3.5

*Book source ~ Home library

From Goodreads:
Starting with Giles' research into the various monsters and demons Buffy and the gang have encountered, this book then delves into the folklore that inspired the show's bad guys - their mythology, science, cultural, literary and historial origins. "The Monster Book" looks at how vampires are created on the show. There are interviews with the series creator, Joss Whedon, as well as the writers, make-up and costume artists, stunt men and actors. It explores the mythology surrounding vampires and other ghouls, in other forms of popular culture. Meet the vampires and other Sunnydale hellmouth creatures, safely, in this monster book.

I’d like to start by saying I screwed up and bought this book (used) without paying close attention to the title. It’s only for Seasons 1-4. I’ve looked but can’t find a comprehensive guide to all of the Buffyverse monsters and that’s a disappointment. There are also some editing issues. Anyway, as for this book, it is loaded with info, almost too much at times, that includes the mythology, folklore and popular culture of each section. The monsters are sorted into said sections: demons, vampires, magic users, primals, ghosts, the walking dead, bogeymen, invisible people and human monsters (Hello, Faith!). All of the info goes up to 1999 (there may be a few 2000 references, I can’t recall), so it’s now way out of date in regards to the popular culture sections. Supernatural, True Blood, Vampire Diaries or Walking Dead (etc.) aren’t mentioned regarding the popular paranormal stuff that’s so widely known today. But other than that it is a pretty good guide, limited as it is to Seasons 1-4, and I do recommend it for fans of Buffy. ( )

Whoa. This book is chock full of information. Basically it's not a surprising book if you can read the title. It's about 75% of the monsters that appear on the Buffy The Vampire Slayer TV show. I say 75% for two reasons. First, the edition of the book that I read only covers seasons one through the end of season four. Seasons 5, 6, and 7 have a few of their own monsters too. Also, they only cover the big monsters, and don't get into the multitudinous minor vampires, etc. that appear.

Their definition of monsters is also wide ranging. In addition to the demons, vampires and werewolves the authors also include the more than human beings who sometimes are good, sometimes not. i.e. witches and slayers are included (they're more than human yep, but not technically 'monsters' either).

The best part of the book isn't even the info on all the Buffy characters, though that stuff is awesome. The best part is the astounding amount of information on the vampires, demons, witches, etc. and not just in the TV show, but in all sorts of media and in the 'real world' too. Historical and fictional. It's tons of information, and with all the titles of other stories/books in there, there's a whole lot more to add to my to read list. Awesome book. ( )