In the field of supernatural and fantastic literature, certain names come readily to mind – E.T.A. Hoffmann, Edgar Allan Poe, H.P. Lovecraft – but the name of Fitz-James O’Brien has been unjustly overlooked and nearly forgotten since his premature death in 1862 during the American Civil War.
‘The Diamond Lens’, O’Brien’s most famous short story, can be regarded as a forerunner of the science-fiction genre; ‘What Was It?’ is alleged to have served as a model for H.G. Wells’s The Invisible Man; and 'The Wondersmith’ is a marvellous tale of Hoffmannesque invention. Taken together, O’Brien’s few surviving stories give him an important place in the development of American fiction and remain as fresh today as when they first written more than a hundred and fifty years ago.
Contents: The Diamond Lens, The Lost Room, What Was It?, The Wondersmith, Seeing the World, The Pot of Tulips, The Dragon Fang possessed by the Conjurer Piou-Lou.
By:
Fitz-James O'Brien
Volume editor:
Michael Hayes
Imprint: Alma Books
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 198mm,
Width: 126mm,
Spine: 20mm
Weight: 191g
ISBN: 9781847495198
ISBN 10: 1847495192
Pages: 208
Publication Date: 01 April 2026
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Contents: The Diamond Lens, The Lost Room, What Was It?, The Wondersmith, Seeing the World, The Pot of Tulips, The Dragon Fang possessed by the Conjurer Piou-Lou
Born in Ireland, Fitz-James O’Brien (1828–62) was an American writer of poems and short stories who is considered by some as a pioneer in the science-fiction genre.
