"Something Wicked! The Bell Witch Phenomenon" and "Season of the Critters" by Dewey Edwards

I mentioned that we recently went back and visited Adams Tennessee, a MUST see destination for legend trippers.  I have posted videos and other info from that trip and I have talked about the Bell Witch legend a lot on this blog.

We stopped by the wonderful Moss's Restaurant at the old schoolhouse (one of the best restaurants on the planet) and they had a nice little selection of local books.  I picked up these two by Dewey Edwards, and I thought they were both worth a mention here.

"Season of the Critters" is an easy to read but packed 200 plus pages mostly about cryptids in this area of Tennessee and Kentucky.  Think the Land Between the Lakes area, Adams Tennessee, and the surrounding area.  This was a book begging to be written as a lot of strangeness is in this location.

Edwards covers the all star "weird" stories in this region (covering not just cryptids but also aliens, true crime and ghosts) with mentions of the legendary Bell Witch, Kelly Green Men, Mantell Incident, and others....  BUT, he also gets into some lesser known legends.

The author gives space to the credible and fascinating Martin Groves too, who has written a couple of books himself about Dogmen in the LBL area, including his own experiences.

Oh, Edwards also gets a hoaxer to tell the truth about his involvement in one chapter!

In "Something Wicked!  The Bell Witch Phenomenon" he gives a nice retelling of the Bell Witch story.  It is hard to find much new about the Bell Witch, but Edwards does offer an easy to understand telling of the legend.  He tells some interesting ghost stories that still happen in the area.  He also sets the stage nicely for the attitudes of the region, and natural things that may have influenced the family at that time (the family would have been exposed to Brown Mountain Lights and the New Madrid earthquakes).  This would be a perfect introductory book for someone just getting into reading up on the Bell Witch.

Both books have a nice, DIY self published feel, which I am really starting to appreciate.  Edwards comes off as a friendly, knowledgeable fellow with a ton of research and information under his belt.  His coverage and writing is easy to understand and follow.