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''A history of humanity without a history of our imaginations is only a partial one . . . '' We have always created and destroyed monsters. They give form to what we don''t wish to know or understand; to our inner fears and irrational terrors. They have helped us to manage the extraordinary complexity of our minds and deal with the considerable challenges of being human. In Enchanted Creatures , Natalie Lawrence delves into the dark histories of monstrous creatures we have imagined over 15,000 years of history: from strange beasts carved in Palaeolithic caves and hybrid snake women, to deep-sea leviathans and apocalyptic dino-monsters. She reveals what lies beneath the monstrous menagerie that has helped form our minds, build our societies and shaped how we see our place in nature. Understanding our monsters allows us to understand ourselves, perhaps the most important quest there is.
About the author
Natalie Lawrence is a writer, illustrator and researcher. She has a degree in Natural Sciences and received a PhD in the History and Philosophy of Science from Cambridge University for her work on early modern exotic monsters. She published Planta Sapiens with Paco Calvo in 2022, and her first solo book, Feathers and Eggshells when she was a teenager. Her writing has appeared in New Scientist, Aeon Magazine, Atlas Obscura and BBC Wildlife, amongst others, and she has spoken for TEDX, BBC Radio and podcasts. She lives in London with her curiosity cabinet and the occasional atlas moth.
Summary
A fascinating journey through 15,000 years of history, exploring the incredible variety of monstrous creatures we have created and what they can tell us about who we are
