Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Book Review: Haunted Stuff

Title--Haunted Stuff: Demonic Dolls, Screaming Skulls, & Other Creepy Collectibles
Author--Stacey Graham
Published--2014 by Llewellyn Publications

Even with the series finale of Haunted Collector well past us, America still seems to have a passion for haunted, creepy, and cursed objects!  If you're one of those people, or simply love a collection of ghost stories, then this book is a great choice.

Starting out with a primer on the best places to obtain 'haunted' items, the author then goes into the collection of stories from haunted and cursed objects of every size and shape.  Obviously, there's a chapter on dolls and England's famed Screaming Skulls, but you'll also find tales of cursed boats, spooky snow globes, and photographs where the subjects' lips move as if in silent speech.

If you're looking for a hardcore scientific tome with groundbreaking theories as to how and why certain objects literally retain a piece of their former owners, this might not be the best choice.  However, if you're looking for a simple explanation of why we THINK objects may carry attachments, followed by plenty of awesome examples, then definitely check it out.  I am already familiar with many of the stories mentioned in here, but there were a couple that were completely new to me and all of them were concise and to the point, maintaining a pleasant balance between facts and entertainment.

I especially appreciated the Appendix, which was a collection of how are ancestors and those in other parts of the world dealt with their ghost problems through architecture, nature, and well...some pretty interesting improvisation!  The writing was decent enough, although it wasn't completely free of small editing errors.  The author seems adequately  knowledgeable on the subject, citing over 20 years of paranormal investigation experience, and was able to add her own voice to the writing style. Overall, a really fun and quick read to chase away the winter blues!



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