John Collier (writer) Summary

John Collier (1884-1968) was a proponent of American Indian culture. His appointment as Commisioner of Indian Affairs helped shape federal policy toward Native Americans, especially through the Indian... Read more

John Collier wrote more than one hundred short stories, three novels, eight produced movie scripts, a volume of poetry, a modernized dramatic version of John Milton's Paradise Lost (1667), and a socia... Read more

In the following essay, Collier presents a sardonic discourse on writing prose. As a writer, my position is a difficult one. I cannot see much good in the world, nor much likelihood of good. There see... Read more

In the following review, Korn offers a negative assessment of The John Collier Reader. It is for his short stories that John Collier is—at the moment—best known. There are several overla... Read more

In the following review of Presenting Moonshine, Barry, an English critic, praises Collier's "exquisite" writing style and his handling of supernatural and abnormal subject matter... Read more

Below, Farber presents a favorable review of The Touch of Nutmeg. Clifton Fadiman is to be congratulated on his premonition that "one of the things this sad world needs" is a new collect... Read more

H. H. Holmes was a pseudonym of William A. P. White. White was an American critic, science fiction writer, and co-founder of the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. Below, he offers a positive as... Read more

In the following review of Fancies and Goodnights, Davenport identifies the fine line Collier draws between the macabre and the funny, concluding that he "remains the master of an irony so perf... Read more

In the following review, Titzell notes that His Monkey Wife is “original” and “extraordinary.” His Monkey Wife is a book with which to choose your friends. Either they will... Read more

In the following review, Lewis finds that Defy the Foul Fiend begins on a weak note but soon becomes an accomplished work. The diabolical presence who is defied in this book is the demon called Demos.... Read more

In the following review, the critic declares that Defy the Foul Fiend will fail to gain a wide readership despite its attributes. These two novels, [Defy the Foul Fiend, and Brian Guy, by Benjamin App... Read more

In the following review, Eustace offers a negative assessment of Defy the Foul Fiend but admits that Collier's writing evidences genius. The writer must confess his abysmal ignorance! Before th... Read more

In the following review, Redman praises Collier's imaginative plots in the stories in Presenting Moonshine. This latest presentation of John Collier's own, particular, and inimitable bra... Read more

In the following essay, Theroux discusses Collier's place in literary tradition. The critical reaction was mixed in 1931 when John Collier's first novel, His Monkey Wife; or, Married to ... Read more

In the following review, the critic examines the works included in The John Collier Reader, concluding that much of Collier's canon is charming but light reading. We may still believe in God&#x... Read more

In the following essay, Updike explores Collier's interpretation of Milton's “Paradise Lost.” No clue is offered, on the jacket flap or in the author's rather testy ... Read more

In the following essay, Milne explores Collier's writing and films based on his stories. ‘If thou be'st born to strange sights and if you don't mind picking your way throug... Read more

In the following review, Bunting regards Gemini as a “sizeable achievement” despite its affectations. Edith Sitwell says: “A writer to whom the gentle and insipid word ‘tal... Read more

In the following review, the critic finds Just the Other Day to be well written and conceived but overly didactic in its social commentary. There is a peculiarly revolting passage in the adventures of... Read more

In the following review, Garnett considers Tom's A-Cold a disappointing follow-up to Collier's earlier works. When I had read a few pages of Tom's A-Cold, by John Collier, I thoug... Read more