Werewolves [Paperback]

Jon Izzard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2009

From ancient legend to pop-culture icon, from monster to antihero, here is a complete look at werewolves.

 Fans of the complex beasts will howl with pleasure at this passionate handbook incorporating legend, lore, trivia and art. Author Jon Izzard stalks both the fiction and the facts: transformations, inner rage, extra-human strength, silver bullets, mysterious curses, modern cures and more.  With werewolves now haunting movie screens and literature the way they have haunted our nightmares for millennia, readers won't wait for the full moon to devour this fascinating volume.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School—These books are equally inclusive and explore many of the same elements. The first title has chapters devoted to "Werewolves: The Beast Within," "Werewolves & Popular Culture," "The She-Wolf," "Werewolves: Fact and Folklore," and "Defense Against the Werewolf." Connections between wolves and people are explored, including wolf attacks, domestication, and accounts of children adopted by wolves, while science-documented incidences of psychosis related to werewolves and the medical condition "wolfitis" are also examined. The book explores world legends and myths and delves into movies, television shows, and literature, too. The second volume is divided into "Vampires: Body & Soul," "The Origins of Vampires," "The Evolution of Vampires," and "Vampires & Popular Culture." Legends and myths from around the world, accounts of real-life vampires, and the science of vampires are just some of the themes, while the development of vampires in literature, from John Polidori's The Vampyre, published in 1819, to present-day books such as Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series (Little, Brown) and Laurell K. Hamilton's "Anita Blake" series (Penguin), are discussed. Highlighted movies include such classics as the silent film Nosferatu and the 1931 version of Dracula featuring Bela Lugosi, along with the movies of today. Television series like The Munsters, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and True Blood are also discussed. These volumes are well researched and have extensive bibliographies. Glossy pages filled with television and movie shots, poster art, reproductions, and photographs make them visually delightful. These books should be of high interest to genre fans.—Lara McAllister, Halifax Public Libraries, Nova Scotia
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About the Author

Jon Izzard writes about the paranormal and legends. He lives in the United Kingdom.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Spruce (October 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1846013461
• ISBN-13: 978-1846013461
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,030,785 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Should be titled, Stuff I Learned While Watching Movies, October 21, 2009

By 

Nik Knack "Nik Knack" (Anchorage, AK USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Werewolves (Paperback)

I bought this book in hopes of finding a comprehensive werewolf text that chronicled the history of the folklore and different mythologies of the creatures. What I got was a book full of movie reviews and synopses. The author uses films, such as Underworld and Skinwalkers, as a reference for werewolf folklore. 'In Underworld, Lucian did this:' I know; I saw the movie too. It is not a legitimate source when citing the origins of werewolf lore.

Entire chapters are devoted to reviewing the plots of werewolf movies. It is as useless as it is tedious! Ginger Snaps, American Werewolf in London and Wolf all get pages of synopses, complete with glossy film pictures. The book is an utter waste.

I returned it and thankfully got my money back.

3.0 out of 5 stars Izzard's Werewolves Review, November 24, 2010

By 

A. E. Terry - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Werewolves (Paperback)

Izzard's book for Werewolves is what I refer to as a Pop-Culture book.

He does cover some Werewolf history, but then he moves to a main focus of more recent books and movies. On one hand, I viewed this as an update to Stieger's Werewolf Encyclopedia book, covering new books since that book's publication as a way to see are there any movies or books I may have missed.

It's got a lot of good color pictures. And over all the book, kindof gives a current snap shot to how the image of the werewolf is changing or has changed.

It's on the thin side, which means it's not a complete Encyclopedia as Stieger tried to do. Nor should this one even be... Pop Culture... that kindof skims the basics and then offers some book and movie reviews/synopsis.

There are far better books out there, such as Curran's Werewolf Book, which offers an attempt at tracking how the image of the werewolf has changed over the years, Sabine-Goulding's book, Summer's book... even Guilley's Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves and other Monsters would be better starting places.

4.0 out of 5 stars Not what I expected..., November 3, 2009

By 

Kyle Van Helsing "The Demon Hunter" (Fort Wayne, IN) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Werewolves (Paperback)

I pre-ordered this book for my birthday, and I was disappointed when I received it as well. It has very little in the way of actual werewolf lore, but it is an entertaining read nonetheless (much like its counterpart, Vampires). I had been expecting the ultimate book on werewolves in folklore and legend, but I am somewhat satisfied with what I received. What the world needs is a modern nonfiction field guide on Werewolves, their origins, the folklore and legends, their strengths and weaknesses, how to hunt and kill them, etc. I could write a book like this. I hope somebody will give some thought to such a book.