Some of these “false alarm” books were rumored to have non-fiction mentions of therianthropes or otherkin, but the rumors turned out to be false. Some of these books are presented in a way that initially makes you think they may be about therianthropes or otherkin, but turn out to be completely, undeniably different. To a certain extent, it's up to the individual reader how much therianthropic value they read into a fiction book, but with non-fiction it's more clear-cut than that.

    DOUGLAS, Adam. The Beast Within: A History of the Werewolf. London: Chapmans, 1992.

    This is a non-fiction book about werewolves, in most senses of the word: mythology, movies, and psychology. Although long and fairly scholarly, it's easy reading, and has a lot of respect among fans of werewolves. (The only complaint is that Douglas tends to go on long digressions.) The title of this book, The Beast Within, is not to be confused with several completely different books of the same title. The author, Adam Douglas, is not to be confused with Douglas Adams, the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

    I'd heard that the newsgroup alt.horror.werewolves (AHWW) was mentioned in this book, so I picked it up. An alt.horror.werewolves member called Wanderer said on Jan 8 2005, “Leave us not forget The Beast Within: Man, Myths and Werewolves by Adam Douglas. It even mentions AHWW.” Wanderer repeated this again on Apr 18 2005, saying: “A more modern book is ‘The Beast Within’, by Adam Douglas. Even AHWW itself comes in for a mention.”

    Unfortunately, when I checked out the book and read it, I found that there's no mention of alt.horror.werewolves or any Internet-related thing in the book's index, table of contents, chronology, or bibliography. I spent ages looking, and other people who I asked said they'd never heard of AHWW being in this book, either. Apparently it was a false rumor that this book mentions alt.horror.werewolves. Perhaps Wanderer was thinking of Cohen's book.

     Overall quality: A

     McCOY, Edain. Advanced Witchcraft: Go Deeper, Reach Further, Fly Higher. Llewellyn: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2004.

     See above. McCoy's book included therianthropic non-fiction in its bibliography and said that it talked about shapeshifters. It turned out to just have a chapter that sketchily introduced animal totemism and shamanic shapeshifting. It's not about spiritual therianthropy, or if it is, the author was so confused by it that her description of it is no longer recognizable.

     Overall quality: C

     There are still many more books that could suit the theme of this list... it would bring the list to well over a hundred books. (As of this writing, I've already reviewed about ninety books for this list.) For one reason or other, these last ones haven't been reviewed yet. Either I've read them and am still editing my review, or I've found them but haven't read them yet, or I'm having trouble finding them at all. Some of the following books may turn out to not even be suitable for this book list after all! As we see above, some of the books rumored to have therianthropic content turn out not to have it. It's a big job for me to review all these, and I'd appreciate any help that you can offer in sorting through the following books.

     A list of currently unreviewed books about animal totemism and shamanic shapeshifting.

     A list of currently unreviewed books about vampires.

     A list of currently unreviewed books about starseeds and walk-ins.

     ANDREWS, Ted. The Art of Shapeshifting. Dragonhawk Publishing, 2005.

     In the guide Learn Shapeshifting, Amazon user whole_and_healthy says this book includes mystical mask-making, and that's all I know. Some other reviews indicate that it touches on a bunch of different subjects related to shamanic shapeshifting without ever giving you quite enough information on each. I haven't stumbled across a copy of it yet, so I have no idea.

     BAUDINO, Gael. Strands of Starlight. Roc, 1994.

     Fantasy novel. My friend Forestdweller says of this book, “The main character is a reincarnated and transformed Elf.” Furthermore, the Recommended Otherkin-Related Reading, Listening and Viewing bibliography says of this book, “The elves in these books are described as 'starlit', which is a self-description which works well for a number of elven otherkin.” That will be interesting to read!

     BEY, Hakim. T.A.Z.: The Temporary Autonomous Zone. Autonomedia, 2003.

     A non-fiction book which is well-liked among glamourbombers.

     CONWAY, D. J. Dancing with Dragons: Invoke their Ageless Power and Wisdom. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn, 1994.

     I've had lots of recommendations and counter-recommendations about whether I should include this book in my list. Eshari's Recommended Otherkin-Related Reading rants about how this book was disappointing, lots of draconic people have grumbled about it, and other draconic people have sung its praise and said I shouldn't leave it out. I'm not sure what section of the book list I should put it in, anyway! The spirituality magic section? The species reference section? I've read it, so I know about its shortcomings and gems, and I've heard about Conway's reputation. I just have to decide whether it fits this list's theme well enough.

