Josh Simmons’ samizdat “Shadow of the Bat”—included here as “Mark of the Bat,” along with three other extremely unauthorized Batman stories—is one of the great minicomics of this century. This gross-out version of a truly psychotic and pathetic Batman is compelling, though later stories don’t land as hard as “Shadow”.

Book: 34 out of 52

Ito’s recent story collections lack the verve of his earlier work, I think I know why. His greatest works—Uzumaki and Tomie, of course, and Gyo to a lesser extent—tell a large, connected story, in which his obsessions reinforce the ultimate effect of the series. These one-off stories are too repetitive.

Book: 33 out of 52

An all-time classic ghost story by reputation and impact on later authors, but to me, a bit anodyne in its impact. Not terrible—especially with its early archetype of the occult detective—but just not enough to enrapture me how I expected. Very handsome volume, though, with terrific art by Alisdair Wood.

Book: 32 out of 52

This was Hammett’s first published short story featuring his long-running detective, the Contintental Op. It’s not an amazing story—a bit simple, and with a solution that’s frankly a stretch—but this is another truly lovely, handmade edition from Thornwillow Press. It’s the binding and printing that are the stars here anyway.

Book: 31 out of 52

I should apologize to @girouzziinsta—she’s asked me to read this for years and I delayed. What a mistake. Harington is maybe the best unknown American novelist of the late 20th and early 21st century. This is another of his charming, funny, sexy, weird, formally experimental novels. Anything by him is recommended.

Book: 30 out of 52

It’s hard to believe there are 4 more books in this series (I’m not complaining; it’s still stellar). A few rays of hope appear for Seiichi here, breaking through the oppressive atmosphere created by his mentally ill, homicidal mother. It seems obvious, though, that things will get worse before they get better.

Book: 29 out of 52

I haven’t read this classic of feminist psychological horror since college. It’s better than I remember, the narrator’s break from reality in its ending more effective. This edition is a really lovely, hand-bound and letterpress-printed volume from Thornwillow Press. The care and craft evident in the edition make it a special treat.

Book: 28 out of 52

A ghost story about record collecting, cultural appropriation, mental illness, trustafarians, and more. A great concept, with some compelling literary effects—especially the collapse of multiple stories, told across different time periods, into a single narrative—but that frayed a bit at the end and felt like it slightly overstayed its welcome.

Book: 27 out of 52

An appealing collection of short, creepy folk tales and story sketches from mid-20th century upstate New York, some of which ran in a local newspaper there. Of greatest note here is the title story, which formed the basis of Karl Edward Wagner’s short story “Sticks,” which later influenced The Blair Witch Project.

Book: 26 out of 52

This is twice I’ve been tricked by a Nightfire book (“Nothing But Blackened Teeth” was the first). I just don’t like the books they publish. There’s fertile material in repurposing “The Fall of the House of Usher” (see Julia Gfrorer and Sean Collins’ erotic comic, for example), but this was deeply superfluous.

Book: 25 out of 52