Thursday, March 24, 2016

Spring-Heeled Jack: New Book Coming


This looks to be a very good book: The Mystery of Spring-Heeled Jack: From Victorian Legend to Steampunk Hero by John Matthews and which is published in October.

And here's the publisher's info on the book:

An extensive investigation of the origins and numerous sightings of the mysterious and terrifying figure known as Spring-Heeled Jack

• Shares original 19th-century newspaper accounts of Spring-Heeled Jack encounters as well as 20th and 21st-century reports

• Explains his connections to Jack the Ripper and the Slender Man

• Explores his origins in earlier mythical beings from folklore, his Steampunk popularity, and the theory that he may be an alien from a high-gravity planet

Spring-Heeled Jack--a tall, thin, bounding figure with bat-like wings, clawed hands, wheels of fire for eyes, and breath of blue flames--first leapt to public attention in Victorian London in 1838, springing over hedges and walls, from dark lanes and dank graveyards, to frighten and sometimes physically attack women. News of this strange and terrifying character quickly spread, but despite numerous sightings through 1904 he was never captured or identified.

Exploring the vast urban legend surrounding this enigmatic figure, John Matthews explains how the Victorian fascination with strange phenomena and sinister figures paired with hysterical reports enabled Spring-Heeled Jack to be conjured into existence. Sharing original 19th-century newspaper accounts of Spring-Heeled Jack sightings and encounters, he also examines recent 20th and 21st-century reports, including a 1953 UFO-related sighting from Houston, Texas, and disturbing accounts of the Slender Man, who displays notable similarities with Jack. He traces Spring-Heeled Jack’s origins to earlier mythical beings from folklore, such as fairy creatures and land spirits, and explores the theory that Jack is an alien marooned on Earth whose leaping prowess is attributed to his home planet having far stronger gravity than ours.

The author reveals how Jack the Ripper, although a different and much more violent character, chose to identify himself with the old, well-established figure of Spring-Heeled Jack. Providing an extensive look at Spring-Heeled Jack from his beginnings to the present, Matthews illustrates why the worldwide Steampunk community has so thoroughly embraced Jack.



2 comments:

  1. This book does look awesome!!
    Thanks for providing the info on it :)

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  2. I have long considered the Spring Heeled Jack reports of old and agree that the creature Jack was in fact not from our world. The blue fire breath aspect of these reports is probable a device for Spring Heeled Jack to breath in earths atmosphere, on occasion the device would purge erupting in flames of blue and orange.
    Jack may have been more of an inter-diminsional traveler as some reports of numerous witness's claimed he could pass threw brick walls which occurred when Jack was cornered in a dead end alley buy authority's and civilians. His interest in women seemed to be his own scientific curiosity perhaps.

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