Books
‘A Life With Ghosts’ Review – Steve Gonsalves Memoir Is a Fun Read for Believers and Skeptics Alike
Whether or not you believe in life after death, there’s no denying that there’s entertainment to be found in the exploration of the unknown. That’s why I appreciate the extreme popularity of ghost hunting shows despite being a life-long skeptic and understanding that most of these programs greatly exaggerate their findings in the pursuit of ratings.
However, not all paranormal investigators are created equal, with some of them actually having a minimum of respect for the scientific method and operating on a series of rational principles instead of simply reacting to make-believe noises and looking scared for the camera. And luckily for fans of these less sensationalist professionals, TAPS (The Atlantic Paranormal Society) investigator and founding member of the original Ghost Hunters, Steve Gonsalves, has just released a memoir detailing his personal experience as a researcher of the supernatural.
Appropriately titled A Life with Ghosts, Gonsalves (alongside co-writer Michael Aloisi) dives into the origins of his lifelong fascination with all things paranormal while also revisiting memorable incidents from his decades long career. These include some iconic activity from the Ghost Hunters show (ranging from spooky visits to Alcatraz to an eventful stay at the Stanley Hotel) as well his more recent – not to mention fascinating – investigation of the Mississippi haunting in The House in Between.
Refreshingly, Gonsalves actually begins the book with an admission that he’s not trying to convince anyone that ghosts are real and that every unexplainable event that he ever experienced was paranormal in nature. Instead, the stories here focus on his subjective point of view as someone who has chased the unknown throughout his entire life, giving the whole endeavor a human perspective that can be enjoyed even by those who don’t necessarily believe in things that go bump in the night but are interested in knowing what this kind of life is like.
While many of the personal anecdotes here are pretty standard for a commercial memoir, with Gonsalves revealing how horror films like 1982’s The Entity sparked his interest in the paranormal and looking back on his graveyard expeditions as a teenager, the really interesting bits come in the form of his insight into the world of professional ghost hunting and how the field has evolved over the years.
Throughout the course of the book, you see how reality television has popularized what was once a niche hobby and turned it into an entire paranormal industry, with fans and even fellow investigators often interfering with results and affecting how the public at large views this strange activity. Fortunately, Gonsalves himself seems unaffected by this change in perspective, recounting his spookiest days on the job with an infectious sincerity that more than makes up for some of the surface-level commentary.
This intimate angle aside, fans of Ghost Hunters are sure to appreciate Gonsalves’ frequent callbacks to notable episodes and his fellow investigators. However, I commend the authors for always making sure to provide enough context to keep these chapters understandable even if you’ve never seen the show before. I even went so far as to revisit some of the mentioned episodes after I was done reading, though I actually found myself preferring Gonsalves’ summarized retelling of these events instead of wading through hour-long programs for a a few seconds of possible evidence.
Genre fans are also likely to enjoy the shout-outs to classic films like Poltergeist and The Shining, but I’m glad that Gonsalves and Aloisi always try to point out how alleged real-life paranormal activity is much more subdued and generally less impressive than what we’re used to seeing on the big screen. That being said, there are still plenty of hair-raising moments here even if you’re a die-hard skeptic like me, especially when it comes to the later chapters about Gonsalves’ experience shooting the House in Between documentaries (which I think are far more believable than his output on Ghost Hunters)
In fact, I respect how Gonsalves refuses to jump to easy conclusions after witnessing something strange, always attempting to find possible rational and even scientific explanations before diving into any supernatural causes for whatever he’s investigating. It’s quite clear that his passion for the unknown drives him far more than any ill-conceived notions of fame and fortune, which is why he used to investigate as a costly hobby long before being paid to do it on television. It’s this earnest devotion to his calling that makes the book worth reading, as even the less-interesting yarns here are still told by someone who genuinely loves what he does for a living.
Like Gonsalves himself admits in the introduction, A Life With Ghosts won’t convince any skeptics that malevolent entities and ethereal phantoms walk among us, but it doesn’t really have to. Simply viewing this peculiar world through the eyes of a passionate specialist is entertaining enough to make this breezy and uncomplicated read appeal to more than just the existing fans of Ghost Hunters.
It may not be the most in-depth tome about paranormal investigations out there, but it’s certainly one of the most personal, which is why I’d recommend checking out A Life with Ghosts even if you’re still on the fence about what’s really responsible for the strange noises you hear in your kitchen at three in the morning.
Books
‘Halloween: Illustrated’ Review: Original Novelization of John Carpenter’s Classic Gets an Upgrade
Film novelizations have existed for over 100 years, dating back to the silent era, but they peaked in popularity in the ’70s and ’80s, following the advent of the modern blockbuster but prior to the rise of home video. Despite many beloved properties receiving novelizations upon release, a perceived lack of interest have left a majority of them out of print for decades, with desirable titles attracting three figures on the secondary market.
Once such highly sought-after novelization is that of Halloween by Richard Curtis (under the pen name Curtis Richards), based on the screenplay by John Carpenter and Debra Hill. Originally published in 1979 by Bantam Books, the mass market paperback was reissued in the early ’80s but has been out of print for over 40 years.
But even in book form, you can’t kill the boogeyman. While a simple reprint would have satisfied the fanbase, boutique publisher Printed in Blood has gone above and beyond by turning the Halloween novelization into a coffee table book. Curtis’ unabridged original text is accompanied by nearly 100 new pieces of artwork by Orlando Arocena to create Halloween: Illustrated.
One of the reasons that The Shape is so scary is because he is, as Dr. Loomis eloquently puts it, “purely and simply evil.” Like the film sequels that would follow, the novelization attempts to give reason to the malevolence. More ambiguous than his sister or a cult, Curtis’ prologue ties Michael’s preternatural abilities to an ancient Celtic curse.
Jumping to 1963, the first few chapters delve into Michael’s childhood. Curtis hints at a familial history of evil by introducing a dogmatic grandmother, a concerned mother, and a 6-year-old boy plagued by violent nightmares and voices. The author also provides glimpses at Michael’s trial and his time at Smith’s Grove Sanitarium, which not only strengthens Loomis’ motivation for keeping him institutionalized but also provides a more concrete theory on how Michael learned to drive.
Aside from a handful of minor discrepancies, including Laurie stabbing Michael in his manhood, the rest of the book essentially follows the film’s depiction of that fateful Halloween night in 1978 beat for beat. Some of the writing is dated — like a smutty fixation on every female character’s breasts and a casual use of the R-word — but it otherwise possesses a timelessness similar to its film counterpart. The written version benefits from expanded detail and enriched characters.
The addition of Arocena’s stunning illustrations, some of which are integrated into the text, creates a unique reading experience. The artwork has a painterly quality to it but is made digitally using vectors. He faithfully reproduces many of Halloween‘s most memorable moments, down to actor likeness, but his more expressionistic pieces are particularly striking.
The 224-page hardcover tome also includes an introduction by Curtis — who details the challenges of translating a script into a novel and explains the reasoning behind his decisions to occasionally subvert the source material — and a brief afterword from Arocena.
Novelizations allow readers to revisit worlds they love from a different perspective. It’s impossible to divorce Halloween from the film’s iconography — Carpenter’s atmospheric direction and score, Dean Cundey’s anamorphic cinematography, Michael’s expressionless mask, Jamie Lee Curtis’ star-making performance — but Halloween: Illustrated paints a vivid picture in the mind’s eye through Curtis’ writing and Arocena’s artwork.
Halloween: Illustrated is available now.
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