Alexander W. Drake was a well-regarded illustrator and engraver, spending much of his career at the vaunted Scribner's Monthly magazine (which would become The Century magazine eventually). What many were not aware of is that Drake also produced three short stories, printed in The Century over the course of a couple months, that captured a strange and otherworldly beauty in the human condition. A man obsessed with designing the perfect haunted house. A curious vehicle built to capture a most exquisite fleeting moment of beauty. A songbird in a cage that takes flight through happenstance but to arrive later a miracle. These stories show a true talent that never fully realized his potential. Still what we are left with are odd and entrancing pieces suitable to strike an atmosphere of mystery and wonder. Also included in this collection are appreciations by peers of Drake as well as two poems he published during roughly the same time as the stories included. (Summary by Ben Tucker)

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