The Little Encyclopedia of Enchanted Woodland Creatures: An A-to-Z Guide to Mythical Beings of the Forest by Jason Lancaster

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

I picked this one up because I had rather enjoyed The Little Encyclopedia of Fairies:  An A-to-Z Guide to Fae Magic.  It had brief entries but the worldwide focus was interesting. Enchanted Woodland Creatures has equally brief entries and a worldwide focus but the choices for inclusion seem a bit… odd.  I think it’s the word “enchanted” in the main title. 

You see, there are entries for Bigfoot, the Jersey Devil, and even Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox which I don’t really see as being “enchanted.” Folkloric, yes.  Enchanted, no.  The same can be said of several other entries. The subtitle Mythical Beings of the Forest is more accurate, but there's also an entry for a real bird though a bit of folklore connected with it is included. 

That said, there are some interesting entries for both mythological creatures as well as cryptids.  The entries are very brief, and some are accompanied by illustrations by Kate Forrester. I like her style and it’s worth looking through the book for those alone.  Only the cover is in color; the rest are black and white, and some look as they might be woodcuts or else pen and ink.  I thought they were charming.  In fact, I liked them well enough that I searched for the artist online and found she’s done a number of book covers. She is now on my radar as an artist I admire.

The limited information given in the entries was interesting, and I did like the long list of sources at the end.  The entries are well written.  This is a fun browsing book, despite the sometimes perplexing choices.

I did enjoy it, even if I didn’t fit it into a Book Bingo square.

Eerie Legends: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Creepy Creatures, the Paranormal, and Folklore from Around the World by Ricardo Diseno

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

Cryptids are hot!  It seems that creatures and critters are showing up everywhere, not just in the deep woods.  There’s even a children’s board book series about some young versions, and I am sorry I didn’t snap up that copy of Mothman Baby when I saw it at the store. I was later informed that there are books featuring Yeti Baby, Bigfoot Baby, Nessie Baby, and more. 

I have become more intrigued by cryptids of late due to seeing so many images of them, mostly locally.  When this book came in, the illustrations reminded me of some of the artwork I’ve seen at HollerHouse, both in use of color and technique, so of course I had to check it out.

As the title indicates, the book is about more than just cryptids.  Entries include the Betty and Barney Hill UFO Abduction, Slender Man, the Enfield Poltergeist, and the Catacombs of Paris.  Each topic has its own section accompanied by eye-catching illustrations and, in some cases, a story or poem.  I admit I was disappointed that the Flatwoods Monster wasn’t included, but there were still plenty of interesting and informative entries.  Naturally, I read the ones I was most intrigued by first, then moved on to some of the others.

The text describing each entry is somewhat brief, so there aren’t a lot of details.  I do like that the author sometimes offers explanations or a debunking (that classic photo of Nessie, now widely accepted as a hoax, for example) and the interesting assortment of topics, some of which I’d never heard of before.  “The Island of the Dolls” is one such:  located near Mexico City, there hundreds of dolls in various conditions are on display, many hanging from trees.

Accompanying the informational text is a usually short, somewhat creepy vignette about the entry.  Personally, I didn’t find that this added a lot; I would have preferred more information rather than fiction, but that’s just me.

The artwork is striking.  While not to everyone’s taste, I enjoyed the vibrant and a bit off-the-wall take on some of the stories.

While this might not be the first place I’d go to learn about a particular creature or place, it’s certainly an enjoyable browsing book. 

Cryptids in Fiction

 

Round up by Jeanne

Sometimes in fiction, you just want to have a different monster, something other than a vampire or werewolf or ghosts, superstars though they are.  While some authors want to create their own creatures, others enjoy taking a lesser known mystery beast and putting their own spin on it. Here are some novels that do just that:

Morgan Carter, amateur cryptozoologist, is often called on to investigate strange happenings, which may or may not involve creatures unknown to science.  In the first book in Annelise Ryan's  Monster Hunter series, A Death in Door County, bodies are turning up on the shores of Lake Michigan with strange bite marks. Is there something in the water? Morgan also owns the Odds and Ends bookstore which has some things that are odder than usual—like a mummified Gold Rush miner.

