The four books that formed the foundation of my reading on horror movie history during my formative years, all replacements for my original copies.
MONSTERS
FROM THE MOVIES was first had as a paperback obtained from a Scholastic
book fair when I was in fourth grade, and it was a perfect introductory
book on the subject, especially since it opted not to talk down to
young readers. (My original copy of that one was ruined when my mother,
during her era of serially disrespecting my possessions and either
breaking or otherwise ruining them, left a capless Magic Marker on top
of the book and the pen bled out its blue ink all over my beloved book,
utter soaking the pages and rendering them unreadable. I remember it
like it was yesterday.)
AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF
THE HORROR FILM was another one that I had as a paperback, while this
replacement is a hardcover of its first edition. I do not recall where I
got my original copy from, but the book is notable as my first
adult-level reading on the genre. It's exhaustive in how comprehensive
it is, though it is only current through its 1968 publication date.
A
PICTORIAL HISTORY OF HORROR MOVIES is a highly recommended and
absolutely gorgeous hardcover coffee table book that is a must-have for
all horror movie enthusiasts. Lushly illustrated with a plethora of
photos, it's a book that I read to the point of wearing out my two
previous copies, so I once again resorted to eBay for another
replacement.
Lastly comes HORRORS: FROM SCREEN TO
SCREAM — another eBay purchase, as my original fell apart forty years
back — which is less of an historical overview and more of an A-Z
listing with brief synopses and some criticism thrown in here and there.
It's a handy reference guide to horror film up through 1975, and it is
loaded with photos. It was a good entry-level book at the time, and it
still holds a dear place in my heart.
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