Space Brothers … From Space!

In over fifty years, I think I’ve heard every theory about extraterrestrials possible. The simplest is that it is a tissue of lies woven from the hopes, fears, and credulities of the all-too-human race. That aliens have advanced technology that makes travel from distant worlds possible. That galactic distances make such travel impossible. That they are from a parallel dimension; that they are time-travelers from our own distant past; that they are time-travelers from our own distant future; they are from the hollow earth; they are from under the sea. They are gods; they are angels; they are devils; they are robotic probes. They love us; they hate us; they are indifferent to us; they are scared of us. They are one vast benevolent federation; there are good and bad aliens; they are at war. They created us in the past; they interbred with us in the past; they are interbreeding with us now. There are many different species; they are one species with several variations, including artificial drones. That the government is back-engineering alien tech recovered from crashes; that the crashes are deliberate to drip-feed us tech. The flying saucers are complete bunkum; that’s what the aliens want us to think; that’s what the government wants us to think. The whole foofaraw is a black-ops experiment from a higher dimension; a method of poking the computer simulation that is our world.

For all I can tell, the truth might be one grand unified theory combining all these ideas, ‘in a sense.’ Alls I know is that these things have kept my mind percolating for decades, and have made quite a few people a good living. I remember one night, not too long ago, when we were all running around in the front yard. We suddenly saw some lights dashing about in the sky, and for a brief moment I was filled with a thrilling sensation, wondering if after many years, ‘this was it.’ I now figure it was probably somebody messing around with drones, just as they were becoming more popular. But for a while my heart leapt at the thought that the old childhood dream of contact might come true. In some corner of my brain, I guess ‘I want to believe.’ 

Lore Galore

The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns, and Fairies, by Robert Kirk.

A classic of Fairy lore and beliefs about the Second Sight, collected in the early 1690’s and published in 1815. With a new Introduction by famous folklorist Marina Warner. I’ve seen this book cited in every book about Fairies I’ve ever read. Legend has it that Kirk himself didn’t die but ended up being taken by the Fairies, but his tombstone would seem to contradict that.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Folklore. Classic. Hardback.

Fairy Legends and Traditions of Southern Ireland, by T. Crofton Croker.

A “The Lost Library” reprint of the 1825 book, with illustrations of engravings and woodcuts. Another legendary sourcebook that spread the Irish stories abroad, but later criticized for adding stereotypical literary “Irish humor” to the tales.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Folklore. Classic. Softcover.

The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries, by W. Y. Evans-Wentz.

A “The Lost Library” reprint of a 1911 book. This book was his thesis in college. “This collection of reports of elfin creatures in Wales, Ireland, Scotland, and Brittany ranks among the most scholarly works ever published on the subject. The Fairy-Faith in Celtic Countries begins with the author's account of firsthand testimony from living sources, classified under individual countries and introduced by leading authorities on anthropology and folklore. The next section concerns the recorded traditions of Celtic literature and mythology, followed by an examination of a variety of theories and their religious aspects. The book concludes with a remarkably rational case for the reality of fairy life. Narrated with an engaging sense of wonder, this volume offers a valuable resource for students of anthropology and Celtic lore, as well as hours of delightful reading for fairy enthusiasts.” – Amazon.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Folklore. Softcover.

British Goblins, by Wirt Sikes. Illustrations by T. H. Thomas.

A “The Lost Library” reprint from 1880. Thomas was an American writer who moved to Wales to act as American Consul there. It was there he gathered the material for the book.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Folklore. Soft Cover.

Animal Lore of Shakespeare’s Time, by Emma Phipson.

A “The Lost Library” reprint from 1883, this is right in my wheelhouse, speaking not only of strange Elizabethan beliefs about animals they knew in real life, but fabulous creatures that they still believed existed.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Folklore. Literary History. Softcover.

The Field Guide to Extraterrestrials, by Patrick Huyghe.

Illustrated by Harry Trumbore, this Guide reports classic encounters and gives ‘police artist sketches’ of the Visitors as reported by those who encountered them. Many different aliens – or cover memories supplied for a single race of creatures never seen? A nice, quick summation of sightings that seeks to prove nothing but tries to categorize the multifarious ‘types’. A nice little cherry on top of a decades-old fascination.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: High Weirdness. Extraterrestrials. Softcover.

