#cryptozoology-annotated-bibliography — Public Fediverse posts

A Natural History of Sea Serpents – A. Shine

A Natural History of Sea Serpents
Adrian Shine
2025, Whittles Publishing
256 pp

Shine is the definitive Loch Ness investigator. He’s been there for decades and has seen everything. More importantly, he has thought about everything. In this book, he guides us through the history of a creature that people have reported for centuries, how it changed, and what people probably saw, beginning with sea serpents prior to Loch Ness and the translation of those beliefs into the most famous lake monster. Shine blasts a few worn tropes clear out of the water and provides convincing explanations for the most famous accounts cited by cryptid proponents, supporting his conclusions with photographic examples. Even though no exotic cryptid is proposed as an explanation, his presentation is fascinating and eye-opening. His accumulated wisdom must be acknowledged and respected. This book is essential for any library on water cryptids or sea animals in general. Outstanding and exceptionally well-written.

#CryptidReadingList #CryptozoologyAnnotatedBibliography

Loch Ness Uncovered – R. Siegel

Loch Ness Uncovered: Media, Misinformation, and the Greatest Monster Hoax of All Time
Rebecca Siegel
2024, Penguin Random House
192 pp

An award-winning book aimed at teens, this engrossing and unique take on the Nessie story follows the thread of the media coverage of the monster from its origins in 1933. Meticulously researched, the reader is presented with an astounding timeline of events early on, that laid the foundation of belief in the creature that barely wavered. Nessie became an icon through weak evidence, failed studies, and several hoaxes. Siegel’s book was entertaining and enlightening even to the seasoned cryptid researcher, except for Henry Bauer, Nessie true believer. He left an embarrassingly out of touch review of the book on Amazon, seemingly because it skipped over Constance Whyte and Tim Dinsdale as well as ignoring Bauer’s personal opinion on Nessie. I think that shows how powerful the narrative really is when it’s laid out. As noted, the book is focused on a specific through-line and meant for teens who already know the legend, so it’s not comprehensive. It works well in achieving the goal as well as showing all the pieces that fit together to propel a creature into the world’s first pop cryptid.

#CryptozoologyAnnotatedBibliography #LochNessMonster #Nessie