THE GODS OF PEGANA is a rich tapestry of imaginative fantasy, one of the landmark collections of short stories from the early 20th century, and a tremendous influence on writers ranging from H.P. Lovecraft to Ursula K. LeGuin. "Dunsany was the second writer (William Morris in the 1880s being the first) fully to exploit the possibilities of . . . adventurous fantasy laid in imaginary lands, with gods, witches, spirits, and magic, like children\'s fairy tales but on a sophisticated adult level."