     DAVIDSON, Gustav. Dictionary of Angels: Including the Fallen Angels. Free Press, 1968.

     DUANE, Diane. So you want to be a wizard. Delacorte Press, 1983.

     My friend Avatara Raki said on 2004-11-11: “Diane Duane's Tale of the Five series actually has a character who has dragons living in her head. The dragons are, it's fair to say, awesome.” Amberite said on 2004-11-11: “On magic(k), I'd seriously recommend Diane Duane's young wizard series, especially the first, 'So You Want To Be A Wizard.' They're 'young adult fiction', but I know a coven who has them on the mandatory reading list, and when I found that out my respect for them went up a few notches.” I'm not sure if that fits my bibliography's theme closely enough. I'll have to read it to find out.

     GREER, John Michael. Monsters. Llewellyn, 2001.

     Weird book. Did I see it plagiarizing Rosalyn Greene in the werewolf chapter...!? The irony. Need to reread, I got frustrated and gave up on it on the first read. However, it does need to be addressed in this list.

In an Amazon book list called Is there any truth to the werewolf legend? the Amazon user Grey Wolf sums up the book's werewolf chapter by saying: “In Monsters, John Michael Greer explains that werewolves are witches who choose to turn into wolves. They can be good or bad, depending on their human personalities. He tells you how to hunt werewolves, but he warns that you need to find out if the werewolf you are dealing with is good or evil FIRST.” So, uh... if you're hunting real live werewolves in the real live world, make sure it's safety first. :P

     KENNEDY, Judy. Beyond the Rainbow: Renewing the Cosmic Connection. Infinity Publishing, 2004.

     I've only had a few glimpses of this book about starseeds through books.google.com, and it looks like it may talk about some other things of interest to my bibliography's theme. On one page it says, “...many people may be drawn to certain animal forms that really resemble their true form. A person belonging to the race of aquatic beings from Sirius, for example, would have a strong affinity for whales and dolphins. At any rate, Jelaila lists many factors that hint at starseed identity...” (Kennedy 147). Apparently she also talks about vampires, UFOs, and reptilians, so apparently it's a generalized New Age book on the weirder end of the New Age spectrum. Uses dragons a as a metaphor or something... etheric body, alien space ships...? I can't tell from books.google.com, so I guess I'll eventually have to find a copy and see what it's actually talking about.

     LINDSKOLD, Jane. Through wolf's eyes. Tor, 2001.

     My friend Puropis said on 2005-08-23: “Jane Lindskold's series (of which I have only read the first book thus far, though I am beginning to read the second), beginning with Through Wolf's Eyes that deals with a young woman named Firekeeper who was raised among wolves since she was a small child. Upon returning to "civilization" accompanied by a wolf, she has to relearn how to act amongst humans. She often tries to explain that while her body is human, she still thinks of herself as a wolf.”

     MACK, Carol K., and Dinah MACK. A Field Guide to Demons, Fairies, Fallen Angels and Other Subversive Spirits. HarperCollins, 1920.

     PULLMAN, Philip. The Golden Compass. Knopf, 1996.

     Reviewed above in the fiction section with other people's comments on it, but I still need to read it properly for myself.

     RAMSLAND, Katherine. Piercing the Darkness: Undercover with Vampires in America Today. Eos, 1998.

     Not to be confused with Peretti's book of nearly the same title, Ramsland's book is about the vampire subculture from the viewpoint of an outsider. I've heard that vampires generally don't appreciate this book much. Tornir's Therianthropic Resources bibliography said of this book: “An investigation into the Vampire Culture, from the fringes to the centre. Werewolves and 'shifters' get a few short paragraphs.” I'll have to pick it up and see just what it says about werewolves.

     REICHERT, Mickey Zucher and Jennifer WINGERT. Spirit Fox. NY: DAW, 1998.

     A fantasy novel. Ngarewyrd said to me on 2006-01-18: “I'm surprised you didn't include Spirit Fox in your list... the main character is _VERY_ close to what some would say otherkin is based on, a girl who was born at the same time as a fox cub, the foxcub is killed, and the spirit of said fox enters into the girl's body.” While that's not generally how therianthropes come about in real life, it may have a lot of the atmosphere and ideas right about what it's like to live as a person who is also a fox inside. I've started reading it.

