1gwendetenebre
"The Hungry House" by Robert Bloch
Discussion begins June 3, 2026
First published in the April 1951 issue of Imagination.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
hhttps://isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?63391
SELECTED PRINT VERSIONS
Pleasant Dreams—Nightmares
The Best of Robert Bloch
Masterpieces of Terror and the Supernatural
The Weird: A Compendium of Strange and Dark Stories
ONLINE VERSIONS
No online audio versions found to date.
ONLINE AUDIO VERSIONS
No online audio versions found to date.
MISCELLANY
https://www.robertbloch.net/
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0088645/
https://crimereads.com/robert-bloch-evolution/
https://www.robertbloch.net/heart-of-a-small-boy-interview.html
https://tinyurl.com/yckxv3fs
Discussion begins June 3, 2026
First published in the April 1951 issue of Imagination.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
hhttps://isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?63391
SELECTED PRINT VERSIONS
Pleasant Dreams—Nightmares
The Best of Robert Bloch
Masterpieces of Terror and the Supernatural
The Weird: A Compendium of Strange and Dark Stories
ONLINE VERSIONS
No online audio versions found to date.
ONLINE AUDIO VERSIONS
No online audio versions found to date.
MISCELLANY
https://www.robertbloch.net/
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0088645/
https://crimereads.com/robert-bloch-evolution/
https://www.robertbloch.net/heart-of-a-small-boy-interview.html
https://tinyurl.com/yckxv3fs
5RandyStafford
The stylistic choice of never assigning a proper noun to the "he" or "she" of the first paragraph was interesting. I'm uncertain why Bloch did it. Perhaps to increase reader identification?
I also liked that he introduced the third character, the "it", in the second paragraph.
It's not exactly a haunted house story in the sense of there's not a single entity behind it but a growing, composite one. In a sense, as per the husband's whimsical thoughts after seeing the closet of mirrors, it is a house of vampires.
From an historical perspective, I found it curious that Laura, who died before the 1920s and born sometime in the 1860s, is described as a "harridan" when she dies. Such have been the real and perceived changes in "aging" since 1951.
I also appreciated that Bloch cut down on his frequent humor and that he frequently and realistically showed the couple unable to discuss their fears with each other, going about as brittle glass.
I also liked that he introduced the third character, the "it", in the second paragraph.
It's not exactly a haunted house story in the sense of there's not a single entity behind it but a growing, composite one. In a sense, as per the husband's whimsical thoughts after seeing the closet of mirrors, it is a house of vampires.
From an historical perspective, I found it curious that Laura, who died before the 1920s and born sometime in the 1860s, is described as a "harridan" when she dies. Such have been the real and perceived changes in "aging" since 1951.
I also appreciated that Bloch cut down on his frequent humor and that he frequently and realistically showed the couple unable to discuss their fears with each other, going about as brittle glass.
6AndreasJ
I too wondered why the protagonist couple never got names. It did make for a nice triad of "he", "she", and "it", though, which perhaps was reason enough.
I wondered why "it" turned predatory in death; Laura doesn't seem to have been either literally or metaphorically such in life.
I didn't reflect on it when reading, but in retrospect Hacker seemed to know an awful lot of Laura's private thoughts when he told her story.
The protagonist couple's difficulties talking to each other about their weird experiences rang true, yes. On the whole I thought the story quite good.
I wondered why "it" turned predatory in death; Laura doesn't seem to have been either literally or metaphorically such in life.
I didn't reflect on it when reading, but in retrospect Hacker seemed to know an awful lot of Laura's private thoughts when he told her story.
The protagonist couple's difficulties talking to each other about their weird experiences rang true, yes. On the whole I thought the story quite good.
