Monsters: A Bestiary of the Bizarre

by Christopher Dell

A captivating, dark visual journey through terrifying creatures from every era and culture, as depicted in art, myth, and lore.

Genres: Nonfiction, Art, Mythology, History, Folklore, Monsters, Reference

216 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Raluca Daniela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Face it, you got this book for the illustrations, not the text. The text is often unspecific and all over the place. I wish it delved deeper into the meaning behind certain monsters. Instead, it tends to take them at face value. For example, Egyptian gods are taken as a literal hybrids between man and animal, when in reality, the animal head represents certain attributes the god had - lioness for warrior, dog for guardian etc. Beyond the text, this book has incredible illustrations spanning mythology and folklore from the ancient civilizations to the modern age. Despite a lot of focus on Christian/European monsters, I appreciated how it also managed to show monsters depicted in a lot of Eastern cultures (lots of info on Japan, too).

All in all, this was a quick, fun read. I recommend reading it together with The Mythical Zoo: Animals in Myth, Legend, and Literature by Boria Sax for more info on the subject.

[Kthxbai! · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, fast read giving a general overview of monsters from history and myth. The focus is on the gorgeous artwork, not the text -- which is really quite skimpy. You certainly won't learn much about the folklore or the psychology behind monsters, but you'll get a kick out of seeing the fine variety of demons, ghouls, dragons, and other fantastic creatures as interpreted by Goya, Blake, and Aldrovandi.

[Edan · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[♛ Garima ♛]

Got this book in hardcover from British Museum yesterday, great read so far!

[Wai Kok · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is gorgeously illustrated with artwork culled from many sources across various cultures. Alas, content-wise, it is little more than a travel brochure into monster country. The text is scant, with obvious and shallow observations that does not offer much insight into our human curiosity into the macabre and monstrous. Still, I learned a thing or two, and I would have given this book a higher score had it been more reader friendly (why did they think it is a good idea to place all the pictures' captions/provenance at the end of chapters instead of beside the illustrations for ease of reference?)

[Cintia Andrade · Rating 4 out of 5]

the artwork is absolutely amazing, even though the content is rather superficial. the book is quite monstrous itself (with a scaly hard cover), which made me feel like i was reading harry potter's monster book of monsters.

[Mark Conrad · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful thing to exist. A light breeze through the various monsters of nightmare and folktale across the world, with paintings from throughout history to match. This made me want to stay up all night inventing ghost stories.

[Ipek · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want a thorough resource about monsters and beasts, this book is not for you. Nevertheless, it is a great book for a general knowledge about the creatures of folk tales and myths combined with a humorous writing. It makes a great light reading for lazy times, the artwork in it of monsters, creatures and spirits is quite wonderful to have too. I'd highly recommend it if you are looking for a general overview and an easy read on the subject.

[Jeffrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome illustrations! Loved it.

[Loie☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted something that was going to be pretty easy and laid back for me to read through. Something I could read a couple pages of before heading off to sleep in the evenings.
I thought it would take me a little longer to read through Monsters: A Bestiary of The Bizarre, but I soon found out that it's primarily made up of paintings and images. Not that I'm complaining, because they added a real flare to the book.
I actually really enjoyed learning about all the different monsters that originate from different cultures and countries. Things like this just fascinate me so much, and it's so interesting to see what type of things the human mind can conjure up into belief.
This was a really fun, quick read and has helped me to regain some motivation to carry on reading.

[ManOfThousandHobbies · Rating 2 out of 5]

The title isn't what this book is
it's a depthless introduction into the global historical phenomenon of monsters
While the list in the back can have some purpose to dive deeper into aspects of the innumerous cultures which have created much beloved legendary beasts and monsters, a quick google search could do much the same

Wouldn't recommend this book and would advise against buying it as well

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

One the most beautiful books I own. Also, I found out about creatures I never knew existed and about the fact that there are even monstrous nations. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in mythology, fantasy, non-existent creatures, fairytales, etc.

[Brian Burphys · Rating 2 out of 5]

Frankly speaking the best thing in this book is its myriad of other material, it’s cited art pieces and further reading section do a lot to bring value to what is otherwise a very base level analysis of monsters.

At least that’s my experience as someone who has been interested in monsters and myth for my whole life.

This book can best be seen as a collection of curated works of art relating to Humanities obsession with creating and imagining Monster broken up with Paragraphs of text giving an introduction to some of the images and ideas presented.

[Kartanecikleri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daha detaylı olabilirmiş ama yine de çok ilginç bir kitaptı. Çok fantastik şeyler öğrendim :D

[Audrey_e · Rating 3 out of 5]

The highlight of this book is the way it is illustrated. However, the shorts text was worthwhile as well, mostly to marvel at the multiplicity of monsters across cultures. But be aware of the author's biases. When discussing East Asia, Dell almost entirely focused on Japan.

