Booknote: How to Survive a Horror Movie

Seth Grahame-Smith, How To Survive A Horror Movie. Philadelphia, PA: Quirk Books, 2019. ISBN: 9781683691464.

Genre: nonfiction
Subgenre: horror, reference, humor, movies, films
Format: paperback
Source: Berea branch of the Madison County (KY) Public Library

This is a fun book that fans of horror movies will appreciate. Would you know what to do if you find

yourself in a horror movie? How would you even know if you are suddenly in a horror movie? If you want to survive, this book can help.

The book is arranged as follows:

• A foreword by Wes Craven, apologizing for all the dead people in his movies and being glad this book was written. 
• A short introduction.
• Six chapters on topics such as types of horror movies, slashers, ghosts, aliens, and more. 
• An appendix of additional study materials. This is a list of recommended horror films. 

The book is written as an educational text that takes you from knowing the signs of being in a horror movie to how to deal with specific monsters and situations. The strength of the book is in the humor throughout the text. You'll find yourself smiling here and there as you read. In addition, the book is very informative. The author is clearly knowledgeable about horror movies, and he has fun playing with the horror movie conventions. Note also the book has some illustrations that add a bit to the horror mood.

Overall, this is a fun and entertaining read that I really liked. Fans of horror movies may want to add it to their collections. This is also a good selection for public libraries; it is one to display any time you do horror themed displays like for Halloween. I'd consider it optional for academic libraries,  but it may be good for those with strong popular culture collections.

4 out of 5 stars.