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For introduction purposes, we can divide his work in three main categories. Pick whichever sounds more appealing to you:
>the cthulhu mythos
Very loosely connected stories involving strange beings that some worship as deities. The core of the stories is that humans are small and insignificant in the cosmos, and we are subject to forces that are indifferent to our plights.
Good stories: the call of cthulhu, the dunwich horror, the haunter of the dark, the whisperer in the darkness, the color out of space, the shadow over innsmouth, at the mountains of madness
>dream cycle
Oneiric adventures with macabre undertones. Instead of making you realize how insignificant we are, the stories are more about sharing the sense of wonder and awe that Lovecraft himself had from his dreams or real life locations that impressed him so much. Much like the mythos, these stories are connected in various ways. And in fact they overlap with the mythos, but can be read separately.
stories: the silver key, the dream-quest of unknown kadath, the cats of ulthar, the other gods, the strange house in the mist.
>horror stories
Lovecraft has a bunch of works that aren't exactly related to either of the above categories (though they may contain a reference or two to them) but that still stand out as great horror stories.
to read: the music of erich zann, the thing at the doorstep, nyarlathotep, the picture in the house