Newcastle Forgotten Fantasy Library

The Glittering Plain by William Morris, Newcastle Publishing Company, 1973

The Newcastle Forgotten Fantasy Library was a series of trade paperback books published by the Newcastle Publishing Company between 1973 and 1980. Presumably under the inspiration of the earlier example set by the Ballantine Adult Fantasy series, the series reissued a number of works of fantasy literature that had largely been forgotten, being out of print or otherwise not easily available in the United States, in durable, illustrated trade paperback form with new introductions. For a number of works the Library’s editions constituted the first U.S. or first paperback edition. Together with the earlier series from Ballantine Books, it contributed to the renaissance of interest in the fantasy genre of the 1970s.

The Library was produced under the editorship of Robert Reginald and Douglas Menville, editors of Forgotten Fantasy magazine, who were also responsible for several other similar series from other publishers. It included works by authors such as William Morris, H. Rider Haggard, Lord Dunsany, and Leslie Barringer, among others. Projected to include a total of twenty-six fantasy classics, the Library ultimately released only twenty-four. Possibly the remaining two are represented by two non-fantasy books Newcastle ultimately published without the series designation, the first two Dr. Nikola novels by Guy Boothby: Enter, Dr. Nikola, and Dr. Nikola Returns.

The covers for the first eight books were generic. The ninth book onward featured more imaginative, wrap around art, and most of the first eight were later reissued in this style.

The Series

1. The Glittering Plain, William Morris (Sep. 1973)
2. The Saga of Eric Brighteyes, H. Rider Haggard (Mar. 1974)
3. The Food of Death: Fifty-One Tales, Lord Dunsany (Sep. 1974)
4. The Haunted Woman, David Lindsay (Mar. 1975)
5. Aladore, Sir Henry Newbolt (Sep. 1975)
6. She and Allan, H. Rider Haggard (Sep. 1975)
7. Gerfalcon, Leslie Barringer (Mar. 1976)
8. Golden Wings and Other Stories, William Morris (Mar. 1976)
9. Joris of the Rock, Leslie Barringer (Sep. 1976)
10. Heart of the World, H. Rider Haggard (Sep. 1976)
11. The Wonderful Adventures of Phra the Phoenician, Edwin Lester Arnold (Apr. 1977)
12. Child Christopher and Goldilind the Fair, William Morris (Apr. 1977)
13. Shy Leopardess, Leslie Barringer (Oct. 1977)
14. Ayesha: the Return of She, H. Rider Haggard (Oct. 1977)
15. The Fates of the Princes of Dyfed, Kenneth Morris (Apr. 1978)
16. The House of the Wolfings, William Morris (Apr. 1978)
17. Under the Sunset, Bram Stoker (Oct. 1978)
18. Allan Quatermain, H. Rider Haggard (Oct. 1978)
19. The Roots of the Mountains, William Morris (Apr. 1979)
20. Nada the Lily, H. Rider Haggard (Apr. 1979)
21. Jaufry the Knight and the Fair Brunissende, translated by Alfred Elwes (Oct. 1979)
22. The Spirit of Bambatse, H. Rider Haggard (Oct. 1979)
23. When the Birds Fly South, Stanton A. Coblentz (Apr. 1980)
24. Allan's Wife, H. Rider Haggard (Oct. 1980)

External links

• The Haunted Bibliophile's page on the Forgotten Fantasy Library