Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett (1878–1957), eighteenth baron of Dunsany, commonly known as Lord Dunsany , was an Anglo-Irish author who published more than 80 books during his lifetime, including hundreds of short stories, as well as plays, novels, and essays. In 1927, he published his fourth novel, The Blessing of Pan , a bewitching pastoral fantasy of mythic grandeur in which the quiet English village of Wolding slowly succumbs, one by one, to an ancient allure stirred by the mysterious music of young Tommy Duffin’s reed pipes. As Reverend Elderick Anwrel watches his flock slowly drift into fevered abandon, the line between innocent whimsy and dark seduction blurs, revealing a spiritual conflict far deeper than he first imagined: this isn’t just a descent into pagan revelry — it’s a metaphysical siege — and the final soul claimed may be the one sworn to resist it. "It is, on the surface, all so safe and ordinary, and yet the most matter-of-fact reader will feel himself captivated by the wooing spell of Pan from the slopes above the English village." - The Fortnightly Review "An utterly delightful and whimsical piece of work." -Herbet Hitchen, The Christian Register "Lord Dunsany, in The Blessing of Pan , writes a fantasy on nature worship that is delicately beautiful. It is a fairy story enacted in a modern setting with enough reality to temper the glow of its flaming romanticism." - America: A Catholic Review of the Week "Quite unusual expectations of pleasure are aroused by this book . . . as fantastic and dreamlike as one could wish." - The Daily Telegraph " The Blessing of Pan is vintage Dunsany, expressing in musical language his love of uncontaminated nature, his hatred of modern business and technology, his contempt for Christianity, and his fondness for forgotten gods." -E. F. Bleiler, Supernatural Fiction Writers "It is at once an indictment of our mechanical era and a plea for a return to the ancient, slumbering memories of Nature which lie buried in all of us." -John Gerard, The Saturday Review "A book of great charm, gives much insight into the psychology of the temperament that seeks communion with the old Gods, or, in the words of the Freudians, to break down the barrier of the censor and bring the subconscious self to the surface." - The Occult Review "A remarkable book . . . glows with a gentle reality, mixed with humor which is a splendid element in a book as much a fairy tale as this one is." - The New York Times