Compendium Maleficarum, by Francesco Maria Guazzo. The Montague
Summers Edition.
A Dover book. “Reproduced from a rare limited edition
published in 1929” with notes by Summers, an expert in supernatural beliefs
with many books to his credit and a bit of an eccentric. “Compendium
Maleficarum is a witch-hunter's manual written in Latin by Francesco
Maria Guazzo, and
published in Milan, Italy in 1608. It discusses witches' pacts
with the devil, and
detailed descriptions of witches’ powers and poisons. It also contains Guazzo's classification of demons, based on a previous work by Michael Psellus.” – Wikipedia. Haven’t really read
it, but it’s supposed to be a classic in the field. Original woodcuts.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Witches. History. Softcover.
The Malleus Maleficarum, by Heinrich Kramer and James
Sprenger, Translated with an Introduction, Bibliography, and Notes by the
Reverend Montague Summers.
The infamous ‘Hammer of the Witches’, “It was written by
the Catholic clergyman Heinrich Kramer and
first published in the German city of Speyer in 1486. It endorses extermination of witches and for this purpose develops a detailed legal
and theological theory. It has been described as the compendium of
literature in demonology of the fifteenth century. The top theologians of
the Inquisition at the Faculty
of Cologne condemned
the book as recommending unethical and illegal procedures, as well as being
inconsistent with Catholic doctrines of demonology.” – Wikipedia. More Montague
Summers. Can’t said I’ve read it.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Witches. Historical. Softcover.
An Encyclopaedia of Occultism by Lewis Spence.
This Dover reprint of the 1920 book includes entries on the
subjects of alchemy, astrology, demonology, magic, mysticism, spiritualism,
theosophy, and witchcraft, with some line illustrations. An interesting browser
and a scholarly look at some most unscholarly subjects.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Occultism. Encyclopedia. Softcover.
Mysterious Creatures, by the Editors of Time Life Books.
This is the only volume of the Time Life Book series
“Mysteries of the Unknown” that I have retained, because I like imaginary
beasts and legendary cryptids. I had a few other volumes in the series that I
gave away or sold. Illustrated by new art and classic photos. I love mysterious
creatures.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Fabulous Beasts. Series Volume. Hardback.
Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins: An Encyclopedia,
and Giants, Monsters, and Dragons: An Encyclopedia of Folklore, Legend, and
Myth, by Carol Rose.
Two wonderful books, with art including pictures by famous
illustrators, old woodcuts, and classic paintings. I cannot stress enough the
handiness and amusement of these volumes, or the solidity of its scholarship.
Ranking: Essential.
File Code: Folklore. Reference. Softcovers.
The Elizabethan Zoo: A Book of Beasts Fabulous and Authentic,
selected from Philemon Holland’s Translation of Pliny 1601 and Edward Topsell’s
“Historie of Four-Footed Beastes” 1607 and his “Historie of Serpents” 1608 and
edited by M. St. Clare Byrne.
Probably as close as I’ll ever get to owning Topsell’s famous
works, from which so many copyright-free woodcuts have been taken to illustrate
books of cryptozoology. Some of the best are in this book. Topsell was “a
leading zoological authority” of his day, and he included such creatures as
dragons and lamias among the more verifiable animals of world. I remember
parsing full reproductions at college, where they were all in a red-bound
series of classical reprints.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Fabulous Beasts. Classic. Softcover.
Fabulous Feasts: Medieval Cookery and Ceremony, by Madeleine
Pelner Cosman.
A study of the cooking and table-manners of old, with modern
recipes for ancient dishes. There were copies in high school and college, and I
was very interested in it for ‘creative anachronism’, that is, reproducing food
for fantastic purposes. I remember reprinting the directions for preparing
Hippocras in my “Broadsheet of Imaginative Literature”, from Xeroxes I had made
of several recipes. I was pleased to run across this copy years later.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Cookbook. Historical. Softcover.
Renard the Fox, Translated from the Old French by Patricia
Terry.
“Renard the Fox is the first modern translation
into English of one of the most important and influential medieval books. Valued
for its comic spirit, its high literary quality, and its clever satire of
feudal society, the tale uses animals to represent the members of various
classes. This lively and accessible translation will be welcomed for courses in
medieval literature and history, and humanities, and will be a treat for the
general reader as well.” – Amazon. Illustrated by black-and-white reproductions
from medieval illuminations. I’ve always wanted a complete copy of these
legends, and now I’ve got one. Probably should try reading it one of these
days.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Beast Fable. Medieval. Softcover.
The Book of Marvels: An Explorer’s Miscellany, Mark Collins
Jenkins.
