Author: William Gorman
Publisher: Helm Publishing
ISBN: 9780976919322
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 176

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Book Description
The haunted and haunting stories of this book come from a variety of people and places, persons who reside in sleepy, practical neighborhoods scattered all throughout the Rock River Valley and over most of north-central Illinois.

Author: Michael Kleen
Publisher: Black Oak Media
ISBN: 0979040140
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 158

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Book Description
An organized and comprehensive guide to Illinois' haunted and legendary places, Haunting the prairie contains 130 mystery sites and 60 individual illustrations and maps, plus a bibliographic timeline of paranormal and folklore research in Illinois. The author examines the sites and the history, as well as the hobbyists and professionals who explore the strange and unusual in the state. Divided among eight distinct regions and listed by county, each location features a description, directions, and information drawn from a diverse variety of books and articles.

Author: Michael Kleen
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
ISBN: 1625858760
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
Although Illinois saw no dramatic witch trials, witchcraft has been a part of Illinois history and culture from French exploration to the present day. On the Illinois frontier, pioneers pressed silver dimes into musket balls to ward off witches, while farmers dutifully erected fence posts according to phases of the moon. In 1904, the quiet town of Quincy was shocked to learn of Bessie Bement's suicide, after the young woman sought help from a witch doctor to break a hex. In turn-of-the-century Chicago, Lauron William de Laurence's occult publishing house churned out manuals for performing bizarre rituals intended to attract love and exact revenge. For the first time in print, Michael Kleen presents the full story of the Prairie State's dalliance with the dark arts.

Author: Kathi Kresol
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
ISBN: 1439662827
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 144

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Book Description
Follow local historian and “Ghost Lady” Kathi Kresol as she researches the spirits, curses, and curiosities from the Forest City’s shadowy past. Just beneath the glossy surface of Rockford’s rich heritage lies a dark history of tragedy, a troubled and turbulent past leaving scars that still resonate today. Geraldine Bourbon’s final struggle echoes throughout the farmhouse where her estranged husband pursued her with a pistol from room to room before gently laying her corpse on the bed. The sobs of society darling Carrie Spafford still keep vigil over the family plot of the cemetery where she sowed the heartbreak of her twilight years. From the vengeance of Chief Big Thunder to the Witch of McGregor Road, author Kathi Kresol shares the legends and lore of Rockford’s haunted history. Includes photos! “There are reasons why Kathi Kresol believes Rockford is so haunted. The tour guide said there are good ‘conductors’ for the supernatural in the city’s downtown area. These factors include being near a body of water, having limestone in the area and the area having a Native American influence.” —Beloit Daily News

Author: Diane Goldstein
Publisher: University Press of Colorado
ISBN: 0874216818
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description
Ghosts and other supernatural phenomena are widely represented throughout modern culture. They can be found in any number of entertainment, commercial, and other contexts, but popular media or commodified representations of ghosts can be quite different from the beliefs people hold about them, based on tradition or direct experience. Personal belief and cultural tradition on the one hand, and popular and commercial representation on the other, nevertheless continually feed each other. They frequently share space in how people think about the supernatural. In Haunting Experiences, three well-known folklorists seek to broaden the discussion of ghost lore by examining it from a variety of angles in various modern contexts. Diane E. Goldstein, Sylvia Ann Grider, and Jeannie Banks Thomas take ghosts seriously, as they draw on contemporary scholarship that emphasizes both the basis of belief in experience (rather than mere fantasy) and the usefulness of ghost stories. They look closely at the narrative role of such lore in matters such as socialization and gender. And they unravel the complex mix of mass media, commodification, and popular culture that today puts old spirits into new contexts.

Author: Ruth Ann Musick
Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
ISBN: 9780813101361
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 212

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Book Description
" West Virginia boasts an unusually rich heritage of ghost tales. Originally West Virginians told these hundred stories not for idle amusement but to report supernatural experiences that defied ordinary human explanation. From jealous rivals and ghostly children to murdered kinsmen and omens of death, these tales reflect the inner lives—the hopes, beliefs, and fears—of a people. Like all folklore, these tales reveal much of the history of the region: its isolation and violence, the passions and bloodshed of the Civil War era, the hardships of miners and railroad laborers, and the lingering vitality of Old World traditions.

