31 Days of My Favorite Horror Books – Day 24 – SPLATTERPUNKS 1 and 2 edited by Paul M. Sammon
For the month of October, I will be writing brief essays about my 31 favorite horror books.
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Just as the anthology THE BOOK OF THE DEAD was one of the works that documented and cemented the beginning of the splatterpunk movement in horror, the SPLATTERPUNKS anthologies documented and cemented the beginning of what would become known as “extreme horror” or “hardcore horror” (which is kind of ironic considering their titles). These anthologies show the transition from splatterpunk into something meaner and darker.
These books were my first glimpse at some of the more extreme ends of the horror genre. This was my first time reading authors such as Robert Devereaux, Joe Lansdale, Ray Garton, Kathe Koja, and Poppy Z. Brite.
And these books didn’t just expand my horror reading. The first volume has an excellent essay by Chas. Bulan that traces extreme violence in movies that opened me up to many cult films – BLOODSUCKING FREAKS was a big one that stood out to me.
Both volumes of the anthology series are out of print but you can get them for pretty cheap on the used market.
Looking for more Halloween reading? Check out the newest titles from Deadite Press:
NO GIG IS TOO SMALL by Andre Duza
