Praising and Criticising Lovecraft
I found Ballad of Black Tom at audible, I honestly can’t remember, I either got it with my credits or it was on sale. Anyways, when I got it I had no idea it was inspired by Lovecraft. I’ve read a good chunk of Lovecraft stories but I didn’t know about the Horror at Red Hook, which The Ballad Of Black Tom based on. If I did my homework better, I would probably read Horror at Red Hook before the Ballad of Black Tom. So, here it is, this was my first advice. Read the Red Hook before reading this. I bet it’ll multiply the joy.
I struggled to get into the book for about the first hour. It had nothing to do with Kevin R. Free’s narration or anything. It is actually successfully narrated and beautifully written. But it sure is a slow burn. So, I couldn’t get into the story at first but when shit hits the fan, you can’t stop reading. Right at the half, point of view switches. As much as I found Black Tom, the main character of the story, much more interesting than detective Malone, the what-the-fuckery makes everything better. In this way, a change of perspective that might have been negative for the course of the story has turned into a positive way of expression. And that halfway was also when I started to notice this was a very Lovecraftian story. Turns out it actually was. And a very good one of them.
The story takes place in New York of the 1920s, but if it was now, it wouldn’t matter much. The political environment is not so different today. Maybe rich men involved in occult activities. Or maybe not even that. It is a detective mystery with cultural commentary and some solid Old Gods action.
By now it’s not a secret that H.P. Lovecraft was a racist and xenophobic. And LaValle beautifully addresses his feeling towards him saying “H.P. Lovecraft with all my conflicted feelings” at the beginning. It is dark, messed up, and a powerfull read. It is both a tribute and criticism of Lovecraft.
The Ballad of Black Tom was my first Victor LaValle book I was satisfied with his language, perspective, and elegance. In my opinion, he actually managed to write one of the most terrifying yet satisfying endings in the horror genre. Dirty old Lovecraft would be enraged and secretly intrigued.
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