It is said you can tell a lot about a person by the choice of books they read, and seeing as though you are here to peruse this freakish list, I can only imagine what sort of strange and wonderful person you are.
I am imagining some sort of bookish Gomez or Morticia Addams….
If you love a good spooky story, or are fascinated by the strange real-life events that have occurred throughout history, this is the list for you. From freak-shows or taxidermy, to hauntings or crematorium goings on, we have something for every weirdo here.
Beyond The Dark Veil
This fantastic book comprises of 194 extraordinary photographs recording the Victorian practise of ‘mourning photography’. The pictures, along with newspaper articles and notices, include various types of mourning photography such as albumen prints, hand coloured photographs, daguerreotypes, postcards, and more. It is a wonderful insight into the way many of our ancestors would grieve and mourn their deceased family members.
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Atlas of Cursed Places
There are 40 locations within this book, all of which are teeming with the disastrous, the paranormal, and the weird. The places examined in the book include: a home of mythical sea monsters; a town where the ground constantly burns; a national park overrun with bats; and the world’s second most popular suicide location…
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Freak Babylon
A surprising and disturbing document of the history of teratology, one of humanity’s most enthralling sciences which focusses on genetic abnormality and deformation. The book follows a strange entertainment that sprung from teratology: the freak show, with some famous case histories such as the Elephant Man and features over 200 photos of human anomalies, recorded scientific research, and body modification.
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Funerals To Die For
Putting the FUN back into funerals, and dark and rich like a really decent, expensive chocolate, this book looks at the history of the funeral. It gives a great insight into various cultures and the funeral practices they perform, some strange, others bizarre…
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Goatman: Flesh or Folklore?
Author and paranormal investigator J. Nathan Couch has collected sightings of Goatman and other goaty folktales including the Pope Lick Monster, the Beast of Billiwhack, and Sheepsquatch… Join him as he tries to separate history from lore and taking you across the USA… Beware the Goatman!
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Mutter Museum
This book contains artistic images of the Mutter Museums’s transfixing exhibits shot by modern fine art photographers. Here we see the museum’s archive of historic photographs, many of which have never been seen by the general public. The images are often poignant and beautifully accomplished, ranging from pathological anomalies, Civil War injuries and recoveries, to the ravages of diseases still in existence in the 19th century.
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Poe Land: The Hallowed Haunts of Edgar Allen Poe
In this book the author explores Poe’s legacy: touring Poe’s homes, examining locks of his hair, pieces of his coffin, his manuscripts, and the many memorials dedicated to the strange and great man. Poe-Land is a unique take on the afterlife of the poet who is arguably unrivalled in his affect on science fiction and horror.
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Rest In Pieces: The Curious Fates of Famous Corpses
This book follows some of the more famous figures in history and the deaths they endured, and what happened to them after… They have been taken and sold, pickled or frozen, and even impersonated! Their famous genitals, toes, teeth, and hearts have wandered the globe mostly without their permission. This is a fascinating insight into what lengths people will go to to be with (a part of) their heroes…
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Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons From the Crematorium
This book is by twenty-three-year-old Caitlin Doughty who, with great curiosity, threw herself into her odd new profession. Within the book she explores our death rituals, and the rituals of other cultures, and longs for healthier attitudes around death than we have already… Fans of gallows humour will enjoy this vivid account of this usually depressing subject, dealt with with humour and ease.
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Taxidermy Art
Author Robert Marbury created this funny and frank guide that takes us through the history of taxidermy, presenting us with beautiful and strange pieces of taxidermy art from twenty artists in the field. There is also a guide with six illustrated how to lessons, with sources for taxidermy materials for the budding taxidermists.
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