Horror Aficionados discussion

Maybe it's signed by an author you've admired or is a special edition or was a gift from someone, or some other reason.
I'd enjoy hearing about them.
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It's not worth any money but I have a copy of Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13 signed by Jim Lovell, the Apollo 13 astronaut. I got to meet him in the late '90s. I remember watching all the moon missions from the '60s and '70s and to meet one of the astronauts was a big thrill for me. The book always reminds me of that day.

One book that holds special meaning to me is Billy Summers by Stephen King. I read it millions of times yet each time I feel like I learn a new thing no matter how much I reread it. I felt like I had one point in my time had been my own "Billy Summers." That book had gotten me to start writing for myself, regardless of how hard it was for me to express my emotions.

Hi, I have a copy of Duck For Danger by Ann Grocott. I’ve had it since I was about 9 years old and read it rough once every year. It’s a young adult adventure story but we had to read it for our class in school and it was the first book that brought me into the world that it was telling. That was the first book that gave me my love for reading and that’s why I keep it and read it so many times over so many years.

Years ago I was given a signed copy of the Phantom Tollbooth, my favorite book as a child, and it's been a yearly tradition going back and revisiting that world; it taught me to love reading and will always have a place in my heart for that

ALLOFUM

Alondra wrote: "ALLOFUM"

LMFAO

At first I thought that was an acronym for a book title and started trying to figure out what book that was!

I have a signed Michael McDowell-The Elementals, with beautiful illustrations. My very favorite is a signed copy of Boy's Life, Suntup Press edition.

I have a 1910 edition of Alice in Wonderland that was given to my grandmother for her 9th birthday that is falling apart but has a lot of notes she wrote in the margins over the decades.

I have a lot of signed editions of books, some more expensive than others, but I got my signed copy of 11/22/63 by Stephen King by attending his event in Dallas in 2011 for its publication. It's not my favorite King book, but one that holds some good memories for me.

I also have the copy of my first King book I read in 1981--the movie-tie-in of The Shining (complete with dried ketchup stain from reading it on the family car while eating a McDonald's hamburger.)

Char wrote: "Alondra wrote: "ALLOFUM"

LMFAO

At first I thought that was an acronym for a book title and started trying to figure out what book that was!

I have a signed Michael McDowell-The Elementals, with..."

Bwahahha.... sorry about that. I just love them all. 😂

One of these days I will have special copies. I do have a few signed arcs, but not by any favorites. Yikes

I collect books, so have a lot that have special meaning to me, but my two favorites are an uncorrected galley of The Dead Zone by Stephen King and a copy of Joe Hill's Horns that he sent to me during Covid. It's my favorite of his books and I already had a signed copy, but he sent it signed and inscribed and IT CAME FROM HIS HOUSE!

Kandice wrote: "I collect books, so have a lot that have special meaning to me, but my two favorites are an uncorrected galley of The Dead Zone by Stephen King and a copy of Joe Hill's Horns that he sent to me dur..."

That is pretty freaking cool!

I've been lucky enough to meet Joe Hill a few times, (but never his dad), and he likes to include little doodles a lot of times, which I think is kind of neat.

I was sent a book of Edgar Allan Poe from an online best friend of 10 years who was very disabled and who has now sadly passed.

My mother gave me her grandmother's bible, which I value.

My own ESV Study bible was a birthday gift from my former fiance who has also now passed.

A one time acquantice from a special weekend gifted me a small bible with inside inscription over 20 years ago that also means a lot to me.

All Diary of a Wimpy Kids and goosebumps I bought to read with my son have memory value.

I have some box sets I've personally bought that I cherish, and also the Camp Crystal Lake Friday the 13th large book I finally caved and bought.

While I didn't like the book, I got to meet R.L. Stine and get a copy of his red rain at a convention signed when I bought that. Was a fun day.

Family bibles or bibles from close friends are priceless,
I imagine. I'm sorry about your friend and fiancee that passed.

I have my Mum's Bible...she gave it to me not long before she passed away aged 66... My son was only 8 weeks old at the time...I kept her Bible close to me even though I'm not a religious person it gave me comfort and guidance ❤️ it means so much to me...I wouldn't be without it.