There’s definitely something in the water in Steve Alten’s book The Meg. This was the first of several books he’s written featuring a megalodon shark and was the basis for the movie of the same name.  He’s also written another series, The Loch, in which a man seeks to unravel the mysteries of a certain famous Scottish lake. Fast paced and suspenseful, these are for those who love creature features.  

In Jessica Johns’ debut novel Bad Cree, a young Native woman named Mackenzie is tormented by bad dreams after the deaths of two family members. Is it just grief—or is there something lurking? She knows she will have to return home for help in this haunting tale of generational trauma.

Reality show dating is the premise for Samantha Allen’s novel, Patricia Wants to Cuddle. While contestants vie for the attentions of a tech company entrepreneur on a deserted island, there are soon hints the island might not have been quite as deserted as they thought. Kristin reviewed this book here.  

American socialite Maddie, her husband Ellis, and friend Hank travel to Scotland to try to find the Loch Ness Monster which Ellis’ father claimed to have photographed some years ago.   It’s 1945, and as Maddie points out, it’s probably not the best time to be traveling a sea crawling with U boats.  At the Water’s Edge by Sara Gruen is a historical novel with flawed characters, a romantic triangle, and possibly a creature.

Creature X  Mystery series by J.J. Dupuis begins with Roanoke Ridge when science blogger and cryptid skeptic Laura Reagan goes to Oregon to investigate the disappearance of her former mentor.  The area where he vanished is the site of a Big Foot Festival and sightings in the area have been on the rise.   These are well done mysteries that explore both the science and myth of cryptids in an entertaining fashion.   Read Jeanne's full review of Lake Crescent here.

Bittersweet in the Hollow by Kate Pearsall is a debut novel set in West Virginia.  The women in Linden’s family are known to have unusual abilities; Linden is able to taste emotions.  More than that, she’s known as the girl who went missing the night of the Moth Winged Man festival, only to be found hours later with no memory of what happened to her.  When another girl disappears at the same festival and only to be found dead, pressure mounts on Linden to remember. All she knows is that there is definitely something in the woods.   This is an engaging fantasy novel with a sequel due out in 2025. Jeanne’s full review of this book is here.  

Cryptids!

 

So what exactly is a cryptid?  It’s a creature unknown to science but rumored to exist.  Some of the most famous are Bigfoot aka Sasquatch aka the Yeti, the Loch Ness Monster, and Mothman, but there are many others.  While stories about them have been around for years, they seem to be enjoying a resurgence recently in books, movies, TV shows, and in art—just check out some of the offerings in local craft shops.  In fact, HollerHouse in downtown Bristol is having an exhibition, The Cryptozoologist, starting June 7, 2024.

We all thought this was such a fun idea that we put up a book display. Okay, so Andrew did all the work. Anyway, if we have piqued your interest, here are some of the non-fiction books we suggest:

The West Virginia Book of Monsters by George Dudding and John Dudding note that West Virginia is known for “punching above its weight” in several areas and cryptids is a prime example.  West Virginia is home to the iconic Mothman and a personal new favorite, the Flatwoods Monster.   But wait, there’s more! In this book you will also learn about the Grafton Monster, the Wampus Cat, and the Snallygaster, just to name a few.

Chasing American Monsters by Jason Offutt covers the fifty states in alphabetical order, giving brief reports on some of the most notable creatures spied there.  This is a good choice if you are only interested in cryptids in particular states.  The book claims more than 250 beasts are described within, and the author even tells us the one that started his lifelong fascination:  Momo, the Missouri Monster, who is a Bigfoot like creature.

