Happy halloween, blog readers!

A a tidbit of supernatural (though not especially scary) trivia in honor of Halloween tomorrow……

In 1922, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930), best known as the author of Sherlock Holmes stories but also a devout spiritualist, published a book called The Coming of the Fairies in which he contested that fairies are real. Doyle was convinced of this by a set of photographs apparently showing two young girls from Cottingley in Yorkshire playing with a group of tiny, translucent fairies. Doyle’s book lays out the story of the photographs, their supposed provenance, and the implications of their existence. This quirky and fascinating book allows us to get inside the mind of an intelligent, highly respected man who happened to believe in fairies.

The University of Nebraska Press paperback imprint Bison Books reprinted this book in 2006 (and our advertising manager dressed up as Doyle today for Halloween). The Coming of the Fairies is part of the UNP’s Extraordinary World Series, which also includes titles on witch hunts, superheroes, paranormal activity and more.

Meanwhile, a different real-life Halloween story has been posted each day this week on the New York University Press blog. These posts, written by scholars, include real-life ghost stories, two very different essays about Halloween costumes, and more. All are fascinating takes on different aspects of Halloween.  

And have a great Halloween!