Tales of Three Hemispheres is a collection of fantasy

Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...

 short stories by Lord Dunsany

Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron Dunsany

Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany was an Irish writer and dramatist, notable for his work, mostly in fantasy, published under the name Lord Dunsany...

. The first edition was published in Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

 by John W. Luce & Co. in November, 1919; the first British edition was published in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 by T. Fisher Unwin

T. Fisher Unwin

T. Fisher Unwin was the London publishing house owned by Thomas Fisher Unwin and founded by him in 1882.The latterly more famous Stanley Unwin started his career by coming to work in his uncle's firm...

 in June, 1920.

The collection's significance in the history of fantasy literature was recognized by its republication in a new edition by Owlswick Press in 1976, with illustrations by Tim Kirk

Tim Kirk

Tim Kirk is an American fan artist. He has been a senior designer at Tokyo DisneySea. Previously, he was an Imagineer for Walt Disney, and an illustrator for Hallmark Cards. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts with an emphasis in Commercial Art, and his Master’s degree in Illustration from...

 and a foreword by H. P. Lovecraft

H. P. Lovecraft

Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....

, actually a general article on Dunsany's work originally written by Lovecraft in 1922, but unpublished until it appeared in his posthumous Marginalia (Arkham House

Arkham House

Arkham House is a publishing house specializing in weird fiction founded in Sauk City, Wisconsin in 1939 by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei to preserve in hardcover the best fiction of H.P. Lovecraft. The company's name is derived from Lovecraft's fictional New England city, Arkham. Arkham House...

, 1944).

The book collects 14 short pieces by Dunsany; the last three, under the general heading "Beyond the Fields We Know," are related tales, as explained in the publisher's note preceding the first, "Idle Days on the Yann," which was previously published in the author's earlier collection A Dreamer's Tales

A Dreamer's Tales

A Dreamer's Tales is the fifth book by Irish fantasy writer Lord Dunsany, considered a major influence on the work of J. R. R. Tolkien, H. P. Lovecraft, Ursula K. Le Guin and others. It was first published in hardcover by George Allen & Sons in September, 1910, and has been reprinted a number of...

, but reprinted in the current one owing to the relationship.

Contents

• "Foreword: Lord Dunsany and His Work" by H. P. Lovecraft
  H. P. Lovecraft
  Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
  
  (1976 edition only)
• "The Last Dream of Bwona Khubla"
• "How the Office of Postman Fell Vacant in Otford-under-the-Wold"
• "The Prayer of Boob Aheera"
• "East and West"
• "A Pretty Quarrel"
• "How the Gods Avenged Meoul Ki Ning"
• "The Gift of the Gods"
• "The Sack of Emeralds"
• "The Old Brown Coat"
• "An Archive of the Older Mysteries"
• "A City of Wonder"
• Beyond the Fields We Know
• "Publisher's Note"
• "First Tale: Idle Days on the Yann"
• "Second Tale: A Shop in Go-By Street"
• "Third Tale: The Avenger of Perdóndaris"