Snuff Books

I am inveterate reader of all kinds of books and got this book after a pretty good review in the NYTimes Book Review. The book was a difficult to find and I finally ended up ordering it from Amazon- not a bad thing! It was an easy read and not hard to keep ahead of what was going on. I think it was relatively easy to tell it was a first book for the author. All in all an okay read.

wow, just wow. this is an awesome book! sucks you in from the first page and doesnt stop. great characters and dialogue, nonstop chills and suspense and even some surprise laughs! my only complaint is that it didnt last longer, i finished it in 2 days.

The Grindhouse - the origin of the 'B' Movie. "Crimson Orgy" follows director Sheldon Meyer as he attempts to shoot his borderline pornographic to some film, 'Crimson Orgy' - but no one ever said show business was easy as on set problems are abound, the cops are on his tail, nature is working against him, and his own inner demons begin to consume him - at what cost does Meyer pay to get that he desires. "Crimson Orgy" is a deftly written, exciting tale from first page to last, highly recommended for community library fiction collections and anyone who seeks an edgy story set in the heyday of the Grindhouses.

Being a horror fan of every book or movie, I had to get this book when I first heard about it. I was not dissappointed. I was able to see what goes on in a movie shoot, how the actors interact with each other, what the job entails, and the attitudes of everyone involved. I knew this book was building up to a big ending and that it wouldn't be pretty, but I wasn't expecting the absolute horror of it all. It was like watching an
impending train wreck, knowing it was going to happen, unable to stop it, knowing it would be horrific, but unable to look away when it happened.

Readers who gravitate toward the edgier side of fiction, such as myself, are anticipating the release of "Snuff" by Chuck Palahniuk with great relish. I'd strongly recommend all Palahniuk fans pick up a copy of "Crimson Orgy" by Austin Williams at their first opportunity.

Seamlessly blending pitch-black humor with suspenseful and horrific elements, this tale of insanity, murder and mayhem offers a distinctly unnerving literary experience. Like Palahniuk's new book, "Crimson Orgy" immerses readers into the urban mythology of snuff movies, but the scope here is much broader than you might initially suspect. Beyond weaving a taut narrative of cinematic malfeasance, Williams masterfully sketches out a vivid portrait of exploitation filmmaking as it was practiced in decades past.

Dripping with swampy atmosphere, punctuated by quoatable dialogue and loaded with a shattering sense of inevitability, "Crimson Orgy" will make you laugh and cringe with equal measure. It easily tops my list of recent favorites.

"Killing for Culture" is a fascinating look at the subject of death in film and other media. Of particular note is the history behind the "Snuff" film, an urban legend that has persisted for years of movies where someone on-camera is murdered, for real. Of course, not one single frame of a snuff film has ever been uncovered, but that hasn't stopped the legend from appearing, and re-appearing, over time.

In addition to the sections on snuff, other areas of the death genre are explored, from the "Mondo" films of the 1960s, to the present-day "Faces of Death" style gore feasts. It makes for a fascinating, if gruesome, study of the various death genres of film and video.

CREATION books has taken over the world of publishing books about cinema and this is the best one the have released. A very thourough, well researched and fascinating journey into the subterrainian world of the Mondo movie. David and David approach the subject with abject skill and make every word count even when describing films that would send the average person into a coma for years to come.

This book breaks the barriers and dispells the myths makig it an essential purchase for anyone interested in the darker regions of cinema.

Killing for Culture is the first and most sought after of the Creation Cinema series. It covers all types of death in film looking at how it is portrayed and why. Nothing is left out from the real death seen in the Faces of Death video series to the elaborately staged "real" killings in fictional films to the wanton slaughtering of animals in the Mondo series. Yes, even "snuff" films are discussed in various sections first looking at their depiction in Hollywood films such as Hardcore (1979) and then speculating on their existence.

The chapters on snuff films is definitely the most interesting if for no other reason than this is probably one of the only available filmic studies of it. Kerekes and Slater share the opinion that while there probably ARE a small number of snuff films in existence, it's highly unlikely that there was ever any sort of underground market for that sort of thing. They define snuff not as a film of someone simply dying, but as a film made for the sadistic pleasure of the viewer. In that sense, TV news clips of plane crashes and such do not constitute snuff. Along the way, they examine some films rumored to have actual deaths onscreen. Films like Last House on Dead End Street (1977) and Snuff (1974) were made with the entire cast and crew using assumed names. Thus, they are sometimes seen as obscure films made by a bunch of psycho killers. Kerekes and Slater do a great job of finding out who actually made them and how they staged what many thought to be real murders.

There is a nice history of Mondo film and it looks at various cultural implications of Italian and, later, American film crews invading other countries, exploiting and terrorizing natives, and slaughtering animals senselessly. It will make you think twice before buying the new-to-DVD Mondo Caine series.

