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angelofthe0dd's review against another edition
4.0
I was really surprised how engrossing this book would become once I got into reading the lists. My initial impression, a few pages in, was "a cool conversation piece" and possibly something I might pick up once in a while to peruse. About one-fourth into the book, I was really enjoying all the different lists. My favorite lists from the book:
1. "Ten Favorite Horror Novels or Short Stories"
2. "Ten Horror One-Hit Wonders That Everyone Should Read"
1. "Ten Favorite Horror Novels or Short Stories"
2. "Ten Horror One-Hit Wonders That Everyone Should Read"
trudilibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
Very cool, very funny...this comprehensive, sometimes off-the-wall, book of lists is chock full of mainstream horror and hard-to-find cult classics and a must read for the horror addict (and dedicated listmaker nerds like myself). I had an absolute ball perusing these colorful lists, compiled by some of the biggest names in the genre, including Stephen King (who lists his 10 favourite horror novels / short stories of all time). You will be inspired, intrigued, and amazed and have a helluva good time along the way. You will also never lack for a good movie or book idea ever again. For the horror novice, this deluge of lists is a baptism by fire of everything the genre has to offer, from the good, the bad, the ugly ... and the Italian ;-) Trivia buffs will rejoice!
My only criticism is that the book does not have a Table of Contents (or an index) for each list, so you can end up doing a lot of flipping pages to find the ones you want again. Other than that, dig in and enjoy!
My only criticism is that the book does not have a Table of Contents (or an index) for each list, so you can end up doing a lot of flipping pages to find the ones you want again. Other than that, dig in and enjoy!
bloodravenlib's review against another edition
4.0
Right away I can say that if you liked trivia, then you will like this book. If you like the horror genre in any form (film, books, tv, music, etc.), then you will like this book as well. Some readers out there may remember the Book of Lists series, and this is a pretty good entry in the series.
The book is arranged into major chapters. There is one chapter each for film, literature, music, miscellaneous trivia, and a little bit of this and that at the end. Personally, I like the literature chapter best, but that may be because I am a literature sort of person. I did find the film chapter pretty interesting as well. It does cover a pretty broad range of films, especially older films that may or not be available nowadays. You may find yourself longing to watch this or that film, or maybe watch again a film you may have enjoyed before.
The lists contain a variety of trivia and items. I do think a small weakness of the book, which is what prevented me from giving it five stars, is that a couple of lists are a stretch. There were a couple of lists of movies that "were not really horror movies but can be viewed as horror" and similar concepts that felt that the editors were just pushing. Those kind of lists just made it feel like the editors were simply pushing in stuff to fill up the book rather than something that was carefully thought out.Aside from those, and those weak lists are few, the content overall is pretty good. The editors do a good job of providing context for the lists in the form of introductory notes, which at times can be as entertaining as the annotated lists. Yes, most of the lists are annotated.
I definitely enjoyed this book, and I would recommend it to any fan of the horror genre as well as anyone who just likes reading trivia books. I know there are a few items listed that I may look up to experience later, and for that, I think the book is worth it.
The book is arranged into major chapters. There is one chapter each for film, literature, music, miscellaneous trivia, and a little bit of this and that at the end. Personally, I like the literature chapter best, but that may be because I am a literature sort of person. I did find the film chapter pretty interesting as well. It does cover a pretty broad range of films, especially older films that may or not be available nowadays. You may find yourself longing to watch this or that film, or maybe watch again a film you may have enjoyed before.
The lists contain a variety of trivia and items. I do think a small weakness of the book, which is what prevented me from giving it five stars, is that a couple of lists are a stretch. There were a couple of lists of movies that "were not really horror movies but can be viewed as horror" and similar concepts that felt that the editors were just pushing. Those kind of lists just made it feel like the editors were simply pushing in stuff to fill up the book rather than something that was carefully thought out.Aside from those, and those weak lists are few, the content overall is pretty good. The editors do a good job of providing context for the lists in the form of introductory notes, which at times can be as entertaining as the annotated lists. Yes, most of the lists are annotated.
I definitely enjoyed this book, and I would recommend it to any fan of the horror genre as well as anyone who just likes reading trivia books. I know there are a few items listed that I may look up to experience later, and for that, I think the book is worth it.
macbean221b's review against another edition
4.0
I love lists. I love horror. So there was very little chance of me disliking this book. I was reminded (usually quite pleasantly!) of things I'd seen/read before, and I picked up a lot of recommendations for things I hadn't. I'm really glad I got this book.
verkisto's review
2.0
Things I wanted from this book: A list of horror novels I ought to read.
What I received from this book: 60% lists about movies, 15% lists about television shows, 10% lists about music (wut?), and 15% lists about books (10% of which were about what horror authors thought of the movie adaptations of their books).
On the one hand, I did get a list of books (ten of them); on the other hand, I spent a lot of time reading about movies I'll never want to see. (Some of the list writers were a bit too excited about the level of graphic violence in the movies.) Had this been more then 99 cents, I'd be even more annoyed than I am with this book.
What I received from this book: 60% lists about movies, 15% lists about television shows, 10% lists about music (wut?), and 15% lists about books (10% of which were about what horror authors thought of the movie adaptations of their books).
On the one hand, I did get a list of books (ten of them); on the other hand, I spent a lot of time reading about movies I'll never want to see. (Some of the list writers were a bit too excited about the level of graphic violence in the movies.) Had this been more then 99 cents, I'd be even more annoyed than I am with this book.
sushai's review against another edition
2.0
This book would have been more meaningful to me if I had known even a third of the "famous" people chosen to list their Top Ten _______. For example, "Adam Green's Top Ten Horror Movie Actresses Who Should Have Gotten Naked...But Didn't" is not only boring but insulting.
rickklaw's review
4.0
The perfect bathroom book, this entertaining collection is both interesting and insightful. Sure to send you looking for many obscure movies and books.
otterno11's review
3.0
Lately, I have been revisiting the old Books of Lists, feeling really nostalgic about their random trivia and fun lists of stuff people liked in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. I was then intrigued to see that this more recent book of lists, The Book of Lists: Horror, has been compiled, and on such an interesting topic, so I quickly acquired it from the library. While it is still chock full of fun stuff about the horror genre, including lists by a variety of “movers and shakers” in the genre, it is a little difficult to compete with the sheer variety available online these days. More than half of the book is taken up by movie lists, generally along the lines of director’s “top tens,” some more interesting than others though providing some interesting titles I had never heard of before, particularly among the international films. However, this emphasis on movies is still a little bit of a disappointment to some one whose interest is more in literature. In conclusion, while not reaching the heights of past books of lists, The Book of Lists: Horror still provides more than enough to keep the interest of anyone with a passing enjoyment of horror literature, movies, music, and other topics.
trin's review
3.0
An assemblage of lists and essays-in-the-form-of-lists about horror movies, horror books, and horror in a variety of other formats. I’m not a huge horror fan, but I still got a kick out of this book. The humorous lists were unsurprisingly my favorites—top honors definitely go to [a: Vince Churchill|249615|Vince Churchill|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1338489726p2/249615.jpg]’s “Wow, the Black Guy Lived!”—and there were some good reading recommendations to be gleaned from the books section as well. However, there were far too many lists that were basically, “Hey, Here Are My Favorite Examples of the Horror Genre. You Know. In Case You Care, Since I’m Vaguely Connected With the Horror Industry and Whatnot.” Also, reading an essay about Eli Roth’s favorite examples of cinematic genital mutilation in which he pauses to complain that the horror genre is too often falsely accused of being misogynistic? That makes me want to do something pretty horrific to him.
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