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Random House Books for Young Readers

Ghostland: An American History in Haunted Places

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One of NPR’s Great Reads of 2016 “A lively assemblage and smart analysis of dozens of haunting stories…absorbing…[and] intellectually intriguing.” —The New York Times Book Review From the author of The Unidentified, an intellectual feast for fans of offbeat history that takes readers on a road trip through some of the country’s most infamously haunted places—and deep into the dark side of our history. Colin Dickey is on the trail of America’s ghosts. Crammed into old houses and hotels, abandoned prisons and empty hospitals, the spirits that linger continue to capture our collective imagination, but why? His own fascination piqued by a house hunt in Los Angeles that revealed derelict foreclosures and “zombie homes,” Dickey embarks on a journey across the continental United States to decode and unpack the American history repressed in our most famous haunted places. Some have established reputations as “the most haunted mansion in America,” or “the most haunted prison”; others, like the haunted Indian burial grounds in West Virginia, evoke memories from the past our collective nation tries to forget. With boundless curiosity, Dickey conjures the dead by focusing on questions of the living—how do we, the living, deal with stories about ghosts, and how do we inhabit and move through spaces that have been deemed, for whatever reason, haunted? Paying attention not only to the true facts behind a ghost story, but also to the ways in which changes to those facts are made—and why those changes are made—Dickey paints a version of American history left out of the textbooks, one of things left undone, crimes left unsolved. Spellbinding, scary, and wickedly insightful, Ghostland discovers the past we’re most afraid to speak of aloud in the bright light of day is the same past that tends to linger in the ghost stories we whisper in the dark. Read more

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin Books


Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 3, 2017


Edition ‏ : ‎ Reprint


Language ‏ : ‎ English


Print length ‏ : ‎ 336 pages


ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0


ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 00


Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.4 ounces


Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.75 x 8.4 inches


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Top Amazon Reviews

    • History and Hauntings
Format: Paperback
Let's get this out of the way first -- this is not really a book of ghost stories. We don't get credulous tales of the unquiet dead in haunted hotels, cemeteries, mansions, and asylums. The author says early on that he can't say he actually believes in ghosts, and he never makes any attempt to convince the reader that ghosts are either real or imaginary. Instead, Dickey focuses on what ghost stories tell us about historical events and how the stories we tell about ghosts illustrate how we think about the past. This book talks about a lot of ghosts, a lot of hauntings, a lot of cities, towns, houses, hotels, and cemeteries, and this review won't have enough space to detail them all. But some interesting examples: * The truth behind the legend of Sarah Winchester and the Winchester Mystery Mansion. * The ghost of a farmhand in a Toys R Us in Sunnyvale, California. * The real-life House of Seven Gables and its secret staircase. * A house in Georgetown, New York whose owner claimed spirits guided its planning and construction. * The ghosts in the Mustang Ranch in Reno, Nevada -- the only location Dickey felt might actually be haunted. * A haunting in Portland, Oregon that demonstrates how real facts get skewed and twisted to make ghost stories sound cooler. * A ghost-hunting group in Los Angeles that spends more time conducting historical research than they do snooping around old buildings. * Cities like New Orleans, Detroit, and Richmond, Virginia that are thickly planted with hauntings and ghost stories. Like any other pop history book, the emphasis here is less about providing in-depth academic historical analysis and more on entertaining the reader. Still, there's lots of scholarship and research here, along with a couple hundred footnotes. Readers can learn a lot in this book, and not just about history and ghost stories. There's information about psychology, geography, literature, and more. This book is going to be of the most interest to readers who love ghost stories, hauntings, and things that go bump in the night. It's especially important for the reminder that ghost stories are a form of historical storytelling and myth-making. But even for those who don't care for ghosts, the book is a fun exercise in learning about the real stories that take place behind the scary campfire tales. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2025 by Scott Slemmons
    • examination of ghost stories and haunted locales throughout America with the express intent of debunking the paranormal and bett
Format: Hardcover
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. 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. The author posits that ghost stories are malleable, changing throughout the years to accommodate society's various needs: "Paying attention to the way ghost stories change through the years -- and why those changes are made -- can tell us a great deal about how we face our fears and our anxieties. Even when these stories have a basis in fact and history, there's often significant embellishment and fabrication before they catch on in our imagination, and teasing out these alterations is key to understanding how ghosts shape our relationship to the past." In addition to stories of ghosts, the author examines several haunted locations, revealing details spanning from the evolution of their (sometimes) bizarre construction to their rise in popularity as a notorious haunt. "The more unusual the house," the author states, "the more likely it'll cause unease among its neighbors and the more we seem to require some kind of story to explain its construction." Additional locations explored include haunted bars and brothels, hotels and restaurants, asylums, graveyards, and more. 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. "This is how ghost stories are born, after all: not from a complete story so much as from bits and pieces that don't quite add up, a kaleidoscope of menace and unease that coalesce in unpredictable ways." Ghostland: An American History in Haunted Places is a skilfully crafted and compelling book that will appeal to fans of American history, trivia, haunted locales and ghosts. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2016 by Hannah
    • The History Behind the Hauntings
Format: Kindle
Ever wonder why - at the location of an infamous slave market in Richmond, Virginia - all the reported ghosts seem to be Caucasian? Or why the Myrtles Plantation is haunted by the ghost of a slave girl and two children that historical record seems to suggest never existed? If so, you will enjoy this book, which is mostly a very entertaining history of some of the most (allegedly) haunted locations in the United States. Like a good campfire story, ghost stories grow with the telling, whether the story is about a Spanish moss draped plantation in the deep South, or a house in California where the construction doesn't cease until the owner's death. Over the years, titillating snippets are added to make the story just a touch scarier until - like a salacious rumor - the heavily modified tale has grown into accepted fact. But as these additions are carefully peeled back by the author, a story emerges that is quite different from the one portrayed on one or more of the innumerable ghost shows seen on television. But the author doesn't present his findings with a resound "Got you!" as many professional skeptics do. There are no swamp gases, rabbit holes, or issues involving witness credibility in this book. No, it's presented simply as "Here's the story, and here is the history behind it." Not insulting. Not patronizing. Just information presented in a very entertaining way. In fact, the book doesn't take the position that there are no legitimate hauntings, but rather, there simply may be more to the story that you realize. Not only did I read the book, but I also listened to the audible version. Both are highly recommended. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on February 6, 2017 by Scarecrowe

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