Monster, She Wrote: The Women Who Pioneered Horror and Speculative Fiction Hardcover – Illustrated, September 17, 2019

There are few places where I trust to get good recommendations for dark, weird authors, and even fewer for female authors. This book is an amazing resource for the history and future of horror fiction and I can't wait to read EVERY ONE OF THEM!

My favorite thing about this book is that it’s “further reading” section for each author often includes information on where/how to find copies of some of the more inaccessible texts! Also, it’s doing amazing work to spotlight the women and femme-presenting authors who defined speculative fiction, who often get overlooked. I can’t think of another text that gives such a clear and comprehensive overview of such, and especially not in such clear and entertaining text, with such lovely pictures, in such a lovely volume.

...the Kindle version looks great. Wonderful art nicely integrated with the text. Maybe the best looking Kindle book I've seen.

I think I was expecting more of a biography of female pioneers in the genre. And while this book gives a brief synopsis of some authors’ lives, it’s really more a collection of recommended reading. I truly enjoyed it but wish I’d had a better idea what I was getting into at the start

I read this over a 8 month time period. I found it to be the perfect amount of time to read a few chapters, add some books that were recommended to my TBR, and enjoy the refreshing perspective of the authors on women who write horror and speculative fiction.While reading I had Goodreads up and was constantly adding books. Some of those books I read in between coming back to Monster She Wrote. Like my discovery of Joyce Carol Oates and Tanarieve Due. Or when I bought Valancourt’s collections of both Lisa Tuttle and Elizabeth Engstrom. Highly recommended!This was an amazing read with so much included. Filled with history, powerful women and books and stories that will fulfill that dark side of your spirit!

I enjoyed this book quite a lot. I was familiar with the work of several of the authors it listed, and was very happy to learn about authors that are new to me. I would have, if possible, given it 4.5 stars, the half-star deduction owing to the fact that a book celebrating female authors totally omits the titular female lead (Aaliyah) in describing the film "Queen of the Damned," and instead notes it as a film "starring Stuart Townsend." Really, y'all? Since half-stars aren't an option, I had to give it four.

The book is an exhaustive reference of the contributions made by women in the horror genre, often unrecognized or forced to publish their work under male pseudonyms or beset by stigma for working in a man’s craft. Each author is introduced along with samples of their recommended contributions to the fields (my to read list on Goodreads and Amazon grew quite a bit as I raced through this book) and I enjoyed every page. The narrative does ring preachy and the flow is pleasant. I’d highly recommend this to any of my reader friends as a lesson in important history we’ve seen little recognition of to date, and as a monstrous reference for tons of new authors to embrace.

Monster, She Wrote is a must-have for any horror fan. While not for children explicitly, it would make a perfect gift for any mighty girl in your life. Cataloging the inspirational and dreadful while throwing in a few authors and stories I didn't know. But that's not why I'm giving it five stars today. Monster, She Wrote feels like it was written just for me and no one else. The dedication "To all the girls who still sleep with the lights on, but read the scary stories anyway" more than sums up my personal dedication to the horror genre. Monster, She Wrote is a labor of love that recognizes women who dared to be heard, women who dared to shock. This book isn't for our horror foremothers though, it's for us, the women who sleep with the lights on and keep coming back for more.

This was a great read, covering many years and many styles of horror and speculative fiction. Each section covers a variety of authors, gives a biography and a run down of their writing. It also includes suggestions for must reads and where to get them. I found myself with Amazon open on my phone looking up titles and sticking them in my basket as I read. Some were out of print and others were being offered by 2nd hand sellers for stupid prices (£122!). Still I managed to add 9 books to my reading list which should keep me occupied for a couple of weeks. I highly recommend this book, it was a fascinating read with lots to offer.

Very interesting with many facts I was not aware of. Easy to dip into.

Lo pedí porque quería conocer más sobre la literatura de terror escrita por mujeres. La edición es preciosa y muy cuidada. Espero que lo traduzcan a más idiomas pronto.