Visions Through a Shattered Lens

by James Beaumont

2016 · iUniverse

How do you know what is real and what is not? Do you trust your mind enough to make the distinction? You might think you see the world clearly, but maybe theres nothing clear to see; maybe the world is, in fact, distorted, as illuminated in Visions through a Shattered Glass, thirty-one stories sure to make you question the everyday. Within, there are tales of dreamers who see things like crypts and crying mothers, unsure of the images validity. There are mysterious women, one dressed all in black, who serve to lure and confound. There are women who protect, as well, even from something so silly as a spider. Yet, are any of these happenings tangible, or has reality crumbled for this bevy of ill-fated men and women? Author James Beaumont weaves a tapestry of horror and fantasy. He rides a carousel of contrasting moods, sometimes fantastic, other times hauntingly nostalgic, but always unsettling and ominous. Are you prepared to step into this world of alternate reality where things that go bump in the night really do wait outside your door? Come inside and find out.

Publisher to the Decadents

by James G. Nelson

2010 · Penn State Press

Publisher to the Decadents chronicles the experiences of Leonard Smithers (1861-1907), a key figure in the literary culture of late Victorian England. In his day he was known primarily for publishing books of upscale pornography. He became the publisher of choice for the Decadents, including most notably Oscar Wilde and Audrey Beardsley. While a young solicitor in his native Sheffield, Smithers established a correspondence with the famed explorer and translator of exotic texts, Captain Sir Richard Burton. Burton translated The Thousand Nights and a Night (popularly known as The Arabian Nights), which was published by Smithers in 1885. Smithers collaborated with Burton in the publication of two Latin texts, the Priapeia and the Carmina of Catullus, both of erotic cast. After the death of Burton in 1890, Smithers continued a significant involvement with his work, serving as an adviser to Lady Isabel Burton. During this time Smithers formed a partnership with Harry Sidney Nichols, and together they produced a series of pornographic books under the imprint of the Erotika Biblion Society. The years between 1895 and 1900 were Smithers's glory years when he managed to publish a number of books illustrated by Beardsley, a magazine known as the Savoy, and books of verse by Ernest Dowson and Arthur Symons that have proved to be the finest expression of the Decadent Movement. Throughout his career Smithers sought to produce attractive, well-made books that were tastefully designed and printed. This book provides expansive insight into the prizes and pitfalls of an early English publisher of the decadent Nineties.