Lord Dunsany is one of those authors I've known about for a long time, without having read any of their works. However, recently, I decided that it was high time I rectified this and so, I read two of his novels: The King of Elfland's Daughter and The Charwoman's Shadow, as well as the short-story collection The Sword of Welleran and Other Stories.
In case you've never heard of him, Edward Plunkett, more commonly known as Lord Dunsany was a British writer, who was incredibly influential when it comes to defining what we now call the 'fantasy' genre. A list of his admirers reads like a who's who of authors of fantastic literature: Tolkien, Lovecraft, Borges, Gaiman and many others. As such, I went into some work with certain expectations.
I will say that, as much as I enjoyed the two novels (especially The Charwoman's Shadow), its his short-stories that, in my opinion, shows Lord Dunsany at his best. This is, because as a writer, Lord Dunsany is clearly less concerned with things like plot and characterization, than he is with atmosphere and imagery, an approach which suits the short-story format best.
The Stories found within The Sword of Welleran are of consistently high quality, without a single dud to be found. However, if I had to pick just one story, it would have to be The Fortress Unvanquishable Save For Sacnoth. What sounds on paper like the most basic fantasy story imaginable (young hero + magic sword + evil sorcerer) becomes something truly fantastic, thanks to Lord Dunsany's rich, evocative prose (seriously, this story and all the other beg to be read aloud).
If you have an interest in fantasy literature and have yet to read anything by Lord Dunsany, you definitely should. Not only is his influence on the genre undeniable, but perhaps more importantly, he was a wonderful storyteller. I'm looking forward to perusing more of his work in the future.
