Holiday Gift Guide: BOOKS for a Halloween Addict 2011
by admin on Dec.16, 2011, under Syndicated from the Web
Reposted from Halloween Addict | Go to Original Post
To me, the holidays are a time to slow down and take a breather.
Like running a marathon, crossing December 24th is akin to crossing the finish line and taking a moment to rest from a year’s hard run.
Christmas Day usually finds me unwrapping a new book, throwing some wood on the fire, shutting off the TV and delving in to page after page of quiet wonder.
Sometimes that book comes in the “coffee table” variety: oversized, hardcovers with tons of glossy photos to pore over. Other-times, it’s solid print on a genre dear to me: things that go bump in the night. Nothing like giving yourself a chill while the fireplace crackles.
Following are ten tomes that run the gamut from collections, to kids books, to coffee-table varieties.
All would be perfect for the Halloween Addict in your life, perhaps even yourself…
1) HALLOWEEN
As I’ve mentioned in the past, one of my favorite books is the Halloween-themed compendium October Dreams.
As that book is long out-of-print, thank the Great Pumpkin there are publishers who still believe in a solid Halloween-themed short-story collection from time to time.
Released this year, and titled simply Halloween, the book overlaps some of October Dreams‘ titles slightly (like Ray Bradbury’s classic The October Game and Thomas Liggotti’s Conversations in a Dead Language) and even some authors (William F. Nolan, Bradbury) but still manages to bring some new stuff to the collection to warrant a purchase.
Only $10 and available through Amazon HERE.
2) THE HALLOWEEN KID
For a kid or a kid at heart, Rhode Montijo’s tale of a cowboy-dressed kid who has to round up the monsters in town is drawn in a vintage style with a classic color scheme of black, orange and cream.
Fans of a classic Halloween look will love flipping through the pages and kids will love the fun bedtime story.
Click HERE for the Amazon link.
3) MAD MONSTER PARTY
If you’re a fan of holiday-time Rankin-Bass stop motion (and who isn’t?), then you’re probably also a fan of the pseudo-Halloween RB special Mad Monster Party.
Well the Rankin-Bass historian, Rick Goldschmidt, has released this tome which is supposed to give lots of behind the scenes info, photos and more.
Downside: it’s not available ’til December 25th.
But, hey, who doesn’t like getting gifts AFTER Christmas?
Click HERE for the Amazon link to pre-order.
4) TRICK ‘R TREAT: TALES OF MAYHEM, MYSTERY AND MICHIEF
You may cry “CHEATER!” But wait, listen:
Sure I’ve mentioned this in the past (see HERE), but I finally acquired a copy this past October and realize that it’s so much more than I originally thought.
I thought the book was a typical film-companion “coffee-table book.” But oh no. Not at all.
Though the book is full of info on the making of, what I consider to be, the quintessential Halloween movie, Trick ‘r Treat. It’s also a tribute to the Halloween holiday in general.
There’s a quick write-up on the origin of the term “trick or treat.”
- Another quick history of the “jack o’ lantern.”
- Jack o’ Lantern stencils that you can remove from an envelope and use on your own pumpkins.
- An explanation on the ’70s and ’80s urban legend of ‘tainted candy.’
- A history of black cats and their relation to the holiday.
- A brief history of Hallowe’en and October 31st.
- Trick ‘r Treat stickers of Sam, fictitious candybars and more.
- A quick essay on Halloween costumes.
- A paper mask of Sam to wear.
- A comic book adaptation of Mike Dougherty’s “Seasons Greetings” short.
- And on top of all that, tons of pictures from the film and anecdotes from the cast and crew involved.
As I read it, it felt like trick or treating for me: an adult who hasn’t had that opportunity in decades. I never knew what new goodies I would discover as I turned each page.
A must for Halloween fans (and, of course, fans of the film).
Click HERE to get this hardcover, slip-cased tome from Amazon.
5) HALLOWEEN IN CHRISTMAS HILLS
This book looks great.
And when I say “looks” I mean I watched the book “trailer” HERE on YouTube.
Go watch, I’ll wait.
See?
Neat, right?
Here’s the bad thing: I can’t find it.
The link I had found a few months ago is now dead and it’s not on Amazon soooooooo if you happen to find where it can be purchased, DO let me know in the comments below.
6) AFTER HALLOWEEN
Another one for the kid in us all. After Halloween is actually an Alphabet Book that tells the tales of what monsters do –duh– after Halloween… in poetry.
Like this:
E is for Ealwatte
A Mage of the Dead.
Now he crafts hats
To adorn your bald head.
Clever text and fun illustrations from the folks at SteamCrow.com.
Also available on Amazon HERE.
7) COMPLETE HISTORY OF RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD
Thank goodness we have horror movie fans with passion.
Seriously, if it weren’t for the passion of certain horror franchises we wouldn’t have such all-knowing compendiums such as Crystal Lake Memories, The Evil Dead Companion and now this: The Complete History of Return of the Living Dead.
Released this year, the book not only exhaustively chronicles and interviews all those involved with the classic horror-comedy Return of the Living Dead, but also goes on to dissect the sequels too.
A must have for a fan of the series (or just the original).
Click HERE to get it at Amazon.
8) JAWS: MEMORIES FROM MARTHA’S VINEYARD
Also released this year: Jaws: Memories from Martha’s Vineyard gives the perspective of the Universal film crew descending on the small seaside town from the perspective of those who lived there.
Tons of never-before-seen pictures with stories and anecdotes from those who were there witnessing history.
Even people who don’t like scary movies like Jaws.
Buy it from Amazon HERE.
9) MONSTERS IN THE MOVIES
Wait, there’s a book on monsters from the Director of An American Werewolf in London?
Yes, please I’ll take two. One for the house and one for the car.
Monsters in the Movies gives John Landis a platform to give commentary on all sorts of creepy beasties: from teenage werewolves to psychotics in haunted hotels.
Also included are interviews with some of Landis’ partners in crime: from Rick Baker to Sam Raimi.
Click HERE to get it on Amazon.
10) DRESSED FOR THRILLS: 100 YEARS OF HALLOWEEN COSTUMES AND MASQUERADE
This book has its fans and haters. Less a readable book and more of visual reference material of costumes through the ages, focusing on pre-’60’s but dabbles in early costumes all the way to the ’80s.
If you’re looking to flesh out your Halloween library with go-to inspiration or reference, pick this up. Plus, look at that awesome cover.
Out of print but super cheap (under $10) and available through certain Amazon sellers HERE.
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