Some Nightmares Are True: Ghosts of America’s Deadliest Disasters

Whether you’re standing at the edge of a haunted cemetery, walking through the long-ago site of a heartrending factory fire, or listening to a local recount the devastation of a storm-lost coastline or a tragic nautical disaster, one truth echoes across time: the dead still speak--and Kelly Kazek is listening. In Some Nightmares Are True, Kelly Kazek uncovers the chilling echoes of America’s most horrifying disasters. From the rubble and ruin rise ghost stories, shaped by real tragedy and cultural memory. These tales span the country, exploring how catastrophic events not only rewrite history but also leave behind restless spirits, unresolved grief, and legends that refuse to fade.

Kelly Kazek is an award-winning journalist, humor columnist, and author who writes about Southern culture. She has written books for children and adults, including Some Nightmares Are Real: The Haunting Truth Behind Alabama’s Supernatural Tales, Y is For Y’all: A Book of Southern ABCs, Southern Thesaurus: For When You’re Plumb Out of Things to Say, and A Guide to the South’s Quirkiest Roadside Attractions.

Sarah Cotton is a Louisiana artist and former student at New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts. She graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design with a BFA and MFA in illustration. She specializes in both whimsical watercolors and macabre scratchboards.