Weird N.J.: Your Travel Guide to New Jersey's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets

Weird Travel Guides

by Mark Moran, Mark Sceurman

Oh sure, Texas is bigger and California is cooler, but for sheer, out-and-out weirdness, no state even comes close to New Jersey. You probably know of the infamous Jersey Devil, but have you heard of the Matawan Man Eater or the Hoboken Monkey-Man? Maybe you'd like to cruise down haunted Annie's Road in Totowa, or take a stroll through Vineland's bizarre Palace of Depression? These are just some of the offbeat and odd, the mysterious and unexplainable, the spooky sights and local legends that don't appear on any tourist map. You'll only find them here, along with an amazing assortment of roadside oddities, abandoned asylums, natural phenomena and unforgettable people along the highways and byways of the Garden State. From Caldwell's Mystery Thread and the Dancing Jesus of Whippoorwill Road to the campaign to save Middletown's Evil Clown, you'll laugh, gasp and marvel at the everyday weirdness that is New Jersey.

Genres: Nonfiction, Travel, History, Paranormal, Reference, Supernatural, Folklore

271 pages, Hardcover

First published August 28, 2003

Reviews

[Kon R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a lot of fun when I read it during my college days. There's so many places in the book you can go visit late at night with your friends. I have fond memories of the road trips we took. Granted a lot of the places mentioned cannot be visited due to safety and/or legal reasons, but the stories surrounding those locations are fun nonetheless with some creepy photos. Whether any of the contents are true is irrelevant if you're a fan of horror.

[Nicholas Papavero]

It is full of creepy, interesting and cool facts about nj

[Mark Speed · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fairly wide variety of weird stuff from across the Garden State. It used to be my job to go over there every few weeks and visit our clients, so I know the state very well. I rate it very highly - there are a lot of wonderful things about it. I used to fly over on a Saturday, leaving all of Sunday to go and explore.

From the legendary Jersey Devil, to ghosts, to lights in church towers, and badly developed photos, it's all in there. Very comprehensive. Shame I only found it late in that period of my life.

[Mike Da Silva · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have lived in Jersey long enough to buy a lunch, chances are you've heard of this book or the magazine. It's got alot of kooky shit in it, and alot of places you really don't want to visit in the night time. Makes for a very good outing though, if you can get enough people to go with you.

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the Magazine, I love the books, More so because I know or have even lived in the areas some of the stories take place in! Read these books, especially if you don't live in NJ!

[Tagcaver · Rating 1 out of 5]

Are you a teenager who likes to get drunk with your friends and then look for scary fun? Then you would like this book. If you are from New Jersey and want to reminisce about local places, this book isn't for you. I'm still annoyed that I actually paid money for this book. It's not much more than stories submitted by individuals relating about the ghosts or aliens or other apparitions they saw when visiting an isolated road, cemetery, or other local "spooky" places. The book could use more photos --- aw heck, the book can't be made any better. Don't buy it unless you want to read drunk/high teen stories of their visions.

[Drunken Thane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our beloved Garden State is given its due by Mark and Mark who provide a thorough overview of everything that's obscure, overlooked, strange and bizarre. The book was published in 2005 by two NJ lifers who clearly watch way too much X-Files, but the content is relevant in 2019 as the majority of it is historical. The strongest points are sharing local tales and oral history. Having grown up in Old Bridge, many stories rang true for me such as the creepiness of Runyon Road, the graveyard in the middle of the former route 1 flea market/current AMC theatre, the abandoned Staten Island ferry stuck in the Raritan river near route 18, and the Nike missile site in Old Bridge off route 9. The stories of the Blue Hole in the Pine Barrens and Rionda's tower in Alpine are intriguing enough to warrant a visit. Also particularly strong were the stories of Sam Patch the Jersey Jumper, Zip the What Is It, UFOs over the Wantague River and the Carteret sightings of 2001. You can feel the passion these guys share for places like Asbury Park being a desolate wasteland back in the 1990's (I clearly remember) and which thankfully now has completely transformed into a booming beach town. My only complaints, which are minor, are that I would have liked a more in depth analysis of the Jersey Devil and why did they omit the creepy clown sign in Middletown from their roadside oddities section?!?! Overall, this book is highly recommended to all quirky New Jersey residents who love and appreciate the uniqueness of our state.

[Halloween Queen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been reading these books since I was a little kid (like 6 years old). Now I'm 14 and some of them still scare me. I used to be TERRIFIED of the Pig Lady. Also the New Jersey Devil and Big Red Eye, but mainly the Pig Lady. So terrified that in the morning if I'd hear a breathing sound, I'd think it was her and it would keep getting louder since I kept getting more scared. If you want to be scared, pick this up. Especially if you're (like me) in New Jersey and your town happens to come up for one of them! Yup!

[Pete Bylone · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not a big believer in the paranormal myself, but I do believe unquestioningly that people do weird stuff, and this book showed a lot of that stuff from all over my home state. I'd recommend it for anyone living in or from NJ, whether you're a believer or not. It's got a lot of interesting history and certainly some things to throw into party conversations.

[Luis Del Aguila · Rating 2 out of 5]

Compilations of weird things are entertaining and that's why I got this book thinking that I was going to find rare or unique places in New Jersey, it has that but the content is more varied, with mysteries, bizarre beasts roadside oddities, ghosts and other paranormal things. It is quite varied in topics but not all are entertaining, I mean that it has curiosities that do not deserve so much attention to be in a book as well as pinky`s secret hideaway, or you unbelievable sightings of UFOs in the state. It is a book that had potential by name but is wasted with unnecessary staff.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had already read the follow up book, Weird Maryland. In terms of content, it is very much that same. However, I didn't quite latch on to this book as much as I did Weird Maryland. But I know why that is. It is two reason. First, I'm not from New Jersey. I've been there a few times but it was always on my way to or from somewhere else. Second, while I wasn't born in Maryland, I've lived her a majority of my life.

[Valerie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! Good conservation piece as well.

[angelofmine1974 · Rating 3 out of 5]

My review of this book can be found on my Youtube Vlog at :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhnvM...

Enjoy!

[JJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting

[Chuck Skorupski]

It lived up to the title and was as entertaining as the website. NJ just has all of these little nooks and crannies not all right near a Turnpike exit that are just "off". It, like much of America has these oddities in otherwise mundane urban or suburban areas that one might drive past every day when one suddenly thing "just what is that anyway?" And lest we forget the magic of roadside attractions. To quote Neil Gaiman in "American Gods":

" “In other countries, over the years, people recognized the places of power. Sometimes it would be a natural formation, sometimes it would just be a place that was, somehow, special. They knew that something important was happening there, that there was some focusing point, some channel, some window to the Immanent. And so they would build temples or cathedrals, or erect stone circles, or. . . well, you get the idea.”

“There are churches all across the States, though,” said Shadow.

“In every town. Sometimes on every block. And about as significant, in this context, as dentists’ offices. No, in the USA, people still get the call, or some of them, and they feel themselves being called to from the transcendent void, and they respond to it by building a model out of beer bottles of somewhere they’ve never visited, or by erecting a gigantic bat house in some part of the country that bats have traditionally declined to visit. Roadside attractions: people feel themselves being pulled to places where, in other parts of the world, they would recognize that part of themselves that is truly transcendent, and buy a hot dog and walk around, feeling satisfied on a level they cannot truly describe, and profoundly dissatisfied on a level beneath that.”

0380973650
American Gods: A Novel / Neil Gaiman.
New York, NY. : William Morrow, 2001.
pp. 117–18
http://www.amazon.com/American-Gods-N...
accessed 01/26/09

used without permission (say the word and the quote comes down)

I'm not saying it is true, but there is something special and organic about the old roadside attraction as opposed to branded amusement parks..

[Lore · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best thing about "Weird N.J." is how responsive the publisher was when I wrote to complain about one of the stories being illustrated with an inappropriate and completely not-humorous photograph of a lynched man! The publisher quickly apologized, eliminated the photo from the next reprint, and sent me an updated copy of the book with another apologetic letter.

The book itself is a quirky travelogue, good as a coffee table book, especially for people who know New Jersey. There are a couple of spots the describe that my family and I had visited when I was a kid, so that makes it extra-cool.

That, and my small victory against an inappropriate attempt at dark humor.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once upon a time I was into Weird New Jersey. The magazine highlights interesting (and weird) places in New Jersey. The interest grew over the years to expand beyond the state. That is when things got weird (pardon the pun) for Mark and Mark. The franchise lost its appeal as they went national, had a television show, and began publishing books.

This first book about New Jersey was basically a re-print of articles from the magazine put together in an anthology. Overall, for longtime readers, this was disappointing. For those who had never read the magazines, I imagine it was thrilling to gain insight into the weirdness of the Garden State.

[Jaime K · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm from NJ and while I recognize a few names/places/Weird Things, I was surprised at how little I did know about our weird state!

- Some of the history bored me (even though some was interesting) just because I'm not a history person.
- I've known of Midgetville and the Albinos, but it's still an eye opener to read how people even currently will scream MIDGET! or ALBINOS! out car windows.
- There are some obscure things and people though, like an albino midget cannibal. That made me roll my eyes.
- Some things in the state are horrifying! Like taking the skin of Antoine Le Blanc and making wallets out of it.
- Edison was more of a horrid person and a scumbag than I knew.

[Erin14]

I am currently reading my two latest Weird NJ magazines. It is possibly the best magazine ever created. If you love the supernatural, aliens, or anything weird, this magazine is for you. It is printed twice a year and is just fantastic. The majority of the magazine is comprised of letters from New Jersyians who have experienced the bizarre or fantastical. The staff also does full pieces too. Everything in this magazine is AMAZING! I save all of my copies because they are JUST that good!

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just noticed I never wrote a review about this book from any past "book websites." Well, simply put, it is clearly the best book out of the "Weird" series. If you are a fan of the magazine (or a sporadic reader), it may seem redundant. But it is a great book to pick up for a friend who is moving to the state, or just to keep on hand for visitors to read.

[David Corleto-Bales · Rating 3 out of 5]

New Jersey's strange legends, abandoned everythings, monsters and UFO sightings are chronicled in a pretty good installment of the "Weird" series. New Jersey seems to have a pretty good stock of urban legends in its history.

[Steven Eckardt]

Weird NJ books are interesting if you like going to scarey, haunted, creepy, abandoned or just weird places this is a book that you should read. If you even just like reading about that kind of stuff than this would be a good book to read.

[Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Weird N.J. 'nuff said.

[Vashni · Rating 5 out of 5]

check out the piece on Big Red Eye.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Represent!!

[Val · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for us who are too chickensh*t to go do it in person!

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

very cool if you're into strange, supernatural things. i've enjoyed all of this series that i've read.

[Daylightfades · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE

[Todd B]

Strange, fun read.

[Harold Crowder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very glad to have this to discover the gems in the "gardens" of NJ!