Middle Ages, by H. A. Guerber.

A Senate “Myths and Legends” reprint. This time Guerber takes on the legends of the Middle Ages, from Beowulf to The Cid. Illustrated with half-tone reproductions.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Folklore. Reference. Softcover.

The Oxford Companion to Fairy Tales, Edited by Jack Zipes.

“The Western fairy tale tradition from medieval to modern.” “From its ancient roots in the oral tradition to the postmodernist reworkings of the present day, the fairy tale has retained its powerful hold over the cultural imagination of Europe and North America. Now The Oxford Companion to Fairy Tales provides the first authoritative reference source for this complex, captivating genre. With more than 800 entries written by a team of 67 specialists from around the world, the Companion offers an illuminating look at the classic tales themselves, both ancient and modern, from Jack and Jill and Cinderella to Alice in Wonderland and the Wizard of Oz. The contributors also profile the writers who wrote or reworked these luminous tales, as well as the illustrators, filmmakers, choreographers, and composers who have been involved with creating or interpreting them. The Companion also covers such related topics as film, art, opera, ballet, music, even advertising. An introductory overview by Jack Zipes sets the subject in its historical and literary context, and special survey articles explore the development of the fairy-tale tradition in individual countries, focusing particularly on the European and North American traditions. The volume includes a detailed bibliography, to aid in further research into this fascinating topic. Strikingly illustrated with 70 beautiful pictures, from early engravings to 20th-century film stills, this is an essential companion for everyone who loves fairy tales and storytelling.” – from the cover.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fairy Tales. Reference. Hardback.

No Go the Bogeyman: Scaring, Lulling and Making Mock, by Marina Warner.

The fine old tradition of scaring children to keep them in line. “A book which explores the ever increasing presence of ogres, giants, bogeymen and other such figures of male terror in popular fiction and the stratagems we invent to allay the monsters we conjure up. Warner traces the roots of our commonest anxieties, unravelling the myths and fears which define our sensibilities.” – Google Review. Lots of nice glossy color illustrations.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Folklore. Theory. Hardback.

A Dictionary of English Folklore, Jacqueline Simpson and Steve Roud.

What it says on the label, including legends, superstitions, and customs. A lovely browser.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Folklore. English. Reference. Hardback.

A Dictionary of Angels, including the fallen angels, by Gustav Davidson.

First read this in college, then happily found an edition. There are only three angels named in the Bible, four if you count Satan, but there are hundreds in Cabalistic, Moslem, and angelological traditions. Includes angels named in fiction. Quite a browser.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Dictionary. Angels. Softcover.

British Folktales, by Katharine Briggs.

Anthology collected by the famed folklorist, arranged and annotated. Not just fairies this time, but ghosts, devils, local heroes, jokes, nursery tales and more. Had it since college.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Folklore. Hardback.

The Vanishing People: Fairy Lore and Legends, by Katharine Briggs.

Illustrations by Mary I. Finch. Examines the tropes and traditions of fairy folk lore, their origins and background.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Folklore. Softcover.

Brewer’s Dictionary of 20^th Century Phrase and Fable. Cassell Books.

An updated version of old Ebenezer Cobham Brewer, for terms from the last century. For as you see, we are in the 21^st Century now, though I seldom remember it. Largely focused on England and English terms. Last update: 1994. So now, almost as dated as the older version.

Rating: Keeper.

File Code: Dictionary. Culture. Softcover.

Silesian Folk Tales, or The Book of Rubezahl. By James Lee and James T. Carey.

I’ve known about Rubezahl for some time, at least since Ruth Noel’s “Mythology of Middle Earth” in high school, but only in the past few years have I developed a really deep interest in him. This is because I realized that he is from Silesia, which turns out to be the exact area that my German ancestors hailed from. Rubezahl (“Der Berggeist”) is part of Gandalf’s origin, and now I find strangely part of my origins. I had to order this reprint of the 1915 book, and I realize I’ve been reading these tales under different names for years and years. He turns up in one of my most personal stories, “Brother Silas”.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Folk Tales. Softcover.

Cryptozoology A to Z, by Loren Coleman and Jerome Clark.

“The Encyclopedia of Loch Monsters, Sasquatch, Chupacabras, and other Authentic Mysteries of Nature.”  A grand list of cryptids, including accounts of the discovery of new species, recent extinctions, and living fossils. Illustrated with the usual suspects of old drawings and inconclusive or unrelated photos.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: High Weirdness. Reference. Softcover.

