Thrill and Terror

Ghosts and Haunts from the Appalachian Foothills byJames V. Burchill, Linda J. Crider, Peggy Kendrick and Marcia Wright Bonner
Reviewed by Marisa Kraig

In James V. Burchill, Linda J. Crider, Peggy Kendrick and Marcia Wright Bonner's Ghosts and Haunts from the Appalachian Foothills, stories and legends, have been passed down from generation to generation. "and they're true," says the authors, (p.10). These ghostly tales of long ago, almost forgotten, make your skin prickle and your heart stop, (p.9). This book is an anthology of stories and legends from the past preserved by oral tradition. Scary stories and legends are somewhat of a trademark of southern Appalachia, as are ghosts angles, crying mists and other things that don't have a name. "Family ties and respect for the land run deep in southern Appalachia..." (p.11). The stories from this book are unique and can be found no where else but in this book. The authors writes so well and in such vived detail that you feel that you are actuall there. "Before she could continue, and ice-cold vapor like mist, wisped in the car's windows and hung like tendrilled fingers before her," (The Crying Mist). Each story scares you in a different way. And it seems like someone is really watching you. "There was nothing in the room, yet there was. He knew he could not explain it in words, but he knew something was behind the curtain. It was watching him. Occasionally he could see it , but not really, and could feel it but not touch it," (The Sentinel). And , if you are up to it, there is a chapter entitled, "Churches" that tells you how you can see a ghost, if you believe. Each story is different and unique in its own way, but they all seem to have one similar connection; They are all tales of fear and of the unknown. This book defiantly one to read in the dark, if you're not easily scared.

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