Matt Ruff might have a new book out this year – 88 Names – but the reason he is one of my favorite people of 2020 is due to the HBO series Lovecraft Country. It is based on his book of the same name, but Misha Green the creator took it to a whole new level! Since I have an English degree I have always been into TV shows where there is so much more to the story. Lost is one of my all-time favorite TV shows, except I don’t watch Season 6. My husband laughs at me when I say how much I love Lost and Lovecraft Country because I also say I am not a huge science fiction fan when it comes to movies or books.
What appealed to me with Lovecraft Country, the TV show, is that each episode told a different part of the story in different formats. There was scary horror, paranormal horror, time travel, war violence and so much more. Also I learned so much new stuff about black history, arts, and culture.
The Langston League put together a syllabi for each episode of the show. Lovecraft Country Syllabi They have gone into amazing research with each episode, The Seattle Public Library can connect you to many of the resources shared. If you just look a the syllabi from the first episode check out all the things you can get from SPL either physically or digitally.
Lovecraft Country is full of books being read, picked up and referred too. The first book that is being read in the series is A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tic’s uncle is a writer of travel guides for black people. The books were called The Green Book which you can learn the history of by reading Overground Railroad: The Green Book and the Roots of Black Travel in America by Candacy Taylor. Alexandre Dumas, who was a black author, (something I never learned in my English classes) book’s are mentioned throughout the show, including The Count of Monte Cristo. You can also watch James Baldwin’s film I am Not your Negro. In the first episode, one of James Baldwin’s speeches is overplayed during an emotional scene.
I hope you have as much fun as I have in digging deeper into the rich lessons that were taught in watching and rewatching Lovecraft Country.
~ Pam H.
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