The United States of Cryptids: A Tour of American Myths and Monsters by J.W. Ocker is a sea to shining sea tour of creatures and beings.  Ocker begins in the Northeast and heads west, visiting not only the iconic creatures but the lesser known ones as well. This is a well-written, very entertaining guide with a sense of humor.  As Ocker explains, most of those who love crypids “love the idea of them; we love the stories.  And whatever you may think about cryptids, the stories are true.”  In other words, whether or not the creatures are real, the stories are—and that’s what attracts us. He goes on to say that believing in cryptids helps us to believe the world still holds mysteries and wonder. So he’s ready to show us the Lizard Man, the Tennessee Terror, the Batsquatch, the Jackalope, and, yes, the Woodbooger!

The Unidentified: Mythical Monsters, Alien Encounters, and Our Obsession with the Unexplained by Colin Dickey

 

 Reviewed by Jeanne

People love a mystery.  Not just crime stories, but anything that seems inexplicable: ghosts, UFOs, Moth Man, and so forth.  Dickey examines some of these beliefs but with less intent on disproving (or proving!) than wondering why we are so eager to believe.  He traces the upswing in part back to the Enlightenment, when people began to examine the world around them for explanations for phenomena, explanations that didn’t involve supernatural forces.  Another factor, he believes, was that exploration brought one group of people into contact with others who didn’t share the same cultural norms and who lived in strange places with bizarre creatures who didn’t fit in with anything Europeans knew.  Just read some of the tales spun by early explorers of the “New World” for examples as to how exaggeration and misunderstanding gave rise to any number of fantastical creatures and landscapes.

It seems people are hardwired to want to believe in something, whether it is gods, trolls, or Big Foot.  There’s a need for a sense of wonder.  It’s also a way of handling angst and anxiety:  to feel there is something out there, something just beyond our senses. He points out that these unknown things, these cryptids, tend to occupy “marginal locations on the edge of the known world.”  Forests, deserts, high mountains, all these places that are outside of civilization, all frontiers, transitions, and crossing places.

With this in mind, Dickey tells the stories of some of our better known creatures and describes how the culture deals with them.  Many involve beings from the mythology of other cultures, but changed to fit the needs of a different society. In one culture, for example, this “monster” may serve to maintain social order, but is seen as an unpredictable, primitive force for another—something unnatural and fearsome.

I picked this up because of all the positive reviews and discovered they are well deserved. It’s not just the dispassionate contemplation of these stories but the way Dickey makes his case.  Dickey makes interesting arguments for the way that humans process information, always anxious to form pattern, to find reasons for things, which sometimes manifests itself in becoming convinced of conspiracy theories or unproven and unprovable concepts.  He also addresses why people cling to these beliefs. There have been many groups who believed in something, such as the end of the world on a precise date, who still believe after the event fails to happen.  In fact, some become even more entrenched.

It's not that Dickey believes that scientists are always triumphant; they can be led astray as well as anyone and refuse to give up pet theories.

I found myself marking (with post-it notes, not ink!) passage after passage that I wanted to share. He writes well and persuasively, but doesn’t try to force conclusions on the reader.  There is room for doubt on both sides.  It is an amazing universe, too amazing to wrap up neatly in any sort of box, be it total science or total belief. He asks that we keep open minds, which includes being flexible when faced with new information.  Instead of trying to force new facts to fit old theories, we should see where these new facts lead us.

For me, this is a very readable, very entertaining book with a lot to say about human nature.  It’s thought-provoking in the best sense of the term.

 

The book also inspired our "Creatures and Cryptids" display.

 

Monsters and Mythical Creatures from Around the World by Heather Frigiola

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

I picked this book up with the intention of just glancing through it but became intrigued. Frigiola starts from various cultural areas instead of individual countries, and briefly explores some of the creatures from those areas.  Greek and Roman myths occupy their own chapter because of the strong influence these have had on Western civilization, but they didn’t dominate the book. 

