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Weird Travel Guides
Weird New England: Your Travel Guide to New England's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets
Book by Joseph A. Citro
285 pages, Hardcover
First published September 25, 2005
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306 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
October 21, 2007
I enjoy the Weird US Series, brought to you by the Weird NJ guys. And it seemed Joe Citro was the perfect one to team up with them to provide the Weird New England volume. But he basically just reprinted passages from his other books in a flashier form. Probably because this would be circulated farther than his usual fare. In any case, not quite what I was expecting.
September 2, 2010
I was reading this book, and there was a photo of my grandparent's grave. That doesn't happen every day.
July 26, 2021
I see some small mini vacations in my rear-view mirror.
July 22, 2019
I want to start by saying, I READ THE WHOLE BOOK. I emphasize this becauase I wanted to quit so, so many times, but I wouldn't because it's one of the books I actually paid money for, so I was determined not to abandon it. I had to get my money's worth, you know?
I purchased this at an independent bookstore in Burlington, VT on a New England road trip. I want to support independent bookstores, but it's hard to do so when I have stopped buying books unless I've read them and loved them (and then I buy them immediately, not waiting to find a cute independent shop). So I did it! Along with my obligatory sticker or bookmark, I bought this book and lugged it along our road trip, assuming I'd discover even more cool things to see on our trip than I had already put into the itinerary. But it didn't work that way at all.
The book is organized by theme, not by city/state/region, so I couldn't really access all that an area had to offer before I entered it, even by index. I quickly gave up on that and just started to read from page one until the end, as that was how it was written with elaborate introductions and intentional transitions from one story to the next, one chapter to the next. It read like the Reader's Digest. It's simple and hokey. It induced much eye-rolling and lacked any citations or credible research that couldn't be done by just anyone using the internet. Much of it was garbage. Some would make a decent campfire ghost story, and most of it was stuff you've heard everyone in town repeat, such as in Ottumwa, IA, my uncle and EVERY SINGLE PERSON I HAVE EVER MET THERE says, "Down in the hydro, they say there's fish that could kill a man." They say it just like that, everyone, as routine and automatic as a teen responding, "fine" to "How are you?" These authors captured these vague beliefs and stories and re-spun them in their own words, but they're as useful as that bit from Ottumwa, IA. They entertain for a moment. Now, had someone found an article about a man getting eaten or half eaten by a fish, or news articles regarding multiple disappearences near the hydro to back up that claim, I'd be fascinated for quite some time and maybe even dream of experiments to test the theory out, etc. That was how I felt about most of the stuff in this book; it was just unbelieavable hearsay with nothing to back up the claims, but I think I was not the intended reader. The occasional reader on the toilet was probably more the correct audience. It was also offensive in its use of language, such as referring to people as lunatics, freaks, and weirdos, even when talking about populations of people who supposedly actually exist today (like the "melonheads").
At one point, early in our trip, my traveling companion pointed out the whale tales on the cover of the book and said, "Hey! We saw those statues on the side of the highway and wondered about them!" This was BEFORE Burlington, but I am not a visual person and didn't even notice the cover. I quickly used the index to find out about them. Here is exactly what I found (in its entirety): "I was driving to Vermont when I came across this odd and wonderfully weird site. Along the fields and mountains, I came across those "whale tails" on Rt. 89 by or in Burlington. Is it some whale cemetery? All I kept asking myself is WHY?? It made me laugh, and I just wanted to share my road site attraction.--Rose Newton." That's IT. That was all I got. SERIOUSLY? I went online and found the entire history of the whale tales and why they are there outside of Burlington. That's how freaking useful this book is.
So why a 2 and not a 1? It did mildly entertain me at times, and sometimes, just SOMETIMES, I got some real history (like the fact that the founder of Rhode Island, Roger Williams, was a pretty awesome liberal who was kicked out of Massachusetts for his beliefs--this was the interesting part, not the ghost story about him-- evidence that there was non-native American Indian life in North America from visiting parties outside of the Vikings over a thousand years before them, etc., info about Dr. Whilhelm Reich and the first serial killer with his hotel of death, and information about real, verifiable human beings who created interesting folk art in the 20th century. These things I looked up on my own and learned all about them, the book just igniting my interest. My favorite sections, and most useful, was Personalized Property and Cemetery Safari. These are things I can actually add to a road trip and I'd love to see them, such as the house made entirely of newspapers which is now a museum.