[Nicole Miles · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun, brief overview of monsters chocked full of references to seek for further reading (both serious and light-hearted) that go into more detail about the creatures mentioned as well as references to the 161 fantastic illustrations featured. I really appreciated the efforts made to not only talk about European monsters as Dell mentions creatures from such places as Mesopotamia, Japan, North America, and even Haiti.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this is not a hugely detailed book, it is beautifully illustrated showing examples and extracts from a variety of sources to take the reader through the various histories and forms of monsters, demons and animal/human hybrids that we have managed to come up with over the years. There is some text that gives a bit of background with a bit extra for the more famed examples, which is easy to read and feels more like a fireside chat over a cup of tea than anything else. This may not tell you everything that you need to know about monsters but it is a beautiful book, I would highly recommend it.

[Steffi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Schöne, grelle Zusammenstellung von bekannten und weniger bekannten Darstellungen von Monstern in der westlichen aber auch fernöstlichen Kulturen. Die erklärenden Texte sind bewusst kurz gehalten, sodass das Buch ein wahrer Genuss für die Augen ist.

[Stefan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting insight into the boundless possibilities of human imagination and fear, packed full of high quality full page artworks from around the world and throughout time.

[Pedro Zavala · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved, beautiful and fun.

[Matthew Gurteen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically just an art book. I initially picked this up after seeing my brother reading it and falling in love with the formatting and illustrations. Beyond this, however, there is little there. Any commentary on the monsters presented in this book is simple, repetitive, and the lack of research shows. I do think it is crucial to separate text from illustration, however. In the introduction to the book, Christopher Dell says that he intends it to be a 'testament to humankind incredible, fevered, indestructible imagination,' and I would say the illustrations showcase this. Although I liked the general formatting of the pictures, however, there was more than one mistake in referencing the images that should have been fixed in editing.

I would be more forgiving if at least some of the illustrations were the authors own. Instead, this is just a collection of admittedly fantastic and diverse art from different periods loosely tied together with simple dialogue. I would recommend it to anyone looking for an array of bizarre images. I would not recommend it as a source of information or even as an introduction to the topic, however .

[Ionarr · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was given to me by friends, and it is a beautiful present. The information is brief, giving an overview of all types of monster and picking out several notable examples. The bulk of the book is given over to a wide collection of illustrations, statues, paintings and other images. I particularly like the look of the further reading section, and will be diving in to the recommendations.

While this may not be a book to sink your teeth into if you want meticulous stories and details, it is a lovely book to leaf through and an absolutely excellent bedside read. I am glad I have it, because one read was definitely not enough to absorb the wide variety covered and I will continue to dip into it.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

The ultimate stuff of nightmares. Inside you'll meet all kind of monster you'll never wanted to see: gods and monsters, creatures of chaos, devils and demons, hellish creatures, the many faces of satan, magical monsters, monsters and protectors, dragons and other flying monsters, oriental dragons, western dragons, water monsters, Kappa, sirens and mermaids, transformations and hybrids, demon foxes, werewolves, ghosts and ghouls, monsters of folklore. You'll even see how to fight monsters (Hercules/St George). Inside you'll find brilliant illustrations throughout history in colour. What more can I say? Brilliant collection of monsters to give you sleepless nights. Highly recommended!

[pauchok · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was an impulse buy for me, upon seeing the cover and illustrations inside, I bought it as a book I could read to wind down at the end of the day, because who doesn't want to read about monsters at night? The artwork was amazing to look at, and the writing was easy-to-read and informative, a combination often rare in books. It was a quick read, since I only read around twenty minutes every day, and I would recommend it to anybody who find folklore, legends and monsters interesting, as well as the normal reader. Overall an intriguing and beautiful book.

[Jacopo Camilleri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Carina rassegna dei prodotti dell'immaginazione umana. Non è affatto da intendersi come disamina approfondita, bensì come semplice spunto più improntato alla visione del nutritissimo comparto figurativo ivi fornito che non a una lettura saggistica informativa. Ottimo per i curiosi che vogliano ottenere una leggera infarinatura sul ruolo dei mostri nella cultura umana, e per chi ami godere dell'arte che essi hanno prodotto nei millenni.

[Bones Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

The incredible book with the perfect collection of pictures which represent various beasts all over the world, through all known and unknown human history. This gallery which was created by different masters is conducting by short informative chapters dedicated to different groups of monsters with one chapter about monster slayers. The must-have Bestiary for all gods- and monsterslovers.

[Heidi ✨]

Lots of good monstrous illustrations! Wishing for footnotes for all the facts though… academia has ruined me. And perhaps a bit more consideration for how bodily difference is discussed - as the connection of bodily difference and monsters is made but not really analysed at all, and this has and does affect people’s lives.

[The ghostly reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ricco di illustrazioni a piena pagina, povero di contenuti. Un bel viaggio fotografico nelle diverse forme della mostruosità, ma insoddisfacente per chi volesse approfondire i caratteri delle diverse creature e scovarne di nuove.

[Sabit Günay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Çok üstünkörü yazılmış, derin bir bilgi içermeyen, resimlere dayalı bir çalışma. Metinler oldukça yüzeysel ve basit. Tarihi referanslar çok apar topar bir araya getirilmiş gibi. Resimler arşivimde bulunsun diyenler için.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book however it is mostly pictures of how different cultures have portrayed Monsters. A lot of the monster spoken about seemed to missing pictures or the arrangement/order of the pictures made it hard to relate them to the text