If the name Montague Summers doesn't ring a bell then chances are you are not familiar with the Malleus Malefidarum. The Malefidarum was originally written 1485 by Heinrich Kramer and published in German in 1487 and two years later in French. Reading the original text of the Malleus Malefidarum was something that took me over a year to finish even though it was translated into English; it is a wordy, verbose book that will have your head spinning. Summers did one of the many translations of the book but his was not one of the most accurate and he did take some liberties when converting the content. After several lackluster titles, Summers penned "Vampire And Vampirism" based on his own 'encounters' and experience. No, this isn’t something that reads like an epic Van Helsing story but rather something that gives you a true old school feeling of how some of the folklore of vampires came to be, purported vampires, how vampires live, how they can be killed and how their lifestyle influenced characters in literature.

This is not a book about vampire sex, how to go out and catch vampires or Dracula. Summers wrote this in 1925 with publication dates in 1926 and 1929. To say that it is an interesting read is an understatement but I forewarn you, this is not a light read. The diction is heavy, there are clinical slants to some of the sections and the illustrations are all in black and white and rather crude in form. Even so, if you like reading older / old school texts about vampires and the old world view of them, this is something that you will completely devour. Summers view on the Malleus Malefidarum and its content shine though in "Vampire And Vampirism"; while he does not condone witchcraft, consorting with the devil, spellcasting or any other dark arts he is a firm believer that there are innocent people that are accused of such things.

He does not defend or condone the actions of those who have been found guilty but he does do a great job of providing some solid, credible alternatives to their actions. In the case of vampirism he notes that there are people that have a strong craving for blood, be it human or animal, because of a lack of a certain vitamin. While this is a crude and uninvestigated thought that was laughed at by most of his peers when he brought it up it does hold weight. Summer was often chastised for his writings; being taken seriously when he sought publication was one of his biggest issue but there were more than a few people that found his writings solid and worthy of publication. "Vampires And Vampirism" is not something that anyone in this day and age would read and agree with but there are some basic principals of his writings in this book that will make you think.

Some of the more interesting parts of the book include the "history" of vampires and how they came to be, regions in Europe that are notorious hot spots for vampire activity and how they exist without being detected. If you know even a hint about vampires you'll know about their connection to Transylvania, Hungary and Budapest so some of what is included in the book is common knowledge but at the time this was considered 'new info', There are some crude maps of areas where vampire activity was reported and why these specific spots were so popular. Another interesting section is that of vampire plagues and vampire huntings that took place. Summers again backs up these accounts and instances with historical information but offers alternative explanations on a few of them. It's important to keep in mind that Summers was a priest so defending the "creatures of the night" went against the church and their view on the damned souls. In defending them or offering other explanations there were whispers of heresy and possession when this book was first published. The stories surrounding the release of this were as interesting to read about as the book itself.

There are five different releases of this book; I have read three of them and for the most part they are identical however some of them are edited and some information is omitted. All versions are taken from his original "Vampires And Vampirism" so you are getting the authentic thoughts and words however some of the editions have the illustrations removed or there are sections that are edited. If you are a vampire lover you may want to think twice about reading this; Summers is not a sympathizer nor does he ask for people to spare vampires from death – what he does do is defend those wrongly accused of being a vampire. This was one of the main reasons that he translated the Malleus Malefidarum [and probably made changes to some of it]. It falls in line with "keep your friends close and your enemies closer" and "to destroy your enemy, learn everything you can about them". Summers backs up his "historical references" with some bizarre picks including "Histoire des Fantômes et des Demons" [1818] and the "Magia Postuma" which was published in 1705. For someone that sought the advancement of vampiric awareness he picked some odd, outdated and non relevant texts to reference.

I enjoyed reading "Vampires And Vampirism" but it wasn't as strong as the original version that had more of a "you will burn in hell for eternity" title The Vampire: His Kith And Kin. Compared to books written by Summers after this was released [most notably "The Vampire In Europe"], this was pretty tame. I have to assume that some parts of it were toned down for the reissue of it because he has a rather vile tongue when it comes to how vampires and other creatures should be disposed of if they are in indeed found to be guilty or have guilt by association.


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^V^ © 2010 Freak369 ^V^
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