I have a bunch of Agatha Christie books that my mom bought back in the 60s and 70s. I've been making my way through all of Christie's books the past couple of years, so when I get up to one of those I get really excited to read it instead of borrowing from the library.

Char wrote: "Family bibles or bibles from close friends are priceless,
I imagine. I'm sorry about your friend and fiancee that passed."

Thank you. It definitely has me cherish the books even more.

Diane wrote: "I have my Mum's Bible...she gave it to me not long before she passed away aged 66... My son was only 8 weeks old at the time...I kept her Bible close to me even though I'm not a religious person it..."

Same, Diane, we can never get rid of these! My mom's large family bible has this giant tear on the front page, and I asked my mom about it when looking through it as an adult - she told me she was so happy to buy it when I was a baby, then I crawled over and tore the page and it became part of its history LOL

Doctor Who: Cybermen
I had an old signed copy of this - Met David Banks a few times over the years

Lee wrote: "Doctor Who: Cybermen
I had an old signed copy of this - Met David Banks a few times over the years"

That's pretty cool!

I have a first edition hardback of Stephen King's INSOMNIA that I bought in Betts Bookstore, Main Street, Bangor - when my wife and I visited New England in 1994. Unfortunately, it's not signed, but I still have the paper bag it came in and the bookmark from the store. We took a drive along the street where he lived and found his house eventually - the front gate gave it away! We still have a photo of it.
The hardback cost the princely sum of $27.95 back then.
Stephen is one of my all time favourite authors and this title one of my favourites of his.

My favorite book i own is an original printing of Homeland, book 1 of the Dark Elf Trilogy by R.A. Salvatore that was my dad’s copy. It’s the first book of the trilogy that got me started in all of my reading and general interests throughout my entire life. Truly a game changing read for me and it’s beat to hell since 1990 but it still has a special place on my shelf

Jacob wrote: "My favorite book i own is an original printing of Homeland, book 1 of the Dark Elf Trilogy by R.A. Salvatore that was my dad’s copy. It’s the first book of the trilogy that got me started in all of..."

That's a lovely story, Jacob.
For me, I guess the book that started my reading in general had to be Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein. I still have my childhood copy and I still cherish it. It was so whimsical and fun and it made me look at reading in an entirely new way.

I have a copy of The Vanishing Children by Graham Brack


This book is very dear to me because it's dedicated to my father. My father was fascinated by the history of Leiden, where he lived and worked. He owned a large collection of (some old and rare) books about this town. I corresponded with author Graham Brack to compliment him for his extensive research and after my father passed away in 2020 I sent him some books from my fathers' collection.
It was a lovely big surprise for me when I received a copy of The Vanishing Children with this dedication in it.

My copy of House of Leaves! I live in Lima, Peru, and it's hard for me to travel just now. My little sister, who lives in Portland, though, managed a big trip to visit. She lugged this chunker of a book the whole way for me!

I have a copy of Quarrel With the Moon by J.C. Conaway. My mother owned a copy when I was young and I always found myself drawn to the cover art. This is the first horror book I can remember reading and started my life-long obsession with horror, werewolves in particular. It's out of print now but I was able to snag a copy on ebay.

N. Scott Momaday's House Made of Dawn is very dear to me because it was a gift from the man himself.
He had the most beautiful speaking voice, both literally and figuratively.

The bibles my dad, grandma, and great-grandma all had and kept notes in. Reading the notes by the passages he underlined considering joining the Marine Corps gives me chills. (He did)

R.S. wrote: "The bibles my dad, grandma, and great-grandma all had and kept notes in. Reading the notes by the passages he underlined considering joining the Marine Corps gives me chills. (He did)"

That's sounds very special to keep for value.

John Dies at the End is the book my husband and I both love that he messaged me on OkCupid about over ten years ago. So we might not be together if it weren't for that book. I have many editions of it including the 1st edition

Courtney (why did I request all these!?) wrote: "John Dies at the End is the book my husband and I both love that he messaged me on OkCupid about over ten years ago. So we might not be together if it weren't for that book. I have many editions of..."

Sweet. ♥
It's nice knowing books can bring people together.