The United States of Cryptids
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Average rating4.2
Meet the monsters in our midst, from bigfoot to Mothman and beyond! Welcome to the United States of Cryptids, where mysterious monsters lurk in the dark forests, deep lakes, and sticky swamps of all fifty states. From the infamous Jersey Devil to the obscure Snallygaster, travel writer and chronicler of the strange J. W. Ocker uncovers the bizarre stories of these creatures and investigates the ways in which communities embrace and celebrate their local cryptids. Readers will learn about: • Batsquatch of Washington, a winged bigfoot that is said to have emerged from the eruption of Mount Saint Helens • Nain Rouge of Michigan, a fierce red goblin that has been spotted before every major city disaster in Detroit • Flatwoods Monster of West Virginia, a robotic extraterrestrial that crash-landed in rural Appalachia • Lizard Man of South Carolina, a reptilian mutant that attacked a teenager in the summer of 1988 • Glocester Ghoul of Rhode Island, a fire-breathing dragon that guards a hoard of pirate treasure • And many more! Whether you believe in bigfoot or not, this fully illustrated compendium is a fun, frightening, fascinating tour through American folklore and history, exploring the stories we tell about monsters and what those stories say about us.
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Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for this arc. I really enjoyed the stories in this book. If you like cryptid tales then this is a great book for you.
J.W. Ocker has hit the spot with this one! If you're a fan of cryptids, travel, or US weird history this is the book for you. Ocker goes across the US and shares some of the most celebrated Cryptid towns. While this is in no way a deep dive into any particular cryptid, it showcases the towns that have made a name for themselves (or just have a fun story) for their history with certain unidentifiable creatures that are without scientific proof.
Each chapter is a bite size story of a cryptid, how it became known in the town, and what that town does to celebrate it today broken up into 4 regions of the US. His writing style is so easy to read and entertain. This would be perfect for people that don't know much about cryptids and just want a brief breakdown or those that are die hard cryptid fans and may want to add some vacation spots to their travel list.
This book is awesome and just too much fun. I love monsters and myths and this was a perfect Spooktober read. There are so many in here I had no clue about so that in itself is a huge plus.
What I loved most, besides the informative history of each cryptid, is the humor within each story. This may be a Non-Fiction but it definitely doesn't read that way.
This book would actually make a great tour guide for those who want to travel across the US and check each mystical sighting out in hopes of spotting these elusive creatures. Happy Hunting
