‘The Werewolf Book’ Gets an Update

The Werewolf Book: The Encyclopedia of Shape-Shifting Beings by Brad Steiger is hands down the most popular book on werewolves, you can find it in virtually any bookstore. The book has been out for a few years so you may be wondering why I am mentioning it now, well, the book is getting an update. The author is releasing a second edition of The Werewolf Book, with updated info on the latest movies, shows and more. All I can say is that I hope it gets a serious overhaul because the current Werewolf Book consists mostly of entries about serial killers and not a whole lot more. Personally, I am not a huge fan of The Werewolf Book, there’s very little good info in it, it always seemed half-assed to me. So hopefully this new version is an actual improvement. We’ll just have to wait and see when the new version hits bookshelves in September.

For those of you that haven’t checked out the Werewolf Book, here’s a little more info on the original:

“WHEN THE FULL MOON INHERITS THE NIGHT SKY, THE TERROR IS JUST BEGINNING…

From movies to the game, to folklore and case histories, THE WEREWOLF BOOK is the encyclopedic guide to all things lycanthropic. The author takes you back to the 15th century to uncover the origins of the werewolf legend. From there he leads you on an eye-opening world tour through the ages to the modern-day monstrous duality of creatures like cannibalistic serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.

Does the wolf live within each of us? Learn how the legends of the werewolf can mirror the animal that exists in each and every one of us. Some have given in to these primal animal urges. Find out why. The answers lie within this book.

THE WEREWOLF BOOK contains nearly 250 entries, a filmography, and a resource guide with web sites. With more than 125 photographs (including 16 pages in full color), ranging from folk art to movie stills, this book will have your hair standing on end.”

Do any of own The Werewolf Book? What do you think of it? As I said above, I’m not a fan. I found it disappointing since there are so SO many fantastic werewolf myths and legends completely left out of the book. I really hope the second edition will be better. Will you buy the second edition of The Werewolf Book?

– Moonlight

By moonlight

One of the writers for werewolves.com, as well as vampires.com.

9 comments

  1. I own a copy of the 1st Edition The Werewolf Book, along with the 2nd edition The Vampire Book. At some point, I’ll pick up the 3rd edition Vampire Book or which ever happens to be the latest edition out by the time I get to it.

    Comparing the two, I viewed The Werewolf Book as consisting of a lot of padded information to try and make it as thick as The Vampire Book. If he’d have an entry for Serial Killers, it’d better explain Stieger’s inclusion of them.

    It had been my first big compendium and tome on Werewolves I’d ever gotten, so I found it pretty good to have a lot of movies, books, pop culture in edition to Folk Lore in it. The more I read through the book, the more I found I wasn’t completely happy with it… Peter Stubbe… gets spelled as Stumpf which can throw you off when looking something up. There’s a wealth of Lore that hasn’t made it into the book that could and should have been there. No entry for Silver and where it enters folklore. It has to be found under Slaying the Werewolf. So the entries aren’t good.

    It’s clear there’s been more movies and books out, and hopefully Steiger will have better laid out his book and entries. I might get it for the sake that it is supposed to be an update and take a look at it.

  2. On the pop culture: It’s a whole lot better than The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Werewolves. As a Werewolf: the Apocalypse fan, it’s clear CIGtW’s Nathan Robert Brown didn’t do any proper research on role-playing games. Why?
    He mixes up Werewolf: the Forsaken with W:tA, claims the whole point of the game is fighting vampires (It is not), and then says White Wolf phased the game out with GURPS: Shapeshifters *HEADDESK*. Completely unaware that the GURPS system is by another company and not from White Wolf.
    Basically, White Wolf phased out Werewolf: the Apocalypse with Werewolf: the Forsaken…

    Probably the best non-fiction werewolf book I have so far is Dr. Bob Curran’s Werewolves book. I also agree that the Werewolf Book: The Encyclopedia of Shape-Shifting Beings by Brad Steiger is padded out a bit. Many of the other shapeshifters or werewolf-like creatures of folklore had barely any info on them in the entries. Which is funny, CIGtW actually had some good info on werehyenas that 95% of werewolf non-fiction books scrimp out on.
    Brad’s book is not a great book, but then it’s not a terrible book either.

    I’m also interested in the second edition. However, when it comes to second editions, a lot of old material is recycled. So I hope to find a copy in a store to look over to see if it’s worth buying.

    1. I love Dr. Bob Curran’s Werewolves book! I love all of his books. I have both of the werewolf books he did and his vampire one. I plan on buying his Dark Fairy book too. He’s fantastic.

    2. Curran is pretty good. He offered up some views regarding werewolves I hadn’t seen before coverd by other books. I don’t completely agree with everything or how he words his information, but he’s a pretty good reference. I’ve got both his Werewolf and Vampire books.

  3. i own the werewolf book,and yes i agree too may serial killers but the serial killers were interesting.i hope this one is more focused on werewolves though too!

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