Bottom line: This is no good for inspiring travelers to see weird things on a road trip; it appeals to people who don't crave depth or research in their nonfiction; it may give you good ghost stories and stories of UFO sitings, bigfoot, a loch ness monster type thing in Lake Champlain (come on, now), ghosts, and all kinds of silly creepy tales with no proof of any sort to use to entertain your kids or a group at a campfire. Fun illustrations.
It was okay. I did learn a little, as long as I sought the internet to dive deeper, and that's better than nothing.
I purchased this at an independent bookstore in Burlington, VT on a New England road trip. I want to support independent bookstores, but it's hard to do so when I have stopped buying books unless I've read them and loved them (and then I buy them immediately, not waiting to find a cute independent shop). So I did it! Along with my obligatory sticker or bookmark, I bought this book and lugged it along our road trip, assuming I'd discover even more cool things to see on our trip than I had already put into the itinerary. But it didn't work that way at all.
The book is organized by theme, not by city/state/region, so I couldn't really access all that an area had to offer before I entered it, even by index. I quickly gave up on that and just started to read from page one until the end, as that was how it was written with elaborate introductions and intentional transitions from one story to the next, one chapter to the next. It read like the Reader's Digest. It's simple and hokey. It induced much eye-rolling and lacked any citations or credible research that couldn't be done by just anyone using the internet. Much of it was garbage. Some would make a decent campfire ghost story, and most of it was stuff you've heard everyone in town repeat, such as in Ottumwa, IA, my uncle and EVERY SINGLE PERSON I HAVE EVER MET THERE says, "Down in the hydro, they say there's fish that could kill a man." They say it just like that, everyone, as routine and automatic as a teen responding, "fine" to "How are you?" These authors captured these vague beliefs and stories and re-spun them in their own words, but they're as useful as that bit from Ottumwa, IA. They entertain for a moment. Now, had someone found an article about a man getting eaten or half eaten by a fish, or news articles regarding multiple disappearences near the hydro to back up that claim, I'd be fascinated for quite some time and maybe even dream of experiments to test the theory out, etc. That was how I felt about most of the stuff in this book; it was just unbelieavable hearsay with nothing to back up the claims, but I think I was not the intended reader. The occasional reader on the toilet was probably more the correct audience. It was also offensive in its use of language, such as referring to people as lunatics, freaks, and weirdos, even when talking about populations of people who supposedly actually exist today (like the "melonheads").
At one point, early in our trip, my traveling companion pointed out the whale tales on the cover of the book and said, "Hey! We saw those statues on the side of the highway and wondered about them!" This was BEFORE Burlington, but I am not a visual person and didn't even notice the cover. I quickly used the index to find out about them. Here is exactly what I found (in its entirety): "I was driving to Vermont when I came across this odd and wonderfully weird site. Along the fields and mountains, I came across those "whale tails" on Rt. 89 by or in Burlington. Is it some whale cemetery? All I kept asking myself is WHY?? It made me laugh, and I just wanted to share my road site attraction.--Rose Newton." That's IT. That was all I got. SERIOUSLY? I went online and found the entire history of the whale tales and why they are there outside of Burlington. That's how freaking useful this book is.
So why a 2 and not a 1? It did mildly entertain me at times, and sometimes, just SOMETIMES, I got some real history (like the fact that the founder of Rhode Island, Roger Williams, was a pretty awesome liberal who was kicked out of Massachusetts for his beliefs--this was the interesting part, not the ghost story about him-- evidence that there was non-native American Indian life in North America from visiting parties outside of the Vikings over a thousand years before them, etc., info about Dr. Whilhelm Reich and the first serial killer with his hotel of death, and information about real, verifiable human beings who created interesting folk art in the 20th century. These things I looked up on my own and learned all about them, the book just igniting my interest. My favorite sections, and most useful, was Personalized Property and Cemetery Safari. These are things I can actually add to a road trip and I'd love to see them, such as the house made entirely of newspapers which is now a museum.