The Encyclopedia of Monsters, by Daniel Cohen.

Everything from myths and legends to cryptids and aliens; if it might have some elusive physical existence, it’s here. Includes American jokes like the Hodag and sheer frauds like the Jenny Hanniver. Appeals to the roadside attraction and campfire tale in every soul. It is, indeed, encyclopedic. Illustrations.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: High Weirdness. Cryptozoology. Reference. Softcover.

The Encyclopedia of Ghosts, by Daniel Cohen.

Famous ghost stories, historic and legendary, paranormal investigators, haunted houses, poltergeists and demons; if it has an elusive spiritual presence, it belongs in this book. Includes famous frauds, animal ghosts, and strange visionary phenomena. Appeals to the spooky story enthusiast and dark dread in the human soul. Illustrations.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Supernatural. Reference. Softcover.

The Complete Guide to Mysterious Beings, by John A Keel.

 “Angels and demons; Dinosaurs that still roam the earth; Bigfoot, Yeti, Sasquatch, and other hairy monsters; The Loch Ness Monster, the Silver Lake Sea Serpent, and other water creatures; Dragons; Flying phantoms, man-birds, and other winged humanoids; Flying snakes and other "animals"; Carnivorous plants from outer space; Unidentified flying objects (UFOs) and submarine objects (USOs); Aliens, bedroom invaders, and cattle rustlers from the skies; Little green men, leprechauns, fairies, and other "little people": Vampires and werewolves.” – Amazon. Keel, of course, is famous for “The Mothman Prophecies”.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: High Weirdness. Reference. Softcover.

The Goblin Universe, by Ted Holiday. With an Introduction by Colin Wilson.

Holiday, a renowned investigator of strange phenomena for decades, retails categories of anomalous events, and reaches a startling conclusion: that the world itself may be something in the nature of an illusion, a “hologram” that occasionally glitches and gives us a glimpse of a different reality. His last book, though it seems he was at the point of switching back to a “solid state” theory for High Weirdness when he passed away.

Ranking: Very Interesting.

File Code: High Weirdness. Softcover.

The World Guide to Gnomes, Fairies, Elves and Other Little People, by Thomas Keightley.

I’ve had this since at least the early 80’s, and the dustcover shows it. First published in 1828 as “The Fairy Mythology”, this Avenel edition includes gathered illustrations from the period. A highly respected and seminal work on folklore, it was said to have been praised by Jacob Grimm. Written as a kind of response to T. Crofton Croker’s book on fairy lore, it takes a wider look at the world mythology about such creatures.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Legend. Folklore. Hardback.

The Lore of the New Testament, by Joseph Gaer.

Covers legends and stories outside of the Bible, including Apocrypha, Gnostic gospels, “lost books”, saints’ tales, and traditions. Evelyn gave me this out of the trunk of her car one time when she and Mom went visiting. I remember there is a page or two missing, apparently some apocryphal sayings as I recall, but I can’t remember the page number.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: New Testament Legends. Hardback.

A Treasury of Jewish Folklore, Edited by Nathan Ausubel.

“Stories, Traditions, Legends, Humor, Wisdom and Folk Songs of the Jewish People”.

An old book from 1949, no less, and still as full of “Jewish salt” as the day it was published. A wonderful browser, a crammed reader of short stories, wisdom tales, and jokes, gems of snap and pith. A little frail, as most 70 year-olds are, but more than repays time spent in its company.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Anthology. Hardback.

Hebrew Myths: The Book of Genesis, by Robert Graves and Raphael Patai.

“This exhaustive exploration of the Hebrew myths and the book of Genesis resulted from a remarkable collaboration between one scholar raised as a strict Protestant and one raised as a strict Jew. It goes beyond Christian biblical and Judaic myth and incorporates midrashes, folk tales, apocryphal texts, and other obscure sources to extend and complete the stories. An intriguing view of the suppressed and censored pre-biblical accounts is the result, along with a rich sense of a culture consisting of oral and literary traditions, where the spiritual is deeply rooted in landscape and history.” – Amazon. A little pinch of Graves’s cuckoo theories may have wandered in a bit as well, but it is mostly interesting insights from traditions ‘supplementing’ the Bible. And remember, a ‘myth’ doesn’t necessarily mean a lie, but a story meant to convey a truth by means of a story.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Myth. Hardback.