For anyone who has read a Creation Cinema book, this is not much different. There are many black and white stills of varying degrees of quality. The writing style is fairly sloppy. Kerekes and Slater are not cunning linguists in any respect. They are, however, good researchers and excellent film buffs. Their enthusiasm for these films are evident on every page. Their descriptions of the terrible plots, acting, and directing are quite funny, but it's always clear that as technically lacking as the films are, they still love them. As a fan of "bad" movies, I understand where they're coming from.

If you like films such as Thriller: A Cruel Picture, I Spit on Your Grave, Toolbox Murders, Nail Gun Massacre, etc., you'll find this book is an amazing resource. It's great that somebody is looking at these films in a somewhat academic way without forgetting that they are, above all, entertainment. This book has been out of print for a while now and as a result the price is fairly high (and getting higher). I recommend picking up a copy at any price before it's too late. Enjoy.

A much-needed, carefully researched book that looks into the darkest of cinematic shadows. I especially like that they debunk the snuff film industry. Also commendable are the copious footnotes and the exhaustive index that lists movies by their alternate titles, directors, and years of production--very helpful when scouring the video stores for "Guinea Pig 2," "Man Behind the Sun," or even "Gimme Shelter." Certainly it gets into some stomach-churning descriptions, but I appreciate the dispassionate approach to a topic usually dealt with by pandering, slavering idiots. These Creation books, man I love 'em.

Autopsies. Car crashes. Suicides. Executions. Horrible accidents. Human remains. Assassinations. Welcome to the horrifying and disturbing yet often weirdly fascinating world of death in film. Face it, most people are strangely attracted by images of violence and death - just like stopping and watching when an accident has happened.
KILLING FOR CULTURE concerns death in films. The book starts with the story of an obscure movie named SNUFF in 1976. Originally titled SLAUGHTER, this 1971 ultracheapo horror flick about a MANSON - style murder spree was considered unwatchable and remained unreleased for several years until movie producer Allan SHACKLETON got an idea: He shot a new ending, where an actress was seemingly "killed" on camera for real (though the basement special effects clearly proofed otherwise). Cleverly promoted with the slogan "shot in South America, where life is cheap" SNUFF turned out to be a huge success. This was how the concept of snuff movies (where people are killed for real) was introduced. Other feature films like EMMANUELLE IN AMERICA or LAST HOUSE ON DEAD END STREET further elaborated on this concept. The authors review the above mentioned films and many more in great detail and with much knowledge.
Further chapters revolve around the socalled "mondo" (shockumentary) film and how this genre evolved, starting with MONDO CANE in 1962. Writers KEREKES and SLATER show in a very detailed way, how mondo directors faked and re-enacted death footage, which was allegedly "real". I found this making - of approach particularly interesting. Many of the horrifying mondo films (like THE KILLING OF AMERICA and the infamous FACES OF DEATH series) are dealt with in lengthy reviews. Considering the subject matter one might expect that the book is written in an exploitative way. This clearly is not the case.
Further chapters concern films where real atrocity footage was used - like the US porn movie FORCED ENTRY about a posttraumatic stress disorder suffering Vietnam veteran rapist, whose "activities" are interspersed with actual combat newsreel footage. The last chapter details how tabloid papers and feminists are propagating the urban legend of snuff films.
The sheer amount of facts concerning real reel death the authors have crammed in the relatively small book is amazing:
Hospital documentaries like the 6 hour long NEAR DEATH. Nauseating underground films. The famous ZAPRUDER amateur film of the assassination of president John F. KENNEDY. Autopsy films like THE ACT OF SEEING WITH ONE'S OWN EYES. Driver education films depicting the daily carnage on the streets. Incidents where people committed suicide live in front a camera - like Pennsylvania state treasurer Budd R. DWYER, who blew his brains out with a .357 revolver during a press conference after being convicted of bribery. The GIMME SHELTER concert film, where a camera by accident caught some Hell's Angels stabbing a man. (Please note that these are only a few examples of what to find in this excellent book.)
The book is illustrated with dozens of highly interesting pictures (video covers, stills, posters, ad material, newspaper clips).
And, yes, the infamous Japanese GUINEA PIG series is covered as well. On a lighter note, the authors also review a hoax autopsy film of a Roswell alien (!)
As you can image this book is disturbing, sometimes revolting and could be offensive to some. Clearly it is only for the most devoted fan of extreme and obscure cinema/film and the most hardened horror buff. But for these groups it is absolutely indispensable. I can't praise it high enough.

This is a new and exciting book with colorful characters! I hope this is the beginning of an adventure with Adam. Randy Haynes has the ability to bring the characters to life. This reader wants to have more!

