Book Review: The New York Grimpendium – Author J.W. Ocker

The New York Grimpendium

I received a book the other day that really puts the spotlight on the macabre aspects of New York. Written by J.W. Ocker, comes a great new read that every no New Yorker horror fan should be without (not to mention every other visitor to this fine state). These kind of books have always warmed my heart as they meticulously catalog and describe the details of various locations a horror fan would want to visit. Add to that the research, the specifics, and (in the case of this book) several photos to help you find what your looking for (or heard about for that matter).

Many of us have lived near areas having one or more legends to refer to. This book which has been titled “The New York Grimpendium” pays tribute to this highly historical state full of interesting places, buildings, and spots that you’ll surely want to snap a few family album shots at. Living in Colorado myself, we have locations that make for great tourist talk (I remember how excited I was when I went to visit “The Shining” hotel (called “The Stanley”) located in Estes Park).

Well, New York dupes that with the infamous Amityville Horror house (located in Amityville of course) among its many claims to fame. However, there is so much more to see within this state’s vicinity that it actually fills a 352 page book. To give you a better break down of it’s structure, the book has been divided into chapters such as “Legends and Personalities of the macabre”. Here you can find the locations of Edgar Allen Poe, Joan Crawford, Mary Shelley, and Harry Houdini to name a few.

Are you a horror literature fan? Then the details of H.P’s original whereabouts are sure to please. But names aside, we have the locations of macabre acts and dark pasts that have been documented in relation to Son of Sam, small pox hospitals and scenes of past tragedy. Of course my favorite section is the noted movie set locations. And as you can probably guess there have been quite a few famous films that have used New York settings to provide appropriate backdrop.

Now King Kong, is a no brainier..however you might also like to visit the various locations seen in “Wolfen”, “Ghostbusters” “Wolf”, “1408”, Rosemary’s Baby” and Jacob’s Ladder”. The Grimpendium will surely make your search that much easier with specific details on where you can find each of these locations. For instance, perhaps you have an address for the “Amityville Horror”, but did you know that the address was changed to discourage tourists? Or maybe you were wondering why the side of the house doesn’t look like the one in the movie? These kind of facts provide that extra research needed that our author has been kind enough to provide with over 9,000 miles of travel logged behind it. Are you a grave hunter? Looking for the tomb of “such and such”? Then look no further, as Ocker is your virtual tourist guide.

There is much more here with haunted locations, cemeteries of interest and famous monster museums to keep ya going. Written from the perspective of a true admirer of dark places, this is the book that every horror fan should add to their collection (and then set out on a road trip..(I know I might…)

Entirely interesting, rich in detail, and a full of photos to help you along, The Grimpendium is one to own!

Book Review: The New York Grimpendium – Author J.W. Ocker