BOOK REVIEW: THE FLOCK OF BA-HUI AND OTHER STORIES

The Flock Of Ba-Hui And Other Stories had an unusual journey to print, as author Oobmab was found in the semi underground corners of the Chinese internet, posting tales of cosmic horror as forum based installments. Author/translator Arthur Meursault (Party Members) and translator Akira worked together to bring this unique expansion of mythos to an English speaking audience under the imprint of Camphor Press. What does cosmic horror look like when created out of love for the subgenre, instead of H.P. Lovecraft’s copious personal store of racism, ill health and xenophobia?
 
This volume of four strange tales (5, if you include the in joke and reference filled framing device wraparound contributed by the translation team) gives us a chance to find out what one reimagining of that universe looks like.
 
Titular opening story The Flock Of Ba-Hui, was the genesis for this collection, and it is very easy to see why. Not only does Oobmab do an fantastic job of using his native Chinese to create an approximation of Lovecraft’s antiquated and somewhat purple prose, but both translators obviously worked extremely hard to keep that incredibly complex linguistic feat intact. Footnotes explaining both historical context and some of the culturally specific references make this an accessible read that does not require a complex background in Chinese cultural history or arcane Cthulhu trivia.
 
An anthropologist named Zhang Cunmeng disappears from the mental hospital at which he was incarcerated, never to be seen again. Four of his colleagues use his surviving research and retrace his final journey, only to discover madness and an ancient serpent god. Simply plotted and effortlessly melding Chinese legends with Lovecraft lore, there is a pulpy zip to the pacing and some subtle dry humor that push this past mere pastiche. For a story that is downbeat by necessity, it’s surprisingly fun.
 
The second tale, Nadir, is far more serious and traditional in tone. An artist becomes obsessed with ascending a dark tower after all of the world’s beauties fail to inspire him. While I was sad to see the humor of the previous story left behind, the imagery used to detail the inevitable psychotic break and collapse of reality is darkly beautiful.
 
Black Taisui is the book’s one slight stumble. Opening in the modern era, the partially decomposed corpse of a man named Lao Mingchang is found outside of his home, which is promptly condemned. Most of the story is told in a flashback, tracing the lineage of the victim back almost 100 years. Given that we learn relatively quickly that Lao Mingchang is the descendant of a sect of immortality seeking cultists, the majority of the story’s length stalls for time as we wait for the unknowable horror to drop, snap or slither its way out of the shadows to collect on its end of the bargain.
 
The Ancient Tower is the closest this book comes to fan fiction, and while it maintains the same elegance of language and intriguing images as the front half of the book, it lacks much to distinguish it as Oobmab’s voice specifically. It’s an effective homage of greatest hits elements from the rest of the book, but not much else. Another anthropologist becomes obsessed with another remote tower, this one in rural Tibet. Ignoring all warnings and common sense, he disrupts the sacrificial grounds of an ancient cult, and madness ensues.
 
The Flock Of Ba-Hui And Other Stories is a quicker read than its 234 page count would suggest, and is a unique take on cosmic horror rather unlike anything else that is for sale at the moment. I would be curious for more tales from both Oobmab and the apparent swell of internet based genre writing in China. Arthur Meursault and Akira are a translation dream team for this style of material, and I would be interested at what else they could bring out of the subterranean corners of the web, and into the larger spotlight.

The Flock Of Ba-Hui And Other Stories

A researcher disappears while exploring the deep caverns of mountainous Sichuan, where folklore speaks of primeval reptilian gods sleeping beneath the earth. An artist dreams of a mysterious black tower stretching skyward for infinity, and glimpses the cold truth of the universe when he decides to climb it. Strange bubbling and decomposed corpses are discovered in the tunnels beneath an old mansion in the city of Qingdao, and an ancient temple in Tibet terrifies all who dare approach. Meanwhile, in an abandoned house, a stranger gathers together a group of bewildered scholars to whisper in the darkness of eldritch abominations and even weirder phantasms.

From the stygian depths of the Chinese internet, we proudly present four wholly original tales of cosmic horror based on the works of H.P. Lovecraft and translated into English for the very first time. These ghoulish short stories take their inspiration from some of Lovecraft’s choicest nightmares and offer a different perspective on those things best left unseen. Follow us on a dream-quest as we explore what fresh terrors the Cthulhu Mythos has to offer from the other side of the Great Wall. Written in the authentic style of the pulp magazines of the 1930s, this unique offering of twisted tales will leave Lovecraft fans terrified and astounded by the stories’ breadth of imagination.

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