Bottom line: This is no good for inspiring travelers to see weird things on a road trip; it appeals to people who don't crave depth or research in their nonfiction; it may give you good ghost stories and stories of UFO sitings, bigfoot, a loch ness monster type thing in Lake Champlain (come on, now), ghosts, and all kinds of silly creepy tales with no proof of any sort to use to entertain your kids or a group at a campfire. Fun illustrations.
It was okay. I did learn a little, as long as I sought the internet to dive deeper, and that's better than nothing.
August 20, 2016
Fun and definitely a good starting point for some more in depth research. But it got a little dull at points, so I ended up skimming more than I would have wanted to.
March 12, 2023
Another in the series regarding unusual places to visit as well as urban legends amidst the United States although this one covers the region of New England - Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. Some will call them weird but others may just simply call some of the local and rumored occurrences as odd, unbelievable or strange.
Like the bridge over the Willimantic River near Windham, Ct with the four giant frogs on spools of thread for the industry and the 1758 battle of frogs over the water in a drought-stricken pond. The two flights of John Childs - more glider-like - that so upset the Puritans of Boston that they banned flying in the town in 1757. And at the time of the book's publication in 2005, it was still on the books. Salem's Black Church. Boston's Skinny House which is only 30 feet long, 10 feet wide and 4 stories tall - please enter from the alley at the side. Magnetic hills that will give the illusion of your car moving up a hill. The International Museum of Cryptozoology in Portland, Maine. Then there are various collections - like umbrella covers, horseshoes among others. The cemeteries with notorious and mysterious myths associated with them as well as interesting epithets (some that rhyme) as well as stunning artwork on the monuments of various inhabitants. The Gillette Castle.
Strange happenings. Ghosts. Urban legends. Mysteries. Properties with interesting collections. Monsters. Unexplained Phenomena. Abandoned buildings and monuments to the weird. Some of the more haunted locales have personal recollections by those who have experienced some of the mysterious happenstances but if you're just looking for some interesting side trips during your vacation in New England, this could provide one or two.
2023-025
Like the bridge over the Willimantic River near Windham, Ct with the four giant frogs on spools of thread for the industry and the 1758 battle of frogs over the water in a drought-stricken pond. The two flights of John Childs - more glider-like - that so upset the Puritans of Boston that they banned flying in the town in 1757. And at the time of the book's publication in 2005, it was still on the books. Salem's Black Church. Boston's Skinny House which is only 30 feet long, 10 feet wide and 4 stories tall - please enter from the alley at the side. Magnetic hills that will give the illusion of your car moving up a hill. The International Museum of Cryptozoology in Portland, Maine. Then there are various collections - like umbrella covers, horseshoes among others. The cemeteries with notorious and mysterious myths associated with them as well as interesting epithets (some that rhyme) as well as stunning artwork on the monuments of various inhabitants. The Gillette Castle.
Strange happenings. Ghosts. Urban legends. Mysteries. Properties with interesting collections. Monsters. Unexplained Phenomena. Abandoned buildings and monuments to the weird. Some of the more haunted locales have personal recollections by those who have experienced some of the mysterious happenstances but if you're just looking for some interesting side trips during your vacation in New England, this could provide one or two.
2023-025
July 22, 2025
I think this is a fun book for what it is with some very good photos.
However, it's hard to take it too seriously when they claim a reader sent them a photo of a "ghost girl" and then don't bother to include it.
It's the kind of thing you can flip through and enjoy without taking it too seriously. A hodgepodge of stories and photos , odd urban legends, alleged haunted places, weird beasts, you name it.
As someone who grew up in New England, I appreciated having access to towns and places I vaguely knew. New England is the oldest part of America I am guessing and its history is undeniably fascinating.
Solid if you aren't striving for a hundred percent purity and accuracy. It is after all a speculative piece, no one can prove ghosts really exist, for one thing.
However, it's hard to take it too seriously when they claim a reader sent them a photo of a "ghost girl" and then don't bother to include it.
It's the kind of thing you can flip through and enjoy without taking it too seriously. A hodgepodge of stories and photos , odd urban legends, alleged haunted places, weird beasts, you name it.
As someone who grew up in New England, I appreciated having access to towns and places I vaguely knew. New England is the oldest part of America I am guessing and its history is undeniably fascinating.
