David Holt (1) (1946–)

While many of these anecdotes are interesting and amusing, but personally, I would call only a select few true urban legends. Most of the urban legends I have read in other books, like the excellent German collection by Rolf Wilhelm Brednich, Die Spinne in der Yucca-Palme: Sagenhafte Geschichten von heute are short, and almost always anonymous (they might mention a geographic place, but names, except maybe if a celebrity is involved, are as a rule omitted).

The stories featured in The Exploding Toilet: Modern Urban Legends however, not only often feature personal names, they are also sometimes overly long, with many of them actually reading more like humorous anecdotes and jokes than bona fide urban legends. I found these stories an amusing and diverting break from my usual reading choices, but I would have given this book a higher rating, if David Holt had not insisted on describing this collection as modern urban legends, as many of the stories contained therein simply do not correspond to what my definition of an urban legend is.… (meer)

The Exploding Toilet: Modern Urban Legends collected and retold by David Holt and Bill Mooney, is a leisurely read for teens between the grade levels of 7-12. It covers popular: American Folktales, American legends and urban folklore. It’s composed of humorous, scary, witty and paranormal myths and legends. For instance: a dead mother calls for help to save her child who is trapped alive under wreckage; or, when a man flicks his cigarette into the toilet unknowingly that there is gasoline fluid in it, and it explodes! The writing style is simple and is composed of both short stories and short passages of legends. The problem with this book is that none of the entries are given a source of their origin, at times it may give a geographic setting but that’s it. Also, most readers may be intrigued to pick this book because of the funny title; however, it did make you smile on some parts but not enough to make you laugh. Overall, I recommend this book to teens and adults for leisurely reading.… (meer)