The Moon Pool

By A. Merritt

The pioneering bestselling classic by the father of pulp science fiction, and the literary inspiration for ABC's LOST, now back in print and featuring a new introduction by Lynette Porter.

Dr. Walter T. Goodwin is sailing back to New York after a botanical expedition to the South Seas when he meets his old friend, Dr. David Throckmartin. The heartbroken Throckmartin relates a haunting tale to Dr. Goodwin-a tale of a tropical island and a strange stone door through which a hypnotic otherworldly light shines. Throckmartin tells of how the light had captured his companions and of his own powerlessness to stop it.

When his friend disappears, Dr. Goodwin sets out to find the source of the mysterious moonlight. Little does he realize how formidable a foe he has pitted himself against. First published in 1918, The Moon Pool is commonly considered to be the inspiration of the ABC series LOST.

Now, Overlook is pleased to introduce this classic of science fiction. Lynnette Porter, Ph.D., bestselling author of Unlocking the Meaning of Lost, has provided an all-new introduction.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Group
• Release date: Dec 30, 2008
• ISBN: 9781468304459

A. Merritt

A. Merritt (1884-1943) was an American editor and fantastic fiction writer. Born Abraham Grace Merritt in Beverly, New Jersey, he moved with his family to Philadelphia in 1894. Merritt worked as a reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer before joining the staff of The American Weekly as assistant editor in 1912. On the side, Merritt—one of the highest paid journalists of his time—found success as writer of popular fantasy tales. He had a run of successful stories and serial novels that appeared in Weird Tales, Science and Invention, and Argosy, including The Moon Pool (1918), The Metal Monster (1920), and Dwellers in the Mirage (1932). Merritt was a direct influence on such writers as H. P. Lovecraft and Richard Shaver and was recognized for his achievements as a 1999 inductee to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.

Reviews for The Moon Pool

[datrappert · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When a book has a chapter titled "Yolara, Priestess of the Shining One", it isn't generally a good sign. When it crams three or more adjectives into almost every sentence and delights in words like "supernal", you may well be wary. But, in the case of THE MOON POOL, you would be mistaken. In the hands of A. Merritt, you don't have time to dwell on stuff like that. Instead you are held in thrall by a strange narrative that combines Edgar Rice Burroughs' science fiction, a bit of Robert E. Howard, and a dash of H.P. Lovecraft. But even in such company, Merritt achieves an effect quite his own. Despite the florid passages, of which there are many, he still succeeds in doing more showing than telling. Your brain will strain at the images he fills it with of a strange world below the surface of a Pacific Island, inhabited by an ancient race and by a creation gone terribly wrong--the Shining One.The heroes are a scientist, who has come to the island to discover the facts behind the strange tale told him by an old friend, who fell victim to the Shining One, losing his wife and the other members of his exploration party in the process. Luckily, the doctor happens upon a downed Irish-American Royal Air Force fighter pilot calmly floating on the wreckage of his sea plane. Together with a giant Norseman who has lost his wife and child to the Shining One, they proceed to the underworld to see what they can do about it.Guess what? They meet some beautiful women, though one of them is only beautiful on the outside. The men, however, tend to be dwarves and gigantic frogs. You just have to read it, believe me.Even if you have read adventure books like this from the 1920s and 1930s, you will be grandly entertained by the many twists in this story, but mainly by the gallantry of the characters Merritt presents and the magical, mystical, colorful world they inhabit. You might even learn something. I thought I was somewhat educated, but I had never heard of the incredible ruins the Pacific (now part of the Federated States of Micronesia) where the story begins. Though Merritt can't avoid using the conventions and cliches of this type of story in terms of language, characterization, and plotting, he also rises far above them to present a tale that you won't soon forget. (Although the Irishman's ravings about leprechauns and other Irish beings gets more than a little old after a while.) And after all the build up, the book doesn't disappoint in the end, either, leaving us with a conclusive but poignant finale.

