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I'm flattered to see this segment's inspired another blogger—also a mate of mine. It's funny, because I first 'met' him on Amazon. It's come full circle, in a way.
Some of these finds may be considered peripheral to the subject, i.e. they touch on vampires rather than serve as full-length treatments. Being mindful of catchpenny titles, I've gauged their inclusion in this list by what I assume will be a reasonable and relatively unique take on vampires.
July 2012
Monsters of the market: zombies, vampires, and global capitalism / David McNally
Though its publisher site lists 'July, 2012', Amazon says it'll be released on 11 September. Take your pick. If you like political allegories, then this is the book for you! 'Drawing on folklore, literature and popular culture, this book links tales of monstrosity from England to recent vampire- and zombie-fables from sub-Saharan Africa, and it connects these to Marx’s persistent use of monster-metaphors in his descriptions of capitalism.'
1 July 2012
The Dracula dilemma: tourism, identity and the state in Romania / Duncan Light
The best evidence of Dracula's success is reflected in its impact on Romanian tourism; even though Bram Stoker never visited the country. Once Westerners realised that Transylvania wasn't a mythic never-never land, the floodgates opened. So what's the dilemma? According to the book's Amazon description, 'On one hand, Dracula is Romania's unique selling point and has considerable potential to be exploited for economic gain. On the other hand, the whole notion of vampires and the supernatural is starkly at odds with Romania's self-image as a modern, developed, European state.'
30 July 2012
Vampires in the New World / Louis H. Palmer
As with the first entry, publication dates for this book are confusing: Amazon.co.uk says July, while Amazon lists 31 January 2013. I've used its publisher's date. The book's description makes it sound like it follows in the footsteps of Nina Auerbach's Our vampires, ourselves (1995), but with an American emphasis: 'surveys vampire films and literature from both national and historical perspectives since the publication of Bram Stoker's Dracula, providing an overview of the changing figure of the vampire in America. It focuses on such essential popular culture topics as pulp fiction, classic horror films, film noir, science fiction, horror fiction, blaxploitation, and the recent Twilight and True Blood series in order to demonstrate how cultural, scientific, and ideological trends are reflected and refracted through the figure of the vampire.'
7 August 2012
Haunted New Orleans: Southern spirits, Garden District ghosts, and vampire venues / Bonnye E. Stuart
One of two upcoming books emphasising vampires in association with American's Transylvania: New Orleans. The book's description doesn't indicate how much focus will be on 'vampire venues'— or vampirism, in general—so I'm only working with the title here. That said, New Orleans' considerable vampire 'heritage' should give Stuart a lotta meat to chew on.
11 September 2012
Spirits of New Orleans: voodoo curses, vampire legends, and cities of the dead / Kala Ambrose
The second book focusing on America's Transylvania. Must be something in the air. Again, the description doesn't indicate how much focus vampires are gonna get—but 'vampire legends' is certainly more expansive than 'venues.' Its author certainly gets around, though: 'A highly interactive teacher on a mission to educate, entertain and inspire, Kala writes for the Huffington Post, the Examiner, AOL, Yahoo and Fate Magazine and presents workshops nationally on the Mind/Body/Spirit connection including Auras and Energy Fields, Developing Business Intuition, Haunted History and Wisdom Teachings at the Omega Institute, John Edward Presents Infinite Quest, the Learning Annex, LilyDale Assembly, and Daily Om.'
16 September 2012
Undead in the West: vampires, zombies, mummies, and ghosts on the cinematic frontier / Cynthia J. Miller and A. Bowdoin Van Riper (eds.)
On first blush, the book—a collection of essays—seems to focus on the Weird West, a genre that combines 'the Western with another literary genre, usually horror, occult, or fantasy.' But its Amazon description indicates it'll also examine Western tropes in association with 'weird' combinations: 'The subjects explored here run the gamut from such B films as Curse of the Undead and Billy the Kid vs. Dracula to A-list features like From Dusk ‘til Dawn and Jonah Hex, as well as animated films (Rango) and television programs (The Walking Dead and Supernatural). Other films discussed include Sam Raimi’s Bubba Ho-Tep, John Carpenter’s Vampires, George Romero’s Land of the Dead, and Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West.'
I've actually uncovered a few more new books, but I'm 'holding' onto them till I confirm a few details first. So, stay tuned for the next instalment!
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