This is an excellent mystery that introduces a new hero, who I hope will appear in a series of books. The atmosphere will draw you in. I am looking forward to the next book.

It took W. Randy Haynes five years to write his first mystery, but the effort was worth it. The first time "out of the gate," as he says, he garnered a selection as a finalist for the prestigious 2006 Lambda Literary Award. Haynes is a disabled Vietnam vet who found time on his hands during the long Lake Tahoe winters. But Haynes is originally a Texan, and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin. He is also a member of the Cherokees of California and started up
a Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Lake Tahoe. He is presently working
on a sequel to CAJUN SNUFF.

Special Agent Adam Stephen is inexplicably tapped by his somewhat boorish boss to investigate the mutilation murder of a U.S. Congressman who happens to be Black. On his way to New Orleans, Adam meets up with a woman named Adaline Fontenot, a widow from New Orleans, who not only opens doors for him during his investigation, but who will change his life forever:
"'Mr. Herndon? I'm Adam Stephen. I really appreciate your talking to me."

Adam handed over the letter of introduction.

'Come in.' The man unlocked the office door and turned on the lights. The office was unsophisticated but functional. Herndon took a seat behind the desk and motioned for Adam to sit in a chair. 'So, you're a friend of Ms. Fontenot, huh? How did you get so highly connected?'

'It was an accident. We met on a flight to New Orleans, and I've visited her home since. She's well-known in the state?'

'You could say that. Ada is the power behind the progressive politics here in Louisiana. She prefers to work behind the scenes and avoids publicity.'"

CAJUN SNUFF is an understated, yet passionate whodunit that is character-driven and examines the politics of the South and the attempt by right-wing zealots to take over our country. Adam Stephen is a dreamboat of a character who is both as spicy as New Orleans and, at the same time, is vulnerable and strong. When Adam meets up with Homer, a neurotic bloodhound with separation anxiety, Haynes injects just the right amount of humor to enliven and lighten the tale. But Adam and Homer bond, Adam saves the day, and Haynes sees fit to give us a reverse ending. CAJUN SNUFF is extremely well done and is a great little tale full of intrigue and local color.

Shelley Glodowski
Senior Reviewer

Having been raised on a bayou in Louisiana, gone to school in Lafayette and lived in New Orleans for 22 years I found Mr. Haynes book fascinating, imaginative and insightful of the darker side of Louisiana Politics, criminal aspects plus the goodness of Southern hospitality. The characters are from every aspect of life in Louisiana, from down home country people through the flamboyant Gallery owner to the bigots, criminals and every other group that populates the landscape.

This is a great murder mystery with many twists and turns. The descriptions of the locations are wonderful with great details. I am looking forward to the next book with Adam Stephens.

I can only hope that this is the first of many mysteries to be produced by Mr. Haynes. The lead character Adam Tyler Stephen is a fascinating blend of sleuth, hard-nose FBI agent, and a sexy single gay guy. He solves the mystery of the murder of a Congressman, and in the process upsets most of officialdom in Washington, at FBI headquarters, New Orleans, and the Louisana bayous. In the process, he befriends the doyen of New Orlean's Garden District, a sassy FBI secretary, an aged butler, and a college age gay kid who is allegedly a Neo-Nazi. Needless to say, the convoluted plot keeps the reader guessing until the very last few pages.

The character development of Adam is such that he could theoretically become a new gay super slueth if his creator decides to make him such. I can only hope that there are more stories for Adam in Mr. Haynes imagination.

A great book about living in oklahoma and such, if you know anyone (a 3rd cousin twice removed perhaps?) who lives in the midwest, then this is a must read. it is well worth the price. i enjoyed it immensely.

This book contains a myriad of short stories revolving around growing up in Anytown, Any Country. Anyone who's had the distinct privilege of being raised in a small town will definitely appreciate the images/memories evoked by this book! I can guarantee several good laughs, food for thought, and many, many smiles with each story you read! Give yourself (or someone you love) a gift and buy this book!

The author has left his Camelot (Oklahoma) behind but not his memories. He remembers and will make you smile and laugh aloud. I look forward to his next book.

This book has helped me understand snuff bottles and its role in the asian art world. This book is clear and to the point, with fabulous photographs and extremely well written comments. It made me excited about snuff bottles. Clare Lawrence is an inspiring writer. I definitely recommend this book for any one interested in asian art.

This is a book of a private collection of snuff bottles. It shows the very best bottles that a collector can find on the market and how a collector can build up a small but exclusive collection in this genre. It is easy to follow and very well written with superb pictures of the different types of snuff bottles. Every category is shown from jade to enamels to glass and porcelain. If you wanted to find an example of the best snuff bottles from each group you could look in this book. The book itself is a very good size and easy to read in bed! It has extensive cross references and the index is simple to use. The photographs are very clear and the layout is extremely artistic. It is a must for anyone interested in Asian Art aswell as snuff bottles.