While in most cases the author looked at ancient legends, a few creatures of more modern vintage did show up, such as the Mothman, Jersey Devil, and the jackalope.  Entries tend to have some history, a description and variations, and sometimes a brief retelling of a story about the creature.  I especially liked that Frigiola noted how some descriptions changed after conditions in the area changed, whether from conquest or migration. 

Some creatures are not at all well known outside of their homeland while others have international reputations.  There are also comparisons between creatures who have superficial similarities:  the Russian Firebird is compared to the legends about the phoenix ; the Yeti, Yowie, and Sasquatch are contrasted as are the Egyptian and Greek versions of the Sphinx.  I had heard of the Australian bunyip but not the yara-ma-yha-who which draws blood out of its victims by way of suckers on its fingertips and toes.  Parents advise children to play dead if attacked as the creature loses interest if it believes the victim is dead.

The entries are certainly not comprehensive and don’t pretend to be.  They’re short essays designed to whet the appetite and to give the reader some idea of the amazing variety of the world’s mythical beasts and beings.  There are several I want to follow up on.

I also like that the author doesn’t present each entry as if this is the last word.  For example, under Latin America’s “Were-jaguar,” it’s explained that the term is used by archaeologists and researchers who aren’t really sure what it meant in the culture.  It could have been an object of worship or an ancestral totem; it could represent a cryptid or a shapeshifter.  The text also makes clear that shapeshifting can mean something different than a typical Western European interpretation. 

The illustrations are simple but effective.  I would have enjoyed seeing more artistic interpretations (or in some cases photos of native artwork) but given the sometimes greatly divergent descriptions of some of the creatures a full representation would have taken up several volumes. 

A simple index ups the value and maps make clear which geographic area is being referenced.

I think this is a nifty little book and was certainly worth my time.

The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey

Reviewed by Ambrea

Written from the perspective of William Henry, a young orphan who has found himself under the curious care of Dr. Pellinore Walthrop, The Monstrumologist recounts the childhood memories of Will Henry as he becomes enveloped by his guardian’s macabre occupation.  For in the small town of New Jerusalem, a frightening creature has arisen from the depths of the earth to devour human flesh.  Called “anthropophagi,” these creatures have a nightmarish appearance and a terrifying appetite—and only one man can successfully hunt them and stop them.

But that begs the question of which is more fiendish:  the monster, or the man who hunts them?

Rick Yancey’s novel is a finely detailed and ripe with vivid language, stunning characters, and wonderful scenes that depict an astonishing—if horrifying—story.  Yancey manages to combine all the right elements of horror to create a thrilling story that kept me glued to the edge of my seat; however, it remains mild enough that it didn’t give me nightmares for weeks on end.  (I’m looking at you, Stephen King.)

I loved reading Will Henry’s account.  For such a young man, he’s thoughtful and insightful, and he’s very much a sympathetic character.  His story is an intriguing one, and I was fascinated to learn more about his life and his—well, I wouldn’t call them “adventures.”  They’re nightmarish enough to be called “ordeals,” ones that will change him in unexpected and increasingly tragic ways.

One of the things I really liked about The Monstrumologist was Yancey’s tendency to focus on forgotten or little-known monsters, or, better yet, “cryptids”—creatures that are rumored to exist—like the anthropophagi, or the wendigo, or Mongolian death worm.  I like fantasy novels and I’m always curious about unusual folklore, monsters or deities, so it was interesting to read about things that had never crossed my path.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading The Monstrumologist.  It has its drawbacks:  gore, danger, monsters—the stuff of nightmares.  But it’s an enjoyable book and I really liked the narrator.  I realize he’s unreliable, in that I know he’s missing information or he’s not always telling the full truth; however, he provides a unique perspective on the people and the creatures, namely the monstrumologists and the monsters they study.  I highly recommend diving into it if you’re looking for something a little spookier.

The series continues with three more novels:

Curse of the Wendigo

The Isle of Blood

The Final Descent