     SHAPERO, Rich. Wild Animus.Too Far, 2004.

     Adult historical fiction set in the Sixties. The main characters spiritually identify with animals, sort of like animal totemism or therianthropy, so a lot of people have been talking about it on the various therianthropy forums. The author was sending out a gazillion free promotional copies because he owns that publishing company, so it's easy to find a copy: there were eight at the last used book store I visited. All of those were unedited advance reading copies.

     In the Therianthrope and Otherkin Book Club, there are now some discussions about Wild Animus.

     STEIGER, Brad. The werewolf book: the encyclopedia of shape-shifting beings. Visible Ink Press, 1999

     Tornir's Therianthropic Resources bibliography didn't sound impressed with this book, but what's unusual for a werewolf book is that “Howls get a brief mention as role-playing conventions, in an entry that quotes from the AHWw core FAQ,” as said in its entry in the Therianthropic Resources. I'll have to take a look at that.

     STERN, Sara. Dragon's Song. iUniverse, 2005.

     Juvenile fantasy with a resemblance to the Dragonriders of Pern series, but Google Books shows several passages saying that the main character Selah has a dragon's soul. What...? I wish I could find it somewhere so I could see just what it means by that.

Upcoming Books about Therianthropes and Otherkin

     Over the years, many people have said that they were planning to write a book about otherkin and therianthropes. Sometimes they say they're already partway through writing it and they're researching it by asking questions of therians, so it's a serious intention. It's not just an imaginary fancy or a casual hope for writing a book someday; they (claim to) have already done a lot of work on it. As we see above, some of those books really did get published, but a lot of the other proposed books were never finished and nobody got wind of them again. I'd like to keep track of all these potentials, so let me know about any upcoming therianthrope or otherkin books.

     KINFO. (No further information known.)

     The Kinfo (Otherkin Information) project is a project run by an anonymous individual who is (or claims to be) an otherkin himself/herself. (Kinfo's gender is undisclosed.) He/she has protected his/her identity to such an extent that the identifying information that he/she has made available is that he/she awakened to being an otherkin a long time ago, and is a writer living in the French part of Canada. His/her writing style is calm and scholarly. He/she started the Kinfo project in March 2005 (or the journal was started then, at least) and is gathering material from otherkin by voluntary surveys to eventually publish a book about otherkin. Progress on the project has been continual since that date.

     LUPA. A Field Guide to Otherkin. Immanion Press, 2007.

     This is one of the most promising upcoming books about otherkin, and at this point it looks certain that it will be published. The author, Lupa, is herself a wolf therianthrope and a pagan who cares strongly about good scholarship. This is her second book, as she's already published Fang and Fur, Blood and Bone: A Primal Guide to Animal Magic. She gives updates on the field guide's progress in her weblog. A Field Guide to Otherkin is not only about otherkin; it will also include therianthropes, multiples, and walk-ins. Although she talks about her personal views and experiences as a therianthrope as well, the main focus of the book is on otherkin, therianthropes, multiples, and walk-ins as a diverse whole. People who are interested in being included in her research and perhaps being quoted can fill out the survey for this book. Two excerpts from A Field Guide to Otherkin have been posted to Otherkin.net: A Day in the Life of Otherkin and Personal Mythology, Imagination, and Metaphor. You may recognize some people's names as their survey responses are quoted. Although a lot of people have anxieties about what may happen when a book entirely about otherkin is published, the information available about this book right now shows to me that the author is working hard to make it as good as possible.

     TURNER, Barbara “Moonwolf.” (Title and publisher unknown.)

     In the Werelist thread “Therianthropy Books”, a wolf therianthrope called Barbara “Moonwolf” Turner (see her Werecard) said on January 11, 2006 in response to a question about whether there were any books about therianthropy:

“I have seen this question before for a couple of years,and it is why I have begun writing a book on therianthropy. Part of it will be based on the internet material and I /will/ be giving credit where credit is due (even to you, Jakkal!). It will start with a general history of werewolf myths and folklore, follow to the more current folklore and then take a look at current therianthropy. So far I have a 3" ring binder full of notes, three shelves of books and movies, and about 30 pages of actual manuscript writing. After reading "magic of shapeshifting", I felt I had to do something! And I humbly hope this will meet some needs in the therianthropic community, as well has helping seekers get some information that is not all "Hollywood" stereotype and RPG.”