Happy Halloween 2019

Happy Halloween everyone! In honor of Halloween, here are a few books from our very own special collections; A Whisper of Blood edited by Ellen Datlow and other notable books from the famous author and journalist Leslie Whitten, who donated these books along with his archival papers. Les Whitten was a Lehigh University alumnus who was originally enrolled as a civil engineering major before dropping out after three semesters to join the Army. After serving in the military, Whitten returned to Lehigh and switched his major to Journalism and English. This was the beginning of his career as a journalist, taking down corrupt politicians including in the Watergate scandal. 

Les Whitten was also a novelist who wrote multiple books in the genres of Horror and Science Fiction. Whitten donated A Whisper of Blood by Ellen Datlow and circled a paragraph on page 121 mentioning him as one of the fundamental authors for vampires. Whitten’s Progeny of the Adder, written in 1965, inspired A Whisper of Blood. Whitten has become an influential horror writer especially in the vampire and werewolf categories. He wrote about monsters while also battling them in real life. Whitten helped to kick start a generation of horror books that continues to grow today. Happy Halloween from Leslie Whitten and the Lehigh Special Collections. For more information about Les Whitten and to see what material Lehigh holds, visit the Leslie Hunter Whitten Papers finding aid.