Solid if you aren't striving for a hundred percent purity and accuracy. It is after all a speculative piece, no one can prove ghosts really exist, for one thing.
June 14, 2020
Very fun read and very comprehensive. They nailed a few weird stories and obscure places near where I grew up in CT that no one would know! Surprised to see Chris Gethard wrote one back before he was famous.
March 15, 2021
I admit I didn't read the entire book, I skipped a lot of the local folk tales and Bigfoot stories. I was pleased to see my hometown featured twice.
I think there are enough weird true stories about New England that I would fine appealing.
I think there are enough weird true stories about New England that I would fine appealing.
June 14, 2018
I first read "Weird Florida" a decade ago, but haven't read anything in this series since then. I must admit it has not aged well. These books are an odd amalgamation of the tangible yet odd - unusual statues, out of place objects, Gusiness world record holders for largest/smallest whatever - with an array of folklore, paranormal, and cryptozoological tales.
The authors are usually casually dismissive of any mundane explanation. It's all done at a very introductory level with many stories quite vague on names and dates, with any kind of citation or source usually absent. This book has the audacity at one point to criticize another work because "For the serious researcher, this practice is a nuisance because it makes the tales impossible to verify." These books are built on tales impossible to verify and generally useless to the serious researcher! Even as a travel guide the book is of limited use as the reader must do further research to locate the location mentioned; no address or GPS coordinates are given.
There's a certain audience that undoubtedly eats this stuff up without hesitation. The books are useful for finding unusual places worth a visit; there are a number of places in Florida I first learned about from "Weird Florida" and there are several places from this book going on my To Visit. However, I find the overall value to be pretty limited and I'm glad I got this from the public library rather than buying it.
The authors are usually casually dismissive of any mundane explanation. It's all done at a very introductory level with many stories quite vague on names and dates, with any kind of citation or source usually absent. This book has the audacity at one point to criticize another work because "For the serious researcher, this practice is a nuisance because it makes the tales impossible to verify." These books are built on tales impossible to verify and generally useless to the serious researcher! Even as a travel guide the book is of limited use as the reader must do further research to locate the location mentioned; no address or GPS coordinates are given.
There's a certain audience that undoubtedly eats this stuff up without hesitation. The books are useful for finding unusual places worth a visit; there are a number of places in Florida I first learned about from "Weird Florida" and there are several places from this book going on my To Visit. However, I find the overall value to be pretty limited and I'm glad I got this from the public library rather than buying it.
January 9, 2008
I always wanted to read this book. My mother-in-law has a cottage in the mountains of New Hampshire, so we often take road trips around New England as an inexpensive alternative to a pricey vacation, when money is tight. We also have explored a lot of remote Northern New England on long rides to and from Montreal. I thought this book would add some excitement to future road trips and I wasn't wrong. I am now dying to find the Mellonheads and Frog people. The ghost stories scared the crap out of me. Can't wait to get on the road and start exploring some of the books finds, like the holy city! And can't wait to read other editions of this series!
February 26, 2012
This is one of those books that most people probably don't read every page of. I know I didn't as a lot of the stories seemed uninteresting to me.
I just want to point out that it annoys me to get a book like this, and then there is no address or location info provided so you are unable to find the places on your own. Some of the stories talk about a specific picture, and then they don't include the picture. Pretty pointless to include that story if you ask me. Its just a tease because now I want to see the photo. I did like how you could look in the back and find stories that went to specific states. Its surprising how many books don't do this.
I just want to point out that it annoys me to get a book like this, and then there is no address or location info provided so you are unable to find the places on your own. Some of the stories talk about a specific picture, and then they don't include the picture. Pretty pointless to include that story if you ask me. Its just a tease because now I want to see the photo. I did like how you could look in the back and find stories that went to specific states. Its surprising how many books don't do this.
October 31, 2013
New England is up there on the weirdness meter: old cemeteries, crazy epitaphs, H.P. Lovecraft, Pomoola, Dighton Rock, Salem witchcraft trials, Stephen King, the Bridgewater Triangle, Mary Baker Eddy, the Goshen Tunnel, Betty & Barney Hill, America's Stonehenge, "Ghost Cars," the Moodus noises, Joseph Smith, the Oneida Community, Phineas Gage, the Lake Winnipesaukee mystery stone, Wilhelm Reich, spontaneous human combustion, the Dover Demon, Loren Coleman, the Upton Tunnel, Lake Champlain monster, Gungywamp, Skull and Bones, and Purgatory Chasm. And better writing than many others in the Weird America series.
