Ghostland: In Search of a Haunted Country

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Ghostland is a not-spooky, but thoroughly entertaining, examination of ghost stories and haunted locales throughout America with the express intent of debunking the paranormal and better understanding how ghost stories reflect on our past and present. GHOSTLAND, by Duncan Ralston, is a novel that felt like it covered epic proportions with the scope of its idea. In this world of technological advances, it seems that most anything is possible. GHOSTLAND: IN SEARCH OF A HAUNTED COUNTRY (2019; 468 pp. with a Selected List of Sources and Index) by Edward Parnell has to be one of the most unusual and intriguing pieces of non-fiction related to weird fiction recently published. Portions of the book read like a travelogue. At times it reads like the personal memoir of a bibliophile with countless references and analysis of books, stories, and writers of the supernatural from the United Kingdom with keen observations on how environment can inflame imaginations and inspire creativity. It is also the journal of a life-long birdwatcher. Finally, GHOSTLAND is a very personal memoir about dealing with and learning to cope with almost impossible painful, personal grief. Although the entire book takes place in the past, the story is told in a fairly linear fashion, but it also contains an almost stream of consciousness style of writing with Parnell moving from topic to topic covering the various aspects of his book. As such, readers may need to read a few chapters to adjust to the writer’s style and the book’s content. Once they do, most are sure to be mesmerized. Unlike what one frequently encounters in memoirs in which writers amazingly and somewhat unbelievably recall all sorts of details and bits of conversation, Parnell takes a totally different approach and readily admits when such details are no longer a part of his recall. This is especially true when he recounts information about the scarring tragedies which strike his immediate family. For estranged friends Ben and Lilian, Ghostland is more than just another overhyped attraction. Lilian has come at the request of her therapist, to face the traumas that are crippling her emotionally.

Overall, I loved the idea presented here, the dynamics between Ben and Lilian, and the execution of the novel. I did utilize the "ghost index" while reading, and felt that learning about these individual horrors as we come across them added another layer of enjoyment to the reading experience. This was an incredibly unique approach, and made for a story I'm still thinking about over a week later. I've enjoyed books by this writer in the past, and will continue to look forward to all of his future releases. I was so invested in this story. I loved the characters, wanted to see what happened, was interested in the way everything wove together, and wanted to see what the ultimate showdown was going to be. I loved the writing style. It was casual, easy to understand, gore in all the right places, a sense of humor to ease the sadness and grossness, just everything that really makes a great horror book great. The author often pauses after setting up the story he is about to teach us about, to explain the era of time, the history behind the story, the people at the heart of it, and the real, logical explanation for the hauntings, which of course takes the fun out of it a little. But, the true story was also interesting. I have a thing about sequels, namely that they are rarely as good as the original and often end up just trying to recapture what made the first story great (which is just stupid in my opinion. Usually what makes a story great is how unique it is, so trying to just keep copying the formula is obviously going to make each iteration dumber). If you are old enough to remember what it was like when an adult friend of your parents invited your family to watch their vacation slides, you will identify with how it feels to read this book. At first it's pretty great because everybody's there and you have popcorn and Parnell is an excellent writer, but soon enough you realize you've been listening for over an hour about places you have never heard of (and will likely never visit) and their connection to a book written in the 30's that you've also never heard of.He takes a very negative view of the professional ghost hunters and the "reality" programs on television that are basically made to titillate the public. He feels that this and the once popular practice of seances and spiritualism which in most cases turned out to be scams have influenced a large audience of believers in the supernatural.And through searching the supposed reason that a place is haunted (a murder, child abuse, etc.) he seldom finds anything that supports it. But he doesn't totally discount the presence of ghosts and suggests that some individuals are more sensitive to the environment of a haunted place than others. Parnell also travels his ‘Ghostland’, visiting places, both of his childhood and of importance to the novels or films that have stayed with him over time. He really does cover the length and breadth of the country, searching for glimpses of the past, sometimes for his own reveries and sometimes, it seems, to really try to get inside the heads of the people involved in bringing ghoulish delight to his younger self. At times it felt like there were an over abundance of similes and I simply shook my head when our lambs to the slaughter took the time to locate toilets on the map. If all hell was breaking loose and I had to use the bathroom I doubt I’d risk my life further by detouring to find a public toilet. A few question marks appeared over my head as I was reading, including when Dr Wexler contradicted herself about how long Lilian had been in therapy for, but they are essentially quibbles in what was a fun bloodbath. I learned a lot of quirky, historical details about the United States. For example, did you know that Spiritualists were a huge part of the suffrage movement?: "Early suffrage meetings were heavily populated with mediums and trance speakers; in some places it was difficult to find suffragists who weren't also Spiritualists. Spiritualism had given many of these women practice and confidence in speaking to groups with authority; by allowing others (the dead) to speak through them, American women began to speak for themselves in greater numbers. Spiritualism was only one of many factors and social movements that drove women's suffrage, but it was a vital and important one." loc 961-978, ebook.

What happens to Ben, Lillian, and Dr. Wexler? Do they make it through the theme park unscathed? What causes the computer system to fail? What happens when the ghosts escape? No spoilers here as you will just have to read the book! Given the book's dark cover and the timing of its release, it seems necessary to reiterate that there's nothing particularly creepy about this book. The author dug through family trees and historic records until he unearthed every inconsistency or blatant lie associated with famous ghost stories or well-known haunted locations. He actively debunks one ghost story after another. Man what a blast! True rip roaring fun! This story is so original, so unique, I cannot believe this book has not gotten more attention. I’m sure my review will not do it the justice it deserves. Usually when I read horror stories I tally a body count but there’s just no point here. Even if I counted all of the bodies I tripped over along the way, I would have missed dozens of them. Not as many people died in front of me as I had hoped but I did get to witness the results of a fair amount of the carnage as Lilian and Ben attempt to navigate their way out of Ghostland, hopefully with heartbeats. This is what happens when you mess around with things you can’t possibly comprehend. I haven’t had this much fun anticipating footnotes since Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves. While the “Know Your Ghosts” guide occasionally only repeated the text in the chapters and didn’t seem necessary, I enjoyed the majority that provided additional information. I expect they’re going to be useful in the sequel. Incidentally, if Ghostland is ever made into a movie, I’ll be there for the ride. I would have rated this higher for just the plot alone if it had been written a bit different for me.

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Though it doesn't detract from the overall enjoyment of the book, it sometimes feels as though the author drifts off on a tangent. For example, a chapter that begins by introducing a notoriously haunted house eventually segues to a discussion of Spiritualism, which ultimately leads to an examination of a woman's right to vote. These shifts in narrative are never a point of contention for the reader, because all of the information is well-researched and tied together seamlessly.