This is a book of a private collection of snuff bottles. It shows the very best bottles that a collector can find on the market and how a collector can build up a small but exclusive collection in this genre. It is easy to follow and very well written with superb pictures of the different types of snuff bottles. Every category is shown from jade to enamels to glass and porcelain. If you wanted to find an example of the best snuff bottles from each group you could look in this book. The book itself is a very good size and easy to read in bed! It has extensive cross references and the index is simple to use. The photographs are very clear and the layout is extremely artistic. It is a must for anyone interested in Asian Art aswell as snuff bottles.

Another impeccable work of genius from Joseph McGee. THE REAPER is deliciously intriguing, an addictive page turner that will leave you wanting more.

Joseph McGee's spine-tingeling storytelling is captured again in the form of a terrifying thriller. Superb diction and character details create a landscape of horror that guides the reader to new plateaus of frightful fascination. Keep a light on while reading this one...

Who wouldn't want this reference and absorbing read on this popular collectible? Chapters include "Uses for small boxes," which can only be helpful, Vieux Paris, Enamels, English Silver, Oriental Lacquer, Lead, Brass & Pewter, Papiermache, Pontypool and USK Ware, Shell ware, Tunbridge Ware, and Various and Curious. Covers mostly UK boxes, so even more valuable here. Lots of b/w & color photos. Highly recommend.

I borrowed a copy of THE ART OF THE CHINESE SNUFF BOTTLE. THE J & J COLLECTION from my father (who tells me that other collectors refer to this book as "the Bible"), and although I'm not yet a collector of anything, I was so impressed with this book that I want to share this discovery with others. I have since come accross some reviews of the book in Oriental magazines, and will be quoting from them as these professionals put accross their thoughts so much better than I. First of all, the luxury of the edition: "imposing size, lavish layout and exquisitive presentation of the background, two-volume work (800 pages, 1200 illustrations, 25 x 34.2 cm dimensions ... superb life-size photographs and extraordinary detail views ... " according to Jana Volf in ORIENTATIONS magazine, July 1994. As for content, Robert KLEINER wrote in ARTS OF ASIA, Nov.-Dec. 1995, "This vast work is arguably the finest book ever written on the arts of the Qing (1644-1911) dynasty. Each snuff bottle is taken as an opportunity to explore a differing aspect of Chinese aesthetics and culture, thereby, in small increments, revealing the inner meaning both of this culture and of the art represented by the bottles themselves ... The entire work (presents) a rigorous study of the art and evolution of the snuff bottle itself, and ... the underlying cultural background of China as evolved by the thoughts, beliefs and ambitions of the ruling Imperial household and the vast literati class, the scholars who oiled the wheels of the nation's life ... The J&J collection is almost unrivailled in its possesion of snuff bottles which can be used as exemplars of "Palace style ..." About the collection, Clare Lawrence wrote in the Spring 1994 issue of the JOURNAL of the International Chinese Snuff Bottle Society, "I think this is a truly great book of a great, if not the greatest snuff bottle collection in the world today." Finally, this book was awarded 1st. prize as the best art book produced in Hong Kong, in 1993. I must say it is a must to the serious art collector. Mathias F. de Carvalho

Original published in 1989, "The Cardinal's Snuff-Box is the first of Henry Harland's `Catholic' novels after his conversion to the Roman Catholic Church in 1897. Set in Italy, this is the story of English novelist Peter Marchdale who takes up residence in a small villa amidst the Lombard countryside. Intending to get some writing done, Marchdale finds himself distracted by his lovely young landlady whom he discovers is actually the Duchessa di Santangiolo, an Anlo-Italian widow that he has been secretly in love for years. The problem facing Marchdale is that she is wealth and far above him in social station. Fortunately for him, the lady's uncle is a Roman cardinal whose fondness for snuff is equaled by his flair for matchmaking! This new edition of "The Cardinal's Snuff-Box" from Idylls Press is a true `time lost' literary treasure that is once again made available to a whole new generation of readers and will serve to re-introduce Henry Harland as a gifted novelist deserving rescue from obscurity.

Lilla Perry was well acquainted with all the major snuff bottle collectors of her time. In her book she was able to relay her vast experiences in a very easy to read manner. Through her illustrations and numerous color photographs a collector can easily follow a path to making the right decisions in recognizing good Chinese snuff bottles. The book is written not only for the beginner but is also very helpful to the avid collector. It was the very first book I read on the subject and it helped me to become an avid collector and purveyor of Chinese snuff bottles. It proved to be so popular that it has enjoyed many printings since the 1960 original. Obviously I highly recommend the book to anyone with an interest in or even avid collectors of snuff bottles. Have a nice day and happy reading