American Scary

A History of Horror, from Salem to Stephen King and Beyond

De: Jeremy Dauber

Narrado por: Jeremy Dauber

From the acclaimed author of American Comics and Jewish Comedy comes a highly entertaining book that examines the American obsession with horror—and what it tells us about ourselves.

In American Scary, noted cultural historian and Columbia professor Jeremy Dauber takes the reader to the startling origins of the horror genre in the United States, drawing a surprising through-line between the lingering influence of the European Gothic, the enslaved insurrection tales propagated by slaveholders, and the apocryphal chronicles of colonial settlers kidnapped by Native Americans, among many others.

These foundational narratives give rise to and are influenced by the body of work we more closely associate with horror: the weird fiction of HP Lovecraft, the lingering stories of Shirley Jackson, the unsettling films of Alfred Hitchcock, the up-all-night tales of Stephen King, and the gripping critiques of Jordan Peele.

From “The Tell-Tale Heart” to M3gan, we begin to see why the horror genre is the perfect prism through which to view America’s past and present. With the extraordinary historical breadth and dexterous weave of insight and style that has made him twice a finalist for the National Jewish Book, Dauber makes the haunting case that horror reveals the true depths of the American mind.

Reseñas de la Crítica

Praise for American Scary:

"The American character defies description in many cases, but we are an obvious nation when it comes to our fears. With depth and dexterity, Dauber gets at the heart of our delusions of damnation, our obsessions, and confessions. American Scary synthesizes for both scholar and fan what it is we're afraid of, and why we always come back for more. A must-have for any horror completist."—Meg Elison, author of Number One Fan

Praise for American Comics:

"The first book about comics that covers events I was there for, where I’m not shaking my head at how wrong it is. A really good history of all the different strands of comics that came together over the last hundred and twenty years to become American Comics."—Neil Gaiman

"An entertaining and richly detailed new history of comics . . . both opinionated and frequently funny . . . the story Dauber tells is a mighty one."—Michael Tisserand, New York Times Book Review

"Until now one could only dream of an engaging, analytic history encompassing the entire medium. That sounds like a job for Superman, but Jeremy Dauber has gotten there first . . . His perceptive, critical overview is enlivened by a jaunty style that bops from the political cartoons of Thomas Nast in the 1860s to the demise of an equally influential gadfly, Mad magazine, in 2018."—Michael Saler, Wall Street Journal

"An entertaining, big . . . comprehensive survey of the comics industry, from its inception in early twentieth-century newspapers to the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe megamovie crossover empire."—Scott Bradfield, New Republic

"Dauber lets his love for the medium shine through . . . [and] makes a compelling argument that we can view, through the lens of comics' content, how America sees itself."—Cliff Cumber, Washington Independent Review of Books

So many interesting ideas about the origins of horror.

The book is really an encyclopedia of the amazing beginnings of horror and how it all ties back to modern day from slave revolts in NYC to recent movies. The connections are there but only if you understand the history behind it. Amazing listen!

A catalog of creepy and a discourse of darkness

A fantastic read of American history’s fears and failures. The author covers horror history from the start of puritan colonies in American all the way to post pandemic horror. Many great observations and theories discussed in a clear and playful way. Could be an excellent college course book.

Overwhelming Listen

This book caught my attention at a Halloween craft show and I was extremely excited to find it on Audible and pick it up for a credit, but it is just too much for audiobook format. So much ground is covered and ideas come and go so quickly that getting distracted by a deer beside the road during your commute or a pretty flower on your walk can be enough to make you miss out on entire key concepts. It's a very dense book, and it can be super fascinating when you sit down and devote your full attention to it, but if you're going to do that, just pick up a physical copy. Can't recommend in this format.

What am I listening to again?

Very longwinded and rambling, sometimes you forget that you're supposed to be listening to a book on horror. I lost track and interest quite a bit.