Back before man knew terror through global violence and extremist threat, the mind projected its own horrifying creations. Cavemen scraped beasts on walls. Cartographers etched monsters in the margins of atlases to mark out uncharted zones: leviathans, dragons, trolls, minotaurs, hydra and werewolves. Some grotesques were cast-out gods forced to trade as demons, others human-beast hybrids reflecting our desire for dominion over the animal kingdom; some lurked in lakes and seas; others swooped down and chewed up your children. Dell’s book is a beautifully illustrated flickbook of horror. Trawling ancient and medieval worlds, it fills your mind with a fearsome cast. Crawling across its pages is the idea that monsters are creatures that go against the laws of nature. Deft microessays guide you through treacherous terrain. For all the horror distilled into mythology, belief, folklore and literature, one thing is clear: true terror reproduces foully in the hearts and minds of men. Beware.