February 3, 2015
Weird New England, Your travel guide to New Englands local legends, Best Kept Secrets by Joseph Citro
Lots of places to visit with the unusual especially in my back yard. Always good for a day trip.
4 statues of frogs sitting on spools of thread over the Willamantic River, CT would be a good photo op for us. Lots of other places around the New England area, day trips or a night at the hotel if you can plan for many visits to the sites. Ghost and cemetery stories also along with just strange sights.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
Lots of places to visit with the unusual especially in my back yard. Always good for a day trip.
4 statues of frogs sitting on spools of thread over the Willamantic River, CT would be a good photo op for us. Lots of other places around the New England area, day trips or a night at the hotel if you can plan for many visits to the sites. Ghost and cemetery stories also along with just strange sights.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
January 29, 2014
Random pick from the library shelf...anything about New England :-)
This book is written more along the lines of a bathroom reader or browsing book.....but I got caught up in it and read every word. I enjoyed the ghost stories, loved the history, learned some new stuff, wanted to visit some of the places....and put a whole new meaning to my summer nights running in the Hockomock Swamp Rat series! Love New England!
This book is written more along the lines of a bathroom reader or browsing book.....but I got caught up in it and read every word. I enjoyed the ghost stories, loved the history, learned some new stuff, wanted to visit some of the places....and put a whole new meaning to my summer nights running in the Hockomock Swamp Rat series! Love New England!
November 20, 2009
I love the whole "Weird" series...I started with Weird Pennsylvania and now that I've moved this was the next logical choice. It's fun, light-reading that I suggest to anyone who's interested in those types of local ghost stories and legends and such. It definitely made me want to take a road trip and check out some of the things for myself!
August 12, 2011
My dad found this book a few weeks ago in a tiny library in Rhode Island. He had read about one page before I took it from him. The stories in this book were fascinating, from ghost stories to local legends. I also found a few places I already knew about, and got to learn some more about them. I wished the book was longer. I find it hard to believe that I knew so little about where I live!
July 27, 2023
I was going into this hoping for the classic Unsolved Mysteries feel and some H.P. Lovecraft inspiration. I got all that and more weirdness. Every page had something great. Even the hearsay stories were fun. The stone structures was something I had never heard of especially interesting because they are impossible to date when they were made.
August 31, 2009
These are always great. All summer I just sat reading page to page of all the legends. The only thing that is sad is that I won't get the 411 like in the magazine when things are closed down, like when the 7 gates of hell are now missing 3 of the gates!
October 11, 2009
This highly recommended illustrated book contains fascinating stories about New England ghosts, ancient mysteries, bizarre beasts and haunted cemeteries. I also love the design with its sidebars and photographs.
September 21, 2011
If you live in New England (I do) and are interested in finding weird (as noted on the cover) places to visit, this is a great book for pointing out said spots and giving a little history of what is there.
April 10, 2013
I've read through this before which is a good indication of a book's worth—having a reader pick it up to read again. Living in the area, I really should get out to view some of this stuff on my own.
The second pass is certainly the motivation I need!
The second pass is certainly the motivation I need!
August 3, 2007
A present from one of my dearest friends who knows how much I love weird and creepy shit-
December 31, 2007
Not as weird as I had hoped
January 17, 2008
I can't get enough of these books on weird supernatural phenomena and ghost stories.
June 19, 2011
Love the stories. Most of them are from Vermont so its even better.
November 27, 2012
Actually went & saw/did some of the weird things in this book. The magnetic hill was a cool one!
December 29, 2012
A little too jokey for my taste, but this was balanced out by some excellent ghost stories.
Read
January 29, 2025mr horan borrowed this from me for like the entire year
i also was reading it while i got my birthmark removed
fun fact
i also was reading it while i got my birthmark removed
fun fact
September 17, 2014
I loved it. Chock full of creepy places I want to go. Any brave souls want to join me?
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews