Annie Wilder

You may also read my review here: http://www.mybookishways.com/2012/10/scare-a-thon-review-giveaway-trucker-ghost-...

Most of us have at least one family member that tells really good ghost stories. For me, it was my paternal grandmother. I think she maybe had all of five in her arsenal, but my 9 year old self didn’t care, and I probably heard each of them 20 times, at least. I loved all things ghost (still do), and when she told those stories, she had my full attention. As I matured, so show more did my level of ghost story sophistication, and even though I’m somewhat of a skeptic (I want to believe!!), there is, and always will be something about classic ghost stories, and especially those involving a long, dark, creepy stretch of night road. To this end, Trucker Ghost Stories is a pretty varied collection focusing on eerie happenings by truckers, obviously, however, if it has wheels, it’s also fair game here. Some are very short, and others are a bit longer, but all of them are pretty creepy. The editor, Annie Wilder, has plenty of ghostly experience, and she’s put it to fun use with this collection. Some of the highlights, for me, included “Skinwalker in Arizona”, which features a creature that scares the pants off of a half Hopi half Navajo little boy, enough that he remembers it years later; “UFO Encounter in Wyoming/US Highway 26” about a man that witnesses something very unusual happen to a fellow trucker; and “The Man in the Rain” about a woman who receives some ghostly assistance when she breaks down on the side of the road.

In Trucker Ghost Stories, Annie Wilder has compiled more than 60 stories of eerie happenings, and each is told in a unique voice, and also covers a pretty wide range of territory, from the deep south to clear across the world. Some will give you chills, others might even make you smile, and you’ll find yourself wanting to read just one more. Whether you are a true believer or a skeptic, Trucker Ghost Stories is the perfect way to fill a spooky October afternoon, and will certainly get you in the mood for Halloween! show less

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: A collection of ghost stories told from the people who experienced the supernatural while on the road.

The Review:

I won’t lie. I am a huge fan of ghost stories whether they make you laugh, cry, run screaming from the room or keep you awake at night. Trucker Ghost Stories is filled with first person accounts of the paranormal while on the highway, some stories range from a paragraph to several pages long. Most of the stories are told from show more truckers but there are a few from people just traveling in their cars and some are told in third person accounts (“my friend had this happen to them”). These stories are not told from professional writers so some do come off a little choppy (“so that’s my story” or “here’s my story” or even repeating a few points over again).

The stories are broken up into four different categories: Just Plain Weird, Messages and Assistance from the Spirit World, Haunted Highways: Legends and Lore of the Road and finally Time Slips. Just Plain Weird jumps you into the ghost story/legend experiences from being chased by a skinwalker to UFO’s to a woman who was kissed by a ghost while she was sleeping in her semi. The second category holds my favorite story, “My Guardian Angel is a Truck Driver”, this story made me cry but thinking back on it, I have a hard time believing it to be true. If it is true, I am sorry for doubting it, but it is one of the few third person stories in this collection so that adds to the could this be made up files?

The third section covers legends and lore of the road. I was kind of amazed about how many of these stories took place in Oklahoma. Since I live in Kansas I feel like I could investigate if I ever had some free time and ever felt inclined to do something like that. A lot of these stories I was familiar with from watching TV shows. I know one thing, I am never driving on Highway 666 now 393. Time Slips is probably the most scary part of the collection, some of these were about seeing ghosts dressed up from the past or losing time and being taken someplace that is not in the here and now. “Incident at Lost River” would have freaked me out so much I would never have driven that way again, let alone taken people with me to see if it would happen again!

I recommend this collection of stories for those who like a good ghost story. It will give you something to think about or look out for the next time you are on a long road trip.

FTC Advisory: Tor/Macmillan provided me with a copy of Trucker Ghost Stories: And Other True Tales of Haunted Highways, Weird Encounters, and Legends of the Road. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. show less

Being married to a truck driver for sixteen years perked my interest when I spotted this book on Amazon. I have heard from my husband some eerie experiences that he has had over the years and thought it would be fascinating to read what others had to say. So often it seems that traditional ghost stories pertain to houses, hospitals, schools, or the occasional abandoned building. Every once in a while a book about ghost stories on the highway appears, but never like this. Truck drivers in show more general are a group of interesting people that have a tough job that is under appreciated. Without these good people we would not have the food in our pantries or the clothes on our backs. Although some would dismiss their sightings possible hallucinations from lack of sleep, too many drivers share similar experiences on their routes.

I first must say that this was a fun read and I plan on sharing it with my husband. I loved reading the stories about the old route 666. My spouse used to drive down that road, but to his luck drove it during the day. I often heard the same story about the black dog sightings from him and also him spotting see through hitch hikers. To this day he occasionally spots weird things, but just chooses not to talk about it. He works nights hauling milk and would rather just do his job and come home. As an avid lover of the paranormal and Halloween this is a must add for a private collection. I am happy that I purchased it and highly recommend it! show less

I liked the author's previous book much better. This one the first few chapters read like a genealogy of the author's family which is nice on one hand but strange reading about a complete strangers relatives. When she does get into the paranormal and ghost story sections of the book it does get some better. But most are stories about her family and them having abilities or odd experiences. Many of her relatives have precognitive capabilities. Nearly all of her siblings have had some sort of show more ghost interaction. There's a whole chapter of ghost animals, like the family ghost dog that always rings the doorbell at Christmas. Nice overall but really seems to be the author reminiscing on previous family experiences. Her first hand experiences are better but maybe that's because their first hand and not re-telling of someone else's stories. show less