The book of nasty legends

by Paul Smith

Book by Smith, Paul

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Paul S. (Stefan) Smith is a head of the Folklore Department, Memorial University of Newfoundland. He first taught folklore in England in the late 1960s, and before arriving in Newfoundland, also taught at Ohio State University and the University of Texas / Pan American.

Paul Smith's earliest publications centered on folk drama. He also worked extensively with popular ephemeral literature and photocopylore, establishing formidable expertise in researching all manner of folklore as found in early and contemporary printed sources. From 1983 forward, however, Smith has been known as a collector and student of contemporary legend. In addition to authoring numerous essays in the field, he has edited or co-edited nine collections of legends and essays, including the popularizing Book of Nasty Legends (1983) and Book of Nastier Legends (1986) and the first collection of Perspectives on Contemporary Legend emerging from the Sheffield conferences (1984). Smith also served as the first President of the International Society for Contemporary Legend Research (ISCLR, 1988-95) and as the inaugural editor of the Society's journal, Contemporary Legend.

Reviews

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the illustration, not to date self but when this came out it was my favorite book as a young adult. Great stories come to life. It should higher reviews…

[Donna Worsley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great stories with a few I had heard of over the years. The Murderer and Violence section really scared me!!