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jenni3penny's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.25
rj_readsbooks's review against another edition
3.0
Cute! I would’ve been obsessed with this when I was 10. The art is very fun and creepy and the typography is a piece of art on its own. Definitely recommend for the weird kid in your life.
nelson5190's review against another edition
4.0
An overall ridiculous book full of fun little stories of odd creatures.
saidtheraina's review against another edition
4.0
I have a soft spot for cryptozoology, so this was a shoe-in for me.
According to the opening editor's note (and the internet, which I consulted to confirm), this is based on a book which came out in the early 20th century, written by William Cox, a man with the same name as my maternal great grandfather. Each chapter discusses a different cryptozoological creature, and I'm very uncertain as to whether they're purely from Cox's imagination, or derived from actual fable. Either way, I've never heard of any of them before.
The narrative voice is particularly notable - stylized, caricatured, and pretty silly, if you pay attention. There's a bias against Frenchmen (which, I understand from other reviews, screens more offensive racism in the source-text).
The graphic design is pretty gorgeous. Each page is a little foggy, smudged, dirty-looking. Some of the text is warped and stylized. And, although the cover is a little busy for my taste, the inside is pretty darn beautiful. Oh yeah, and things GLOW IN THE DARK!!!
I definitely had a moment one night when I looked over at my bedside table, bc this cover was creepily glowing at me.
Anyway, I liked it. So did the kids. :)
According to the opening editor's note (and the internet, which I consulted to confirm), this is based on a book which came out in the early 20th century, written by William Cox, a man with the same name as my maternal great grandfather. Each chapter discusses a different cryptozoological creature, and I'm very uncertain as to whether they're purely from Cox's imagination, or derived from actual fable. Either way, I've never heard of any of them before.
The narrative voice is particularly notable - stylized, caricatured, and pretty silly, if you pay attention. There's a bias against Frenchmen (which, I understand from other reviews, screens more offensive racism in the source-text).
The graphic design is pretty gorgeous. Each page is a little foggy, smudged, dirty-looking. Some of the text is warped and stylized. And, although the cover is a little busy for my taste, the inside is pretty darn beautiful. Oh yeah, and things GLOW IN THE DARK!!!
I definitely had a moment one night when I looked over at my bedside table, bc this cover was creepily glowing at me.
Anyway, I liked it. So did the kids. :)
kaceylaine's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
molly_dettmann's review against another edition
3.0
This book is like a cross between Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, all told by a Lemony Snicket-like narrator/cryptozoologist. The illustrations were creepy and neat and some of the stories, while gruesome, really read like surrealist humor. Having them in black and white was an excellent choice to make it not so bloody and scary. I can see kids loving this book if they liked Series of Unfortunate Events and Scary Stories. They might have difficulty with the language since there are some creatures, people, and places with weirdly pronounced names.
sassenachrandall's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
pwbalto's review against another edition
5.0
"When the first terrashot exploded, Mr. Thompson-Chang, who was trying to ride the fool thing, was turned to dust more or less. Miss Grundy was far enough away from the blast that she only suffered a ruptured eardrum, but she was, tragically, downwind, which meant she inhaled a vast quantity of terrashot spores (as well as, presumably, much of the remaining mass of her late boyfriend)."
There's a kid you know who is going to get a huge kick out of this bestiary.
All my picks for best books to give this holiday are at http://www.unadulterated.us/pink-me/2015/12/give-it-all-the-goodies-for-this-holiday-season.html
There's a kid you know who is going to get a huge kick out of this bestiary.
All my picks for best books to give this holiday are at http://www.unadulterated.us/pink-me/2015/12/give-it-all-the-goodies-for-this-holiday-season.html
book_nut's review against another edition
3.0
The illustrations were fantastic and the stories creepy. I didn't read them all because I have issues with collections like this. But I enjoyed the ones I did read.
lukeisthename34's review against another edition
5.0
A rare interactive treat. All three of my kids gathered around to hear me read and each have taken it in turn to read themselves. The best part is the integration of the glow paint and the way of changes the page it is on. We all would rush to a closet to get the full experience in full dark laughing and gasping as we did. Just wonderful.