The recently-published Author's
Edition of Eric Penz's bigfoot novel Cryptid (© Eric Penz)
Within my collection of cryptozoology-themed novels
are several whose plots centre upon the discovery of bigfoot (aka sasquatch).
Some of these, such as Lee Murphy's Where Legends Roam, are excellent; certain others are less so. One that
definitely falls within the former category is Eric Penz's debut novel, Cryptid.
Originally published almost a decade ago, it has
received a succession of very favourable reviews, and was chosen as joint 'Top
Cryptofiction Book of the Year' for 2005 (click here)
by Loren Coleman for leading cryptozoological website Cryptomundo. Such
accolades are greatly deserved, because Cryptid very successfully
presents the reader with a compelling, well-written, well-researched storyline
based upon the celebrated bigfoot studies of the late Prof. Grover Krantz, and
featuring a fascinating, wholly original historical premise hinted at in its
subtitle – The Lost Legacy of Lewis and Clark.
One of the most significant explorations in the post-Columbus
history of North America, the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804-1806 was
the very first American expedition to cross what is now the western portion of
the USA. It departed in May 1804 from St Louis on the Mississippi, making its way westward through the continental
divide to the Pacific coast. To quote from Wikipedia's entry for this historic venture:
"The
expedition was commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson shortly after the Louisiana
Purchase in 1803, consisting of a select group of U.S. Army volunteers under
the command of Captain Meriwether Lewis and his close friend Second Lieutenant William
Clark. Their perilous journey lasted from May 1804 to September 1806. The
primary objective was to explore and map the newly acquired territory, find a
practical route across the Western half of the continent, and establish an
American presence in this territory before Britain and other European powers tried
to claim it.
"The
campaign's secondary objectives were scientific and economic: to study the
area's plants, animal life, and geography, and establish trade with local
Indian tribes. With maps, sketches and journals in hand, the expedition
returned to St. Louis to report their findings to Jefferson."
Captain
Meriwether Lewis and Second Lieutenant William Clark (public domain)
What has intrigued Eric
so much about this epic journey of discovery is the still-unexplained series of
major gaps in the expedition journal written by Lewis. One such gap alone spanned
14 May 1804 to 7 April 1805, another spanned 26 August 1805 to 1 January 1806. What
happened – moreover, what might have been discovered - during those very
considerable, unrecorded periods of the expedition? And what might have
been vigorously suppressed throughout history ever since then? As noted in its
blurb, these tantalising thoughts are what gave birth to Cryptid:
"Something
haunts the woods of Olympic National Park, a nightmare in hiding. Its existence
has been kept secret by a conspiracy that stretches back to President Thomas Jefferson and the Lewis & Clark Expedition. The truth that we have not been alone on this earth
would have forever been lost except that some species just won’t die.
"Dr
Samantha Russell has spent her career seeking for truth in the only way she
knows how, on her hands and knees, painstakingly digging it up from the crust
of the earth. When the truth arrives by way of FedEx, she cannot help but see
it as nothing more than another scientific hoax, especially considering the
source. Dr Jon Ostman has practically been excommunicated by the scientific
community for his interest in such subjects as the American Sasquatch.
"Suffering from her father's tragic sense of curiosity, though, Sam can't resist the question begged by the bones contained in the wooden crate. How could they be bones and not fossils since Gigantopithecus had been extinct for 125,000 years?
"Driven to know the answer, Sam delays going to her father on his deathbed and instead pursues Jon to a remote corner of Washington state where he is about to make the greatest discovery involving the origins of the human species, a discovery Lewis and Clark may have already made two hundred years earlier. However, Sam is not the only one pursuing Jon, for one of our nation's first secrets is still being kept by all means necessary.
"And
if they do survive the centuries-old conspiracy, they will not only rewrite
American history, but they will prove that we are not the only intelligent,
bipedal primate to survive extinction."
Yet in spite of the
original success of Cryptid, Eric always felt that it was not quite
'him', and so, to remedy this situation, he decided to publish in ebook form a
special Author's Edition. Here is Eric's own account of how this newest
incarnation of his bigfoot novel came about, as quoted from the official Cryptid
website (click here), which is packed
with additional information regarding both the novel and bigfoot itself:
"If it
ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I’m sure your father subscribed to this advice much
like my own. This sage advice could perhaps apply to me releasing an Author’s
Edition of my debut novel, Cryptid. The book was well received by both reader and
critic. Sales were and still are admirable for a first novel. So then why
bother with a new edition?
"Good
question. And I’m not sure I have an equally good answer. All I can say is that
in the years since Cryptid
was published I’ve lived with a nagging concern. The book as originally
published was just not quite me. Like a picture hanging on the wall
askew enough to place a sliver in your mind until you leveled it that fraction
of a degree, I’ve had a sliver for Cryptid. And with the new brave world
of ebook publishing, putting out a new edition is now feasible. So why a new
edition? In short, because I now can. It’s time to pluck the sliver free.
"More
specifically, the story was simply not complete. As the subtitle implies, this
story involves Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. The story begins with their
amazing adventure. And yet, these two American heroes do not appear on screen.
It’s time to fix that. I’ve included with this edition a new first chapter that
was not included in the previous edition. This chapter stars both Lewis and
Clark, though perhaps not quite as history might envision them.
"And
so, I proudly present to you the Author’s Edition of Cryptid: The Lost Legacy of Lewis & Clark. Like many
Director’s Cut versions of movies, this edition is the story as I believe it to
be best told. It is now more me. That is not to say it is perfect.
Quite the contrary. It is still a first novel, complete with all the quirks and
imperfections that accompany an author’s early work. I wouldn’t change those
for anything. That would be like removing a birth mark from your first born
son. There are changes I could make, but I will save those for the film version.
"Without
further ado, I present to you my first born son as I envisioned him to be.
Enjoy the hunt.
"Two
centuries in the making, Cryptid is the final chapter of the Lewis &
Clark story. As with any good tale, the best secrets have been kept until the
end."
The Author's Edition of Cryptid in ebook
form can be purchased here on Amazon and at
all other good bookstores – but this is still not all, because Eric has now
announced exciting plans to produce a short film based upon his novel.
To publicise this latest endeavour, he has prepared
a theatrical film trailer and some shorts, which received their debut screening
on 22 April. But if you weren't there, worry not, because here are the
necessary links, kindly provided to me by Eric, for you to view all of them online
right now:
Cave Scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMvKD0PxKIQ
Hunt Scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7MxdjxHFR4
Anthology: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nD8a7h3Aak
Making Of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLNnEuUem8U
Cryptid
has indeed returned, and the forthcoming film treatment will certainly ensure
that it keeps on running - just like its hairy bipedal subjects, in fact!
The original hardback edition of Cryptid
(© Eric Penz/Universe Star)
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