I received a copy of this audiobook in exchange for a review. This fact does not change my review. I thought the audiobook narrator was very good.

This compilation of stories to enjoy the mythos of the Bigfoot sighting as well as those who are in "the community" of hunting. I found it interesting how the author wove in sightings of rare animals as a way to highlight them as well as a metaphor for the happenings in the woods with the 'Squatch.

I only have one complaint/frustration with the book. While it is not surprising there would be some conspiracy talk considering the topic, the frequent shots at former President Trump were a bit excessive.

What really impressed me about this book was the author's ability to weave together the history of people who have looked for Bigfoot throughout history with how modern people look at things they don't understand. There is a lot of talk about conspiracy because these things are usually tied together. People looking for Bigfoot are more likely to believe in other conspiracies.
While reading this, you get a trip around the world to see how events have played out around Bigfoot stories. Seeing how different people react to situations, even natural disasters, was fascinating and enjoyable. I appreciated what this author was trying to do, and it's fun to see how there is still mystery in the world.
The narrator did a great job too, with the right amount of credulity while still looking for real evidence.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me listen to this audiobook

I'm not super interested in Bigfoot but this was a fun read.it also made a lot of insightful and interesting social commentary which I was not expecting but enjoyed

2⭐️
DNF @ 30%

I am not someone who believes in Bigfoot but as someone with a casual interest in cryptozoology and who grew up in the PNW, Bigfoot stuff is everywhere so I thought this could be a fun change of pace from my regular reads. But I’m not really sure what this author was going for. I didn’t learn anything new.

I really disliked the tone of the writing. It was incredibly condescending and the author clearly felt himself to be superior to those who have dedicated their lives to the search for Bigfoot. The lack of respect and outright insults towards people he was trying to learn from really bothered me. I’m someone who probably shares similar political and social beliefs but I felt like they didn’t have any place in this book.

So once again I’m not sure who this book’s intended audience is because he isn’t going to find a receptive audience among existing Bigfooters after he said they have “mental maladies” and I think the information presented was too scattered and politically charged to be enticing to those new to Bigfoot.

I knew early on that this book wasn’t for me but I pushed through for the sake of this review. I finally had to call it quits at around 60% after finishing a chapter dedicated to the ivory billed woodpecker.

Based on the title I thought this would be a fun read about the Bigfoot folklore and the people who hunt them. There are few good stories about other people’s Bigfoot experiences, but the majority of this book is a random collection of thoughts. (Again, an entire chapter about this woodpecker.)

The author tries to be funny. It didn’t work. There were way too many comments about Trump and COVID. I can appreciate social commentary but this didn’t work. (And it’s not even that I was offended by his comments, I do not support Trump. They were just unnecessary and overused).

I was initially very excited to be approved for this ARC and appreciate the opportunity to listen. Thank you.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC of this book.

O’Connor is definitely a great storyteller. I liked getting to hear about his conquests and meeting Bigfoot believers. A lot of his commentary was good, but some of it could probably have been cut out because it didn’t feel as necessary. I found myself wanting to hear more about cryptids and their histories.

"The Secret History of Bigfoot" was an okay read for me. I really liked where he focused on Bigfoot, especially where he brought older American stories including legends from Native Americans. He did get pretty far off track sometimes though (that woodpecker chapter?). It was a more personal research history than I was expecting. It's one to read if you're interested in Bigfoot research.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Do I really really believe in Bigfoot? I don't know. I know we don't have any other primates here besides us humans BUT believing in Bigfoot is way more fun than not believing so I believe.
I hope that makes sense. I chose the bigfoot life.

I LOVE the narration with this. He has passion for bigfoot. I can tell.
I love the history on other wildlife too.
This is, of course, a male centric book but bigfoot interest is male centric.
This is NOT just a bigfoot book. This is a book about the environment, propaganda, and the current state of the world. I loved it so much!

Well researched, informative piece that's part history and part road trip. I did not understand the need for the interjection of various personal opinions. Seriously, what is this guy's beef with IPAs?

I just do not understand what the author was going for here. A commentary on how cryptid seekers relate to the general public? The history of Bigfoot? The history of Bigfoot seekers? There were a lot of directions this began to head and it never truly committed. The author also wrote in such a nonchalant way that it felt like he didn't take his own work seriously. Quite a disappointment for me.

Thank you to Tantor Audio and NetGalley for an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This title immediately called to me as I am a lover of the paranormal and a cautiously optimistic believer in Bigfoot. 

The first things to really jump out at me about this book were the extremely casual writing style, the research intensity, and the underlying thesis comparing bigfoot hunters and extremely radical right wing conservatives. 


I was very surprised at first by how candid this book is. It has a tendency to read as a friend casually telling you about this crazy world they stumbled into. I could see how someone dedicated to the non fiction genre might not enjoy this, but I personally loved it. Since the only times I hop over to the non fiction world are when the topics are things I'm passionate about I love a more candid feel, it keeps the pace moving quickly and holds my attention.


I cannot say enough good things about the research done for this book. Bigfoot as a topic diverges down many paths that range as widely as basic evolution concepts to far out alien and teleportation theories. This book touched on everything in this range in a way that was accessible to novices and still very thorough, which is a feat I can’t imagine was easy to achieve. 


The only thing I didn't love about this book were the references to the Trump presidency and the comparison between Bigfoot hunters and Trump supporters. While the comparisons are apt and there is even a big overlap between these communties I felt it really dated the book and alienated the readers. In 10/20 years time I don't feel that aspect of this book will connect very well with readers, there is language used referring to the COVID pandemic that even in 2024 felt dated. Once I reached the epilogue I understood the desire to tie in Bigfoot to the pandemic world, the whole book serving as an expansion on an experience. However, I personally would have preferred less attention dedicated to Trump, if these connections had been explored solely in section 12 (per the audiobook) with the rest of the political connections I would have appreciated it more. My alienation comment refers to readers like me that are extremely liberal and hopefully optimistic about the existence of Bigfoot, while the author touches on our existence he focuses so much more on the Bigfooter-Trumper connection. 


Overall I really enjoyed this book, great for anyone that has an interest in Bigfoot, the culture around hunting Bigfoot, and/or paranormal concepts. The audiobook was very well narrated, I did get a smidge lost from time to time because of the amount of quotes the author included (it's not as easy to understand something is a quote from an external source rather than the author's writing in an audio book format) but it didn't happen often enough for me to say it took away from the quality of the audio book. Just enough for me to say I would recommend the physical book a tad more.

Interesting look at Bigfoot hunters and why they do what they do. I found there were way too many political references in the book for a non-political topic. I was hoping for more observations made by the author himself rather than rehashing sightings made by others. Instead, this felt more like cheap shots at a segment of the population that the