Often compared to Huysmans' A Rebours, The Hill of Dreams is a meditation on alienation and the lure of the fantastical
From his earliest literary experimentation, Arthur Machen refused to sit in his own time, clawing his way back to a past inhabited by false gods and terrifying fairies. The Hill of Dreams thus performs a kind of reverse archeology. Instead of the writerly excavation of character development and world-building, Machen entombs his main character, Lucian Taylor, in his own mind, cutting him off from the living world of sensation. Lucian journeys "all the long way from the known to the unknown," into the ruins of an old Roman fort, imbued with the Celtic magic that stirred in the Welsh hills of Machen's childhood. From this idyll, the story becomes a classic künstlerroman, following Lucian to the gray streets of London where he succumbs to his worse nature. Written in 1897 but not published until 1907, the book was, in Machen's own estimation, his masterpiece. All Mandylion books come adorned in a translucent dust jacket that emphasizes the unique material qualities of the book.
Arthur Machen (1863-1947) was born Caerleon, Wales. His most well-known works include The Great God Pan and Ornaments of Jade. He has influenced writers as diverse as H.P. Lovecraft, Stephen King, Jorge Luis Borges and Sylvia Townsend Warner.