[shimmin_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A fun example of the hollow earth subgenre. It's an exploratory adventure for the most part, including the almost obligatory warring powers, whose struggle the surface-dwellers are compelled to join. This story is more weird tale than fantasy, and some elements are almost Lovecraftian. In other ways it reminds me of the John Carter works of Edgar Rice Burroughs. There's a scientific tone throughout, and sadly at times it gets quite infodumpy. There's a particular dragging section near the end, where the pacing is badly disrupted by a sudden urge to give the backstory to the setting, which is really not necessary. Sadly the climax of the book felt limp compared to the rest. It's supposed to be a thrilling final battle, but the focus switches dramatically: from the scientific and calculation observations of the bulk of the story, we are suddenly expected to accept a resolution based mystical mutterings and the Overwhelming Power of Love. It's all a bit Harry Potter. There's nothing intrinsically wrong with mysticism or the importance of emotion, but if you want that to be the resolution, you need to set it up early on, not suddenly bait and switch. The ending, with our protagonist mysteriously returned and cut off from the hollow earth, is a heavy cliche. On the whole, though, an enjoyable read.Also, Goodwin has such a crush on Larry. Admit it, man.

[noirseanf · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Lost Race, short story involving Throckmartin is often described as the best part.

[jms001 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The only reason I decided to read this book was because of its ties to one of my favorite tv shows, LOST. Although there are a few, and I mean very few, similarities, I certainly don't think it's enough to warrant a read. Unless you're a hardcore fan of the fantasy genre, you can go ahead and skip this.

I thought that the characters in this story were much too stereotyped. There's the scientific doctor who tries to find reason in everything, only to realize in the end that not everything has reason. There's the macho guy who scoffs in the face of danger, but after falling in love with a woman, his heart melts and he fights with the power of love. There's the burly sailor who has lost everything, and will fight to the death to get at what he wants. There's even the traitorous mad Russian scientist! And don't get me started on all the female characters who are driven by emotion, and only emotion. Granted, this book was written in 1919 in a time where civil rights was only starting to develop and America was just fresh from WWI.

The plot does a little better than characters. Being a fantasy, it takes you on a wild adventure to a mysterious island, a world full of creatures and dwarves and even a monster, and ends with a mighty battle. But if you take a closer look at the intricacies of the plot, you can see that he goes into more detail about the fanciful designs of these characters, whether it be their powers of invisibility or turning gravity upside down. Although I can't say that he set any sort of literary precedent, Merritt at least contributed a hefty sum to the fantasy genre.

When it comes to the narration of the story, we are to follow in the footsteps of the main protagonist, Dr. Goodwin (more LOST references?) Being a doctor, he offers to his readers a pseudo-scientific explanation for most, if not all, of the weird going-ons in this world beneath the Earth. This is where I believe the story shines because of the fact that it grounds both the reader and the characters: We shouldn't be taking everything and anything we see at face value, but maybe put some thought before we pass judgment on something. Just like Goodwin tries to be honest and frank about his own opinions, so must we.

[cjyurkanin · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

What in the world did I just read? A strange tale of dwarves, gods, Irishmen, and islands written nearly 100 years ago which, as it turns out, was a leading influence in the storyline of the TV show LOST. The strength of the work lies in its writing, with all of the flourishes and verbosity so common in the post-Victorian era in which it was penned. The weakness of it, ironically, lies also in its writing. Far too many instances dragged on and on and on and on... At so many points in reading this, I longed to have had Hemingway take an axe to it. For a TYPICAL example, Merrit writes this in describing a foliaged vista:

"Forests of tree-high mosses spangled over with blooms of every conceivable shape and colour; cataracts and clusters, avalanches and nets of blossoms in pastels, in dulled metallics, in gorgeous flamboyant hues; some of them phosphorescent, and shining like living jewels; some sparkling as though with dust of opals, of saphires, of rubies and topazes and emeralds; thickets of convolvuli like the trumpets of the seven archangels of Mara, king of illusion, which are shaped from the bows of splendours arching his highest heaven!"

Yes, he said "convolvuli" and yes, he ended it with an exclamation point. I think maybe Hemingway might have put it thusly: "It was covered in flowers."

I think you get the point. It is what it is. It's long. The story is not bad. It is still in print after a century and I have yet to write anything but silly reviews. 2.5 stars, but closer to 3 than 2.

[caragen87 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Reading this story-- you have to remember that Merritt wrote this at the turn of the Century-- The Previous One! This is a Pre WWII story with all the sensibilities of that time. But you hear the echoes of Lovecraft. Stock characters and predictable-- but for the mature reader an enjoyable rainy afternoon read!