Weird Kentucky: Your Travel Guide to Kentucky's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets [Hardcover]

Jeffrey Scott Holland (Author), Mark Moran (Foreword), Mark Sceurman (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 6, 2008 | Series: Weird

"Best Travel Series of the Year 2006!"—Booklist

 

What’s weird around here?

That’s a question Mark Moran and Mark Sceurman have enjoyed asking for years—and their offbeat sense of curiosity led them to create the bestselling phenomenon, Weird N.J. Now the weirdness has spread throughout key locales in the U.S. Each fun and intriguing volume offers more than 250 illustrated pages of places where tourists usually don’t venture—it’s chock-full of oddball curiosities, ghostly places, local legends, crazy characters, cursed roads, and peculiar roadside attractions. What’s NOT shockingly odd here: that every previously published Weird book has become a bestseller in its region.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Sterling (May 6, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402754388
• ISBN-13: 978-1402754388
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #216,886 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #71 in Books > Travel > United States > South > East South Central

More About the Author

I presently divide my time between the spooky wilderness of Anchorage, KY and the exotic splendor of the Tampa Bay area, FL.

I write peculiar little books with antiquated pulp-fiction sensibilities, and will continue until forcibly restrained.

You may also know me from the thousands of primitive folk-art neo-expressionist paintings I've shown and sold in galleries worldwide, or from any number of my low-fidelity musical projects over the years.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Weirdly Wonderful!! May 27, 2008

By Deidra Cox

Format:Hardcover

I was rounding the corner in Joseph Beth when I saw the Weird Kentucky display and I was giddy with glee!! This book is amazingly great for all us weirdos and you know who you are!! Don't bother trying to hide:)

For starters, did you know about the "blue people" in Perry County, Kentucky? Heck, I live just a few miles from there and I didn't. But some investigation on my part, and the book facts are dead on. The blue people did exist!!

Did you know that Kentucky has their own versions of Bigfoot, the Jersey Devil and the notorious "Goatman"? We also have our own version of AREA 51 in Bluegrass Depot. Amazing scary stuff.

There are giants and secret midget villages. Ghosts and lost cities, both above and underground. Secret societies abound, along with mysterious mounds.

This is really good stuff!! I felt like a kid on Christmas morning poring over the photos and all the nifty factoids. After reading this volume I know my summer vacation plans have changed. I want to go exploring my mysteriously fasnicating state.

Jump into WEIRD KENTUCKY with both feet. You're gonna to love the swim:)

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Not just for Kentuckians July 15, 2008

By CheddarPants

Format:Hardcover

Where to begin?

Weird Kentucky covers so many fascinating subjects, making it difficult to pigeonhole. Old wive's tales? Check. Urban legends? They're here. The paranormal? Fox Mulder would be proud. And you'll meet a wealth of local characters from all corners of the Commonwealth, from the 18th century to today.

This is one of the most unique and interesting books I've ever had the pleasure to read. Weird Kentucky is a celebration of the many wonderful things that make the Commonwealth special.

If you know how to read, you'll enjoy this book immensely, even if you have no connections to Kentucky.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars More Palatable with Salt November 24, 2010

By Pyanfar Chanur TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

"Weird Kentucky" is an entertaining book that contains many of the odd and interesting things that can be found in the Bluegrass State. However, just like Snopes spoils the fun of a frantic e-mail forward, so too does a little knowledge about the truth ruin "Weird Kentucky"'s charm. There are some things that are factually wrong--but mostly harmless. For example, the State Fair is not held in Lexington--it's actually at the State Fairgrounds in Louisville. If you come to Kentucky looking for the State Fair, chances are you're not going to rely solely on this book to get you there, so no harm done.

Then there are some things that are 'astonishing' when you don't drill too deep. There is an entry about the disease outbreak that killed so many thorobred foals that likes to play it up like a great, unsolved mystery. That makes for good entertainment...so long as you ignore the painstaking research that so many professionals put in getting to the bottom of the problem. Season your story with hints and speculation and, so long as you don't throw in a reference to chupacabra, you've hooked your readers and we're off on a ride through the funhouse.

Don't get me wrong - I enjoy folklore and I definitely like a good ghost story or urban legend. Weird Kentucky can occupy a distinguished spot on any coffee table and guarantee you some fun. Just take it with a block of salt.