The Dunwich Horror
This story has to be one of Lovecraft's most criticized. And
while I admit that it is definitely NOT one of his best, it is
a rather fun story. In other words, it's something of a guilty
pleasure. It falls short of his other stories because of main
reason: Its structure. This is a very non-Lovecraftian
story. The Dunwich Horror is essentially a bad-guy vs. good-guy type of
tale... exactly the kind that Lovecraft so heavily criticized.
Strangely enough, this story has become one of his most
popular and most commonly read. This is probably because
today's readers find this less mentally demanding than his other
work. This tale, about a farmer who makes his wife mate
with an Elder God of some sorts, has one saving grace,
and that is its monsters. The descriptions of Wilbur
Whately as he grows from goat-faced child to demonic horror
are quite creepy, and Wilbur's twin brother is described in
a pretty horrific manner. Although the main character is one
of the hero types that Lovecraft always despised, the story
is bareable, if not great.