A Fun Book
Apr 22nd, 2007 by lisa
I’ve been reading a very entertaining book called Weird New England. It was written by Joseph A. Citro and is part of the Weird U.S. series of books by Mark Moran and Mark Sceurman.
What I have enjoyed about it, aside from indulging my fascination with the unknown and strange, is that it’s presented in a non-sensationalized manner. The stories that have been debunked are presented as such. A lot of the content is just as interesting in what it reveals about human behavior, as it is in it’s sheer chill-factor fun.
One of my favorite stories in the book is the true and well-documented tale of Phineas Gage. A railroad worker from the middle of the 19th century. After a freak accident involving a tamping rod, Mr. Gage’s misfortune actually led to important medical discoveries in brain research… a bittersweet silver lining found in a personal tragedy.
There are ghost stories, abandoned places, weird unexplained phenomena, historical mysteries, stories of human and non-human monsters, and seemingly ordinary people with extraordinary powers. Mr. Citro presents the facts as he finds them and speculates where needed. Mysteries that can be explained are, and those that can’t be explained are left for others to solve.
It’s fully-illustrated and is an excellent “light read”. It was the perfect distraction for me while I was laid-up in bed all last week. If you like this sort of thing, I can recommend it.