The Ingoldsby Legends, Volumes I and II, by Thomas Ingoldsby (Richard Harris Barham).

“Fully Annotated. Complete with the Illustrations of John Tenniel, George Cruikshank, John Leech and Others”. I bought this 2-volume edition more or less on the advice and under the spell of Robertson Davies. “A collection of myths, legends, ghost stories and poetry written supposedly by Thomas Ingoldsby of Tappington Manor, actually a pen-name of an English clergyman named Richard Harris Barham … Although based on real legends and mythology, chiefly Kentish, such as the "hand of glory", they are mostly deliberately humorous parodies or pastiches of medieval folklore and poetry.” – Wikipedia. I’ve seen some of the tales in other books and they can be amusing, but the poetry is rather hard to take.

Ranking: Keepers.

File Code: Humor? Stories. Poems. Softcover.

America In Legend: Folklore from the Colonial Period to the Present, by Richard M. Dorson.

The present being 1973, in this case, but you probably could have guessed that from the quality of the paper and style of the illustration enjambment. Very nice for research on my American Fantasies. Got it just a year or two ago at a library sale.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Legend. America. Softcover.

Russian Myths, by Elizabeth Warner.

You’ve got to admit there’s not much Russian myth left, and what there is of it has been very well hidden, but it seems all the more mysteriously powerful for all that. Most of it is hero tales and legendary figures like Baba Yaga and Koschei the Deathless, saint’s stories and tsar’s daughters and dragons. This book gives a distant but clear glimpse of that lost Russian world, as if seen in an icon.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Russia. Legend. Softcover.

Quality Paperback Book Treasury of North American Folktales, Edited by Catherine Peek.

Illustrations by Rosemary Fox. An anthology of tales, from Native American to Colonial to Tall Tales to modern. I think my favorite story comes near the end, “La Llorona Teaches a Hippie a Lesson.” Some water damage; bought that way at a garage sale.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Folktales. Treasury. Softcover.

All Over Creation

Charlotte’s Web, by E. B. White. Illustrations by Garth Williams. Of course, I don’t have to say much about the book; everybody has heard of it. The Hanna/Barbera movie version came out in 1973, when I was in grade school. A Sherman Brothers song. Voices from half the TV shows we’d watched and sound effects from the cartoons. The book is poetic and moving, and a gentle slice of progressive Americana. Ranking: Essential. File Code: Children’s Book. Classic. Paperback.

Stuart Little, by E. B. White. Illustrations by Garth Williams. I was more engaged with this book than I was with “Charlotte’s Web”, mainly because I always liked the fantasy of being a mouse or a tiny person myself, living with toys, driving in little vehicles, hiding from the big people … my shy, whimsical impulses were at odds with my gawky body. I wanted to avoid attention, I suppose. No wonder Hobbits appealed to me so much later. Anyway, I got this copy in grade school (Fourth Grade, I imagine), and its condition certainly shows its age. Ranking: Essential. File Code: Children’s Book. Classic. Paperback.

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, by Robert C. O’Brien. Illustrated by Zena Bernstein. Mrs. Bratton read this to us in Fourth Grade, then I read it myself in middle school. Adventures among the rodents again, with their secret life, here enhanced by scientific experiment, so it’s not just whimsy, it’s SCIENCE! Again, the fantasy of building a covert world away from the powers that be, escaping their death hassles, man, and making a Utopia where we can all live in peace. Ranking: Keeper. File Code: Children’s Classic. Paperback.

Barabbas; and The Sybil, by Par Lagerkvist. The author was a Nobel Prize Winner for Literature. I got these books long ago (junior year?) because they seemed to be on the fringes of my interests, historical, philosophical, religious. Haven’t brought myself to read them through yet; perhaps the time has come. Barabbas follows the man released instead of Jesus, of course (it was made into a movie with Anthony Quinn), and The Sybil is about the Wandering Jew, searching for answers. Ranking: After all this time? Probably Dispensable. File Code: Novels. Paperback.