Author: Charles Dickens
Publisher: Collector's Library
ISBN: 9781905716548
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 388

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Book Description
Throughout his illustrious writing career, Charles Dickens often turned his hand to fashioning short pieces of ghostly fiction. Even in his first successful work, Pickwick Papers, you will find five ghost stories, all of which are included in this collection. Dickens began the tradition of the 'ghost story at Christmas', and many of his tales in this genre are presented here including the brilliant novella, 'The Haunted Man and the Ghost's Bargin', which deserves to be as well known as A Christmas Carol. While all his supernatural tales aim to chill the spine, they are not without the usual traits of Dickens' flamboyant style, his subtle with, biting irony, humorous incidents and moral observations. It is a mixture which makes these stories fascinating and entertaining as well as unsettling. To paraphrase the Fat Boy in Pickwick Papers: Charles Dickens 'wants to make your flesh creep.'

Author: Selma Lagerlöf
Publisher: Good Press
ISBN:
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 6692

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Book Description
The 'Christmas Collection: 400+ Novels, Stories, Poems, Carols & Legends (Illustrated)' stands as an unparalleled anthology, weaving together an extraordinary tapestry of festive narratives, literary styles, and historical epochs. It encompasses a breathtaking range of works from the whimsical to the solemn, reflecting the vast panorama of Christmas traditions and sentiments across cultures and centuries. Noteworthy for its diversity and depth, the collection brings together revered classics and less-known gems, offering readers an enriched understanding of the Christmas spirit as depicted in literature. This anthology illuminates the multifaceted nature of Christmas, exploring themes of love, loss, joy, and reflection through a variety of literary lenses, from the poetic to the prosaic, the fantastical to the realistic. The contributing authors and editors, ranging from canonical figures such as Charles Dickens and Leo Tolstoy to children's favorites like Beatrix Potter and L. Frank Baum, offer a testament to the anthology's rich, cross-cultural tapestry. Their collective works, embodying the essence of their eras and individual philosophies, converge in this collection to celebrate the universal human experience of Christmas. The wide historical span of the collection, from the Renaissance wit of William Shakespeare to the poignant realism of Fyodor Dostoevsky, aligns with various literary movements, showcasing the evolving narrative of Christmas through the ages while retaining a timeless appeal. This anthology is an indispensable addition to the library of any reader seeking to immerse themselves in the literary celebration of Christmas. It promises not only a journey through a kaleidoscope of Christmas tales, carols, and poems but also an opportunity to engage with the works of some of the most influential figures in literature. Whether one is drawn to the nostalgic charm of Victorian Christmas tales or the introspective verse of Emily Dickinson, this collection offers a unique window into the ways Christmas has been celebrated, contemplated, and cherished through literature. It invites readers to explore, reflect, and revel in the rich literary heritage and collective human experience encapsulated within its pages.

Author: Selma Lagerlöf
Publisher: DigiCat
ISBN:
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 6685

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Book Description
DigiCat presents to you a meticulously edited Christmas Classics collection. This ebook has been designed and formatted to the highest digital standards and adjusted for readability on all devices. Content: The First Christmas Of New England (Harriet Beecher Stowe) The Gift of the Magi (O. Henry) The Holy Night (Selma Lagerlöf) A Merry Christmas & Other Christmas Stories (Louisa May Alcott) A Letter from Santa Claus (Mark Twain) Silent Night The Night After Christmas The Child Born at Bethlehem The Adoration of the Shepherds The Visit of the Wise Men As Joseph Was A-Walking The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Beatrix Potter) Where Love Is, God Is (Leo Tolstoy) The Three Kings (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow) A Christmas Carol (Samuel Taylor Coleridge) Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (L. Frank Baum) Christmas At Sea (Robert Louis Stevenson) The Savior Must Have Been A Docile Gentleman (Emily Dickinson) The Heavenly Christmas Tree (Fyodor Dostoevsky) The Little City of Hope (F. Marion Crawford) Christmas in the Olden Time (Walter Scott) Christmas In India (Rudyard Kipling) A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens) The Twelve Days of Christmas The Wonderful Wizard of OZ (L. Frank Baum) Ring Out, Wild Bells (Alfred Lord Tennyson) Little Lord Fauntleroy (Frances Hodgson Burnett) Black Beauty (Anna Sewell) The Christmas Child (Hesba Stretton) Granny's Wonderful Chair (Frances Browne) The Romance of a Christmas Card (Kate Douglas Wiggin) Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame) The Wonderful Life - Story of the life and death of our Lord (Hesba Stretton) The Christmas Angel (A. Brown) Christmas at Thompson Hall (Anthony Trollope) Christmas Every Day (William Dean Howells) The Lost Word (Henry van Dyke) The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (E. T. A. Hoffmann) The Little Match Girl The Elves and the Shoemaker Mother Holle The Star Talers Snow-White...

Author: Charles Dickens
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 726

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Book Description