Join the BCRI for the latest installment of the One Bear | One Book reading series! We'll be discussing H. P. Lovecraft's The Case of Charles Dexter Ward with Lovecraft scholar S. T. Joshi '80 AM '82. This short horror novel is a deep dive into the history and topography of Providence, particularly College Hill, and examines the question of how American cities can be both literally and figuratively haunted by their colonial pasts. This will be a virtual event, consisting of a talk and Q&A on Zoom.
Get the book now and start reading!
About the Book
Written in 1927 and not published in full until 1943, The Case of Charles Dexter Ward details the obsession of the scion of a prominent Providence family with his distant ancestor, a necromancer. Arguably Lovecraft's most personal work, it is the product of in-depth research into the early history of Providence.
This novel is in the public domain and is available in many anthologies of Lovecraft's works. We recommend getting the 2010 edition edited by our speaker with extensive notes on the people and places mentioned: https://utampapress.org/product/the-case-of-charles-dexter-ward. The Penguin Classics collection The Thing on the Doorstep and Other Weird Stories also includes an introdiuction and notes by Mr. Joshi.
This book includes short discussions of the Transatlantic Slave Trade and descriptions of Black and indigenous people that can range from insensitive to offensive.
About the Speaker
S. T. Joshi is a freelance writer and editor. He has prepared comprehensive editions of H. P. Lovecraft’s collected fiction, essays, poetry, and letters, including an annotated edition of The Case of Charles Dexter Ward (2010). He is the author of The Weird Tale (1990), The Modern Weird Tale (2001), I Am Providence: The Life and Times of H. P. Lovecraft (2010), and Unutterable Horror: A History of Supernatural Fiction (2012), and has edited the anthology American Supernatural Tales (2007).
About the One Bear | One Book series
The One Bear | One Book program seeks to connect alums in a global book club where all are encouraged to read and discuss a selected title at the same time. The first season of books has been nominated by The Brown Clubs of Greater San Francisco, Georgia, Washington DC, Miami, and Rhode Island, as well as the Center for Slavery and Justice at Brown. Each Club nominated a book that captures the zeitgeist of their region, a title they would tell a fellow alum: “You gotta read this.”
Future Books in the One Bear | One Book Series
Center for Slavery and Justice at Brown | Slavery & Justice Report 2nd Edition | April 2023
Past Books in the One Bear | One Book Series
Brown Club of Greater San Francisco: The Dreamt Land: Chasing Water & Dust Across California by Mark Arax
Brown Club of Georgia: White Flight: Atlanta and the Making of Modern Conservatism by Kevin Kruse
Brown Club of Washington DC: Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez ’99
Brown Club of Miami: Everything Inside by Edwidge Danticat MFA ’93 LITTD ’08