Creation, by Gore Vidal. “A sweeping novel of politics, war, philosophy, and adventure–in a restored edition, featuring never-before-published material from Gore Vidal’s original manuscript–Creation offers a captivating grand tour of the ancient world. Cyrus Spitama, grandson of the prophet Zoroaster and lifelong friend of Xerxes, spent most of his life as Persian ambassador for the great king Darius. He traveled to India, where he discussed nirvana with Buddha, and to the warring states of Cathay, where he learned of Tao from Master Li and fished on the riverbank with Confucius. Now blind and aged in Athens–the Athens of Pericles, Sophocles, Thucydides, Herodotus, and Socrates–Cyrus recounts his days as he strives to resolve the fundamental questions that have guided his life’s journeys: how the universe was created, and why evil was created with good. In revisiting the fifth century B.C.–one of the most spectacular periods in history–Gore Vidal illuminates the ideas that have shaped civilizations for millennia.” – Amazon. This used copy has a badly cracked spine. In his novels of the ancient world, I always think Vidal is trying to be Robert Graves, with the whole “lost autobiographical manuscript” thing. Still, a good read, and nicely dramatized. Ranking: Keeper. File Code: Novel. Historical. Paperback.

Traditional British Ballads: A Selection, Edited by Bartlett Jere Whiting. Could this paperback actually be from 1955, the only date inside? Amazing. It is what it says on the label. Some marking inside; probably a college book. Ranking: Keeper. File Code: Poetry. Folk. Paperback.

The Portable Charles Lamb: Letters and Essays, Edited by James Mason Brown. A Viking Portable Library Book. I’ve liked the whimsical Lamb since reading his essay about roast pigs in high school. He seems the gentlest and the most humorous of the writers of the Romantic era, the most decent and the least stormy – I want to be his friend. His sentimentality is loving and never smarmy, his letters are a delight, and he himself seems wise, sad, and witty. His “took up arms against a sea of troubles” and gallantly opposed them. I’ve carried this book as a vade mecum several times on trips to the doctor. Some interior marks. Ranking: Essential. File Code: Letters. Essays. English Literature.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Stories, by Robert Louis Stevenson. A Penguin book. Bought it at Goodwill to have a copy of the tale in its own book, as it were, and a’cause of my Penguin mania. Dead cheap, too. Ranking: Keeper. File Code: Classic. Paperback. Horror? Mystery?

Extraterrestrial Visitations from Prehistoric Times to the Present, by Jacques Bergier. A purchase from the early 70’s, instigated by Mike but passed around by all us boys and much discussed. Bergier was a practiced purveyor of crackpot theories and jumped on the bandwagon of “Chariots of the Gods” and the UFO craze of the times. Our young minds feasted on the wonder and fear of it all and wove it into our lore and storytelling. I remember being afraid to go outside at night for dread of being taken by aliens, while at the same time marveling at ‘ancient mysteries’ and ‘secret histories’. My copy shows the wear and tear of 47 years and being passed around and nearly being read to rags. Ranking: Keeper. Artifact. File Code: Extraterrestrials. Crackpot Science. Paperback.

Monsters You Never Heard Of, by Daniel Cohen. Illustrated. Cryptozoology for kids. Along with Thomas G. Aylesworth and … there was a third guy, I think, but I can’t think of the name [am I thinking of Peter Haining?] … anyway, they were all purveyors of monsters and mayhem for kids and for those who were kids in critical thinking alike in the 1970’s. Anyway, it was all fun, and our way of distracting ourselves from the real horrors of life. Ranking: Keeper. File Code: Cryptozoology. Legend. Paperback.

Hostage to the Devil, by Malachi Martin. “A true, awesome account of the possession and exorcism of five living Americans – documented by a former Jesuit.” Dated from 1977, during the “Exorcist” craze. One of the most disturbing books I’ve ever read, perhaps because I’m inclined -not absolutely convinced, but sneakily inclined – to believe it’s true. I hesitate to re-read; it was so unsettling. Even if I simply scared myself because of my psychology, I don’t care to run the chance of doing it to myself again. “There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them.” – C. S. Lewis. Cover somewhat scruffy. Ranking: Cursed object and forbidden item. File Code: Possession. Exorcism. Paperback.

Catechism of the Catholic Church, Complete and Updated. I have read this aloud, all 700 or so pages, a little bit a day, for over a year. Lays out in great detail and scholarship what Catholics believe. (2 copies) Ranking: Essential File Code: Religion. Catholicism. Paperback.