COUNTDOWN TO HALLOWEEN DAY 3: CRESTWOOD HOUSE MONSTERS SERIES

I stumbled upon the CRESTWOOD HOUSE MONSTERS SERIES as a young student in the library trying to find something interesting to read, but mostly to look at. I wasn’t much of a reader of real books back then. I was always interested in something visually striking for my eyes to devour. The school library had a little something for everyone back in those days, but I’m not sure they’d be as apt to carry Crestwood House’s series of books about the monster movies as they were back then.



The Monsters Series consisted of twelve volumes, each about one of the horror films of the past and featuring as many pictures as there were pages of text about each movie’s plot. Originally printed in 1977, these were reprinted in 1984. The twelve books were:

THE DEADLY MANTIS
IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE
FRANKENSTEIN MEETS WOLFMAN
CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON
THE WOLF MAN
MAD SCIENTISTS (which is the only one to talk of several films)
THE MUMMY
FRANKENSTEIN
GODZILLA
KING KONG
THE BLOB
DRACULA


There was a later set that was done in a slightly different format in 1985. There is no complete listing of them that I’ve found, but it featured books such as:

WEREWOLF OF LONDON
TARANTULA
HOUSE OF FEAR
THE MOLE PEOPLE
BLACK FRIDAY
THE RAVEN



All these years later, I had completely forgotten about them until I was at a local library’s book sale this September and my nephew picked up one from a table to show me. Apparently, they are a touchstone for many fans of the genre as I’ve found many examples of them being mentioned fondly here online. Many of whom have done a great job commemorating them:

http://titansterrorstoys.blogspot.com/2010/03/crestwood-house-of-horrors.html

http://www.brandedinthe80s.com/index.php?post_id=125980

http://www.cinemassacre.com/2010/09/12/the-crestwood-house-monster-series/

http://www.reverendphantom.com/2009/08/crestwood-house-monsters-anybody.html

http://waffyjon.blogspot.com/2010/04/crestwood-house-movie-monsters-books.html

Rue-Morgue

http://blog.paxholley.net/2008/10/30/awesome-tober-fest-a-look-back-at-the-crestwood-monster-books/

That's all for now, kiddies, but enjoy the following Halloween Greeting until tomorrow...