When Western explorers began moving beyond well-traveled
lands, they were bound to encounter unfamiliar wonders that excited their awe
and curiosity. Rolling plains of grass like oceans, unbounded miles of forest
giants, flocks of birds that darkened the skies, inexplicable hills of bones
far from any human explanation, and odd creatures found in no bestiary yet
written, along with untamed floods, volcanos, and natural phenomenon unknown to
the annals of history stimulated adventurers, scientists, and artists to record
their observations for all posterity. Jenkins gathers a traveler’s scrapbook of
these marvels, including many fine contemporary illustrations and colored
plates. Sing me a song of a LAND that is gone …
Ranking: Essential.
File Code: Natural Wonders. History. Hardback.
The Scarecrow: Fact and Fable, by Peter Haining.
Discovered this book by Haining while preparing a blogpost
about scarecrows and had to have it. Here the great scavenger brings together a
marvelous collection of scarecrows in history, literature, poetry, movies,
cartoons and on farms, looking at scarecrow lore and its place in the modern
world, including scarecrow building competitions in rural areas and its use as
a metaphor. A great little book, just right for my tastes.
Ranking: Essential.
File Code: Folklore. Literature. Hardback.
The History of the Snowman, by Bob Eckstein.
A light-hearted look at snowmen (and not the Abominable one),
abounding with illustrations from Christmas cards, cartoons, advertisements,
and even a 13th Century illumination. Tracks down references to whatever
figures were built of snow, from Renaissance sculptors’ efforts to Frosty the
Snowman. Thankfully, this book was written before “Frozen”.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Folklore. Humor. Hardback.
Secret Gardens: The Golden Age of Children’s Literature, by
Humphrey Carpenter.
“From ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ to
‘Winnie-the-Pooh’”, Carpenter explores the ‘secret gardens’ of literature where
childhood could hide and, like Peter Pan, never grow up. I read this book first
in college, and it not only provided insights into books I was quite familiar
with but also provided an introduction, a way in, to books I had passed by
before with a cold shoulder. Includes a look at the post-WWII era of children’s
books where the focus of stories turned from creating timeless magic circles to
transitioning, via adventures in enchanted lands, into maturity, to help young
readers to grow up, in effect to ‘give up magic’. Carpenter has an amazing talent
in analyzing a theme, in picking out echoes from book to book, and examining
the quite grown-up concerns that led these authors to create these children’s
classics.
Ranking: Essential.
File Code: Children’s Literature. Criticism. Softcover.
Curious Myths of the Middle Ages, by Sabine Baring-Gould.
A Dover book. “One of the most brilliant, eclectic thinkers
in Victorian England, the Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould (1834–1924) was
intrigued by the grotesque and often savage history of the Middle Ages. The
noted author and folklorist’s fascination with the period resulted in this
absorbing compilation of vintage tales surrounding such figures as William Tell
and the Man in the Moon. Twenty-four legendary figures — among others, Saint
Patrick, the Pied Piper, knights of the Holy Grail, and St. George — are
rejuvenated in this collection for a new audience. In addition to outlines of
the myths, the author provides an objective analysis of their origins,
relevance, and the extent of their basis in fact. Fascinating sources include
Christian adaptations of prehistoric legends, misinterpretations of actual
events, and outright fabrications. Accompanying illustrations provide a visual
appreciation for these timeless classics. A marvelous introduction to age-old
stories, this oft-cited work will be of value and interest to students,
scholars, and other readers.” – Amazon.
Ranking: Essential.
File Code: Myths. Folklore. Softcover.
Phantasmagoria: Spirit Visions, Metaphors and Media into the
Twenty-First Century, by Marina Warner.
“With over thirty illustrations in color and black and
white, Phantasmagoria takes readers on an intellectually
exhilarating tour of ideas of spirit and soul in the modern world, illuminating
key questions of imagination and cognition. Warner tells the unexpected and
often disturbing story about shifts in thought about consciousness and the
individual person, from the first public waxworks portraits at the end of the eighteenth
century to stories of hauntings, possession, and loss of self in modern times.
She probes the perceived distinctions between fantasy and deception and
uncovers a host of spirit forms--angels, ghosts, fairies, revenants, and
zombies--that are still actively present in contemporary culture.” – Amazon.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Cultural History. Softcover.
The Book of Imaginary Beings, by Jorge Luis Borges.
Illustrated by Peter Sis and Translated by Andrew Hurley.
“This volume blends twenty illustrations by Peter Sís with
Jorge Luis Borges's 1957 compilation of 116 "strange creatures conceived
through time and space by the human imagination," from dragons and
centaurs to Lewis Carroll's Cheshire Cat and the Morlocks of H. G.
Wells's The Time Machine. A lavish feast of exotica brought vividly
to life with art commissioned specifically for this volume, The Book of
Imaginary Beings will delight readers of classic fantasy as well as
Borges's many admirers.” – Amazon.
Ranking: Keeper.
File Code: Fantasy. Reference. Hardback.
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