John B. Kachuba’s Shapeshifters: A History is a thorough examination of shapeshifters, discussing their importance in religion, literature, folklore, and popular culture. Readers whose knowledge is largely about the two most well-known shapeshifters—the werewolf and the vampire—will find this discussion to be much more extensive. Werewolves and vampires do get their own chapters, but they are near the middle, after a thorough exploration of religion, folklore, and mythology. Kachuba introduces the ten chapters that follow with a brief but strong introduction, “Entering the World of the Shapeshifter,” which begins with a reference to the iconic figure of the werewolf but moves on to other iterations of the creature in literature, specifically mentioning The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Le Morte d’Artur, and the works of H.P. Lovecraft. The shapeshifter’s place in religion and mythology is touched on as well but is covered in more depth in the two chapters that follow.
Chapter 1, “Gods and Goddesses: Shapeshifters in Antiquity,” explores the presence of shapeshifters from their earliest representations in cave paintings to references in ancient texts. The scope of this chapter is wide, discussing, among others, Greek and Roman, Egyptian and Norse gods, and sharing intriguing stories, such as Japanese kitsune tales and the story of the Hawaiian goddess Pele. Chapter 2, “When Men Become Gods: Mortal Shapeshifters,” is an extension of the first chapter, shifting the emphasis from gods to human shapeshifters. This chapter contains a humorous reference to Alec Baldwin’s portrayal of Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live and points to a comical line in the skit, having to do with people being aliens and shapeshifters. It is an interesting transition that illustrates that the author has left no stone unturned in looking for cultural references to shapeshifters. Here, he introduces several types of human shapeshifters, sharing various collected narratives, such as Portugal’s maura encantada, an enchanted Moorish woman who is part snake.
Chapter 3, “The Power of Transformation,” is perhaps the most memorable of the early chapters because of its unusual progression. It begin with a discussion of Jesus Christ’s transfiguration, evolves into a discussion of the famous conspiracy theorist David Icke’s belief that reptilian alien shapeshifters have infiltrated important roles in government, and wraps up with a reference to The Incredible Hulk. While this description may give the impression that the chapter is unfocused, this is not the case. Kachuba covers much ground and the connections make sense. Chapter 4 identifies and discusses fae, faerie, and folk shapeshifters in Europe, while chapter 5 examines their existence worldwide. So many intriguing characters are included in this section that it would be a daunting task to list them all, but a diverse array of creatures, such as dragons, cannibalistic humanoid creatures called mamus, and evil spirits named kanaimas, are featured.
Chapter 6 narrows the focus specifically to werewolves, while chapter 7 is dedicated entirely to vampires. Because of the popularity of these creatures, it is unsurprising that the author discusses each in such detail. The discussion on werewolves begins with folk-based stories, eventually mentioning mainstream films such as The Wolfman and The Werewolf of London. The vampire discussion is longer and sticks closely to folk narrative. Popular films are not really addressed until chapter 9, “Shapeshifters in Popular Culture: Literature and Media.” This discussion is wide-ranging, covering much more than just vampires. Stephen King’s It, J.R R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, Harry Potter, and The Transformers are among the many familiar subjects Kachuba finds worthy of discussion. Chapters 6, 7, and 9 fit logically together, so the text would have benefitted from a rearrangement of their order. Chapter 8 addresses sex, gender, and identity issues, which includes an interesting discussion of cosplay in costumes. This chapter is brief but relevant, though, as I noted, it is placed between two much larger chapters that would perhaps benefit from a closer proximity to each other. Chapter 8 might have functioned better as the penultimate chapter, because chapter 10, the conclusion, also deals with hybridity and identity.
Overall, this book should appeal to a wide audience. Stylistically, the prose is accessible to a general readership, but that does not detract from its scholarly value. Though each chapter contains citations, they are not numerous and do not overwhelm the text. Academics will undoubtedly appreciate Kachuba’s thoroughness and attention to detail. Black-and-white pictures and illustrations are parsimoniously interspersed throughout the text, functioning as occasional curiosities that enhance the discussion presented. The whole, in fact, is greater than the sum of its parts. One would be hard-pressed to find a more thorough and thoughtful examination of these creatures.
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[Review length: 769 words • Review posted on April 16, 2020]