in an abbey. He does an incredibly big party but... There are no boundaries for death... This is one of the tense ones in the book, it's incredible and for sure my favorite!


The Fall of the House Usher - This story is the weirdest of them all. Such an unsettling story! In this story, we have a character clearly suffering from some mental disease (make it plural!) not yet discovered at the time. This one has a bit more of a dark setting (even darker than the last ones, if that's possible) and the art was perfectly paired with the story. I think it's the most different in the book and first I wasn't really sure about it but it really fits well. The story talks about two friends, one is the narrator and he tries to help his friend feeling better - although it seems to be quite impossible to do so and he starts to be scared himself. I think this one is best understood if you've read the original classic, although it has a lot of detail and story in the manga, it's quite a complex story.


I actually enjoyed all the stories and the art. They are all really different from each other, the only thing in common being how dark they are. I surprisingly loved this manga and for sure I need to read more Edgar Allan Poe! Totally recommended if you are into dark or unsettling stories!

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When I saw this book I needed to read it , I am a huge fan of manga and Edgar Allan Poe's works so this book was a must read for me .
The artwork was very nice and fitted well with the stories . The black and white added to the creepiness of the different tales . I only had one issue with this manga and that was that it didn't read well on the app ( Adobe Digital Editions ) that I had to read this on . It was back to front ! I had to scroll all the way to the end to begin the first story and then of course the panels were awkward to read . Anyone reading this for the first time who hadn't read any manga before would have been incredibly confused by the layout . Luckily , however I have been reading manga for many years so it wasn't too much of an issue for me .
Despite this issue I really enjoyed this manga .

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