Clive Barker's A-Z of Horror

by Stephen Jones, Clive Barker

This is an exploration of the tradition of horror, from its earliest origins - as far back as the biblical victim Job - to the monsters, slashers, satanic children and serial killers who represent our anxieties today. Each letter of the alphabet is used as a starting point for an aspect, element or ingredient of horror. It may be a scene in a film, such as the shower scene in "Psycho", or a character such as Freddie in "Nightmare on Elm Street". Or it may be idea such as evil, violence or darkness, which is explored to reveal hidden meanings. Other themes examined include the psychological impact of horror, the role of women as heroines and victims, and the incarnation of the film monster.

Genres: Horror, Nonfiction, Reference, Film, Collections, Media Tie In, Halloween

256 pages, Paperback

First published April 27, 1997

About the author

Stephen Jones is an eighteen-time winner of the British Fantasy Award.

Reviews

[Michelle {Book Hangovers} · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun little read for any true horror fan. Facts about the real and the made up horrors that have haunted this world from way back when till now. Favorites of Clive Barker piled into one book...genius!

The only reason I didn’t give this a full five star review is mainly because I feel like so much was left out. Clive Barker is a master of horror but for some reason I felt like he was holding back. I wanted more of that gore we see so much of in his writings. Does that make me demented? Maybe, but it is a book about HORROR! Let’s see more horror!!

[Sjoerd · Rating 3 out of 5]

It really was an alphabet. A to Z. It was a hodge podge of stories, references, incidents, movie reviews and interview. I am not to sure who wrote the book, I expected Stephen Jones, but sometimes the author referred to themselves as Barker.

It was entertaining, but didn't learn that much new things.

Probably will never reread, maybe will watch the series.

[D.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is fun, but in no way exhaustive...nor does it presume to be. It's meant to be a review of horror by Barker, so it's weighted to his own tastes. The chapters are themed to each letter, and cover a broad range within the subject.
The authourship is questionable: the book itself says 'compiled by' Stephen Jones, but the essays appear to be suggesting themselves as by Barker himself. Quotes from him are additionally tagged marginally, but then the synopses by Jones are also individually notated, so who wrote the bulk of the text is anyone's guess. It does not, to me, seem like Barker's writing, but who cares? It's an entertaining book with lots of cool images, and clearly adds more info (like filmographies, bibliographies and further reading) to what must be in the show.
More than anything, the book makes me want to see the series it's supposed to be a companion to!

[Regina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Due to flooding in our basement (where my library just happened to be located) I had to take down and put back all my books and came across this title. I didn't remember it well except that I enjoyed it. Perfect for laying around the house to pick up and read a chapter/letter whenever I had the chance (hence the long reading period between dates).

Lovely book about books, movies, history, people, and obscure ideas that all had some influence on the talented Mr. Barker in shaping the Renaissance artist and story teller that he is.

[Erin *Proud Book Hoarder* · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd love to find this one again. Owned it as a teenager. Remember it wasn't exhaustive by any means, but it was good and needs a re-read badly. Barker is a good choice for someone to write a book on horror. He certainly enjoys showing up on documentaries about it, even if he hasn't written much in the genre anymore.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting highlights of horror, both real life and fictional. I think this would have been more interesting seeing the TV show it accompanied, seeing Barker talk about what these bits of horror mean to him.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sprawling compilation of the history genre, from two of its more knowledgeable practitioners - messrs Barker (who 'presents') and Jones. Worth a read for anyone with the slightest interest in horror.

[Dan]

Great informative book with lists of movies in their own genres. Artwork from CB and great publicity shots/covers.

[Gary Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great history of horror reference. Love the classics!

[Joshua Hair · Rating 5 out of 5]

For my fiftieth book of the year I wanted to read something special and, well, what could be more special than a special edition companion book to a Clive Barker BBC show? Better yet, make it an encyclopedia of horror handpicked by one of the masters himself. Add in a hundreds of excellent quotes and interviews with Boris Karloff, Stephen King, George Romero, and many other gods of horror and you have something that's darn near perfect for the fans. I'll get right down to it here: I love Mister Barker, I love Mister Jones (who did a fantastic job of compiling this masterpiece), and I love everything that's offered here. The most fanatic horror fans are still bound to find an obscure piece of literature or film history here that they were unaware of beforehand. When you can accomplish something like that you've earned my applause and admiration, and that's what happened here.

[Kelvin Green · Rating 2 out of 5]

I remember devouring the BBC TV series upon which this book is based, and reading and re-reading the book itself, back when I was a teenager. When I saw the book in a charity shop, nostalgia tugged at me and... it's fine. There's no real depth to it -- how could there be when it distils an entire genre across many mediums into twenty-six arbitrary chapters? -- but there are a few nuggets of cleverness and one or two surprises. It's a shallow but fun look at horror as a genre and while it won't be any use as a proper scholarly text, it's still worth a read.

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am keeping this book for my studies, it is full of amazing film history.

[Emil Minchev · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative, engrossing, fascinating and profound. Also a brilliant achievement in book design. Highly recommended for horror fans.

[Jason Kron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Worth it for the awesome movie posters and movie list alone.

[johnny_by_johnny · Rating 3 out of 5]

You know what movie im tryna watch? Hellraiser

[Patrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

The British wackjob gives an alphabetical list of some of his favorite scary movies, books, and random evil stuff he finds inspiring.

[Jake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great horror compendium. Lots of fun to be found here.

[Roxton Malone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delves into film, literature, history, even fine arts. Surely one of the best collections of insights into horror throughout the ages ever published.

[Anna Haugerud · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was about the history of horror, mostly old movie crap, no Clive at all, just him writing it.

[Mark Gamer · Rating 5 out of 5]

worth reading for any horror

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eccentric alphabetized collection about what makes Barker’s horrific heart tick. Find out a few tidbits and psych 101 with Barker. Beautifully illustrated.

[Peastatgeria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant and wonderful book. I own it and have re-read it over and over again!

[Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the books that sparked my interest in horror.

[Iffy Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would have gotten 5 stars but I didn't really like all the notes Stephen Jones made.