Patrick W. Gainer

I was a bit disappointed by the misleading title. It's not ALL of Southern Appalachia, only West Virginia. Regardless, it is a charming little read.

What's great about this collection is that it's a mixture of both folktale and real experiences (primary sources!) The author was especially careful to preserve the traditional speech, sharing their words precisely. Growing up in a rural community, I even recognized some of the terms as ones still in use! I also learned that "Trick or Treat" originated in the celebration of Belsnickling? Closer to Christmas, rather than Halloween!

The only reason that this book didn't get a higher rating is because, besides a brief description of a revenant or poltergeist, the author included little explanation for the specifics within the tales. For example, in "The Ghost of the Jilted Girl," the spirit was manifested via suicide and could not cross water. Water is a pure, cleansing and life giving substance, a natural barrier against the undead. In the "Poltergeist of Petersburg" the ghost tempts the occupants into finding buried treasure. This ghost type originated in Switzerland. A soul was condemned to walk the earth if left with this kind of unfinished business. In the "Dog Ghost of Peach Tree," the creature is a gytrash or possibly a benevolent black shuck of English origin. A fetch is a type of wraith, commonly appearing before relatives at the moment of death, and features prominently in a few stories as well. Finally, the witchcraft chapter features the usual suspects of elderly men and women, who have familiars and rumored to have made pacts with the devil. This is important to note, as the WV mountain folk seemed to have adapted the English tradition of witchcraft rather than the German. Interesting stuff!… (mais)