Haint Country (Hardcover)

Matthew R. Sparks

ISBN 10: 1985900963 / ISBN 13: 9781985900967

Published by The University Press of Kentucky, Lexington, 2025

About this Item

Hardcover. The hills of the Appalachia region hold secretsdark, deep, varied, and mysterious. These secrets are often told in the form of eerie, thrilling, and creepy folk tales that reveal strange sightings, curious oddities, and commonly serve as cautionary tales for eager and curious ears. These spine-tingling stories have been told and retold by family members, neighbors, and "hillfolk" for generations. Haint Country: Dark Folktales from the Hills and Hollers is a collection of weird, otherworldly, and supernatural phenomenon in Eastern Kentuckytales that have been recorded and documented for the first time. Collected and adapted by Matthew Sparks and Olivia Sizemore, the anthology explores stories of ghosts or "haints," strange creatures or "boogers," haunted locations or "stained earth," uncanny happenings or "high strangeness," and humorous Appalachian ghost stories. Contemporary yarns of black panthers, demons, and sightings of ghostly coal miners are narrated in the first person, reflecting the style and dialect of the collected oral history. Though comprised of a mixture of claimed accounts and fabricated lore, the locations and people woven throughout are very real. Complemented with evocative watercolor illustrations by Olivia Sizemore (who was inspired by the work of Stephen Gammell) and a compendium that provides additional context, Haint Country is a thrilling and bone-chilling excursion to the spooky corner of Appalachia. Haint Country: Dark Folktales from the Hills and Hollers is a collection of weird, otherworldly, and supernatural phenomenon in Eastern Kentucky-tales that have been recorded and documented for the first time. Shipping may be from our UK warehouse or from our Australian or US warehouses, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9781985900967

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Haint Country (Hardcover)
• Publisher: The University Press of Kentucky, Lexington
• Publication Date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1985900963
• ISBN 13: 9781985900967
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Sizemore, Olivia
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

The hills of the Appalachian region hold secrets―dark, deep, varied, and mysterious. These secrets are often told in the form of eerie, hair-raising, and creepy folktales that reveal strange sightings and oddities, and they commonly serve as cautionary tales for eager and curious ears. These spine-tingling stories have been shared among family members and neighbors in eastern Kentucky for generations.
Haint Country: Dark Folktales from the Hills and Hollers is a collection of weird, otherworldly, and mystic phenomena―tales that have been recorded and documented for the first time. Collected and adapted by Matthew R. Sparks and Olivia Sizemore, the anthology explores ghosts or "haints," strange creatures or "boogers," haunted locations or "stained earth," uncanny happenings or "high strangeness," and humorous Appalachian ghost encounters. Contemporary first-person yarns about black panthers, demons, and spectral coal miners reflect the style and dialect of the region. Though comprised of a mixture of claimed accounts and fictional lore, the locations and people woven throughout are very real.
Complemented by evocative watercolor illustrations by Olivia Sizemore (who was inspired by the work of Stephen Gammell), Haint Country is a thrilling and bone-chilling excursion to the spooky corner of Appalachia.

About the Author

Matthew R. Sparks holds a doctorate in Middle East studies from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Beersheva, Israel. A native of southeastern Kentucky, he is a writer and researcher focusing on minority ethnic and religious communities in the Middle East. Olivia Sizemore, who was born and raised in Leslie County, Kentucky, holds a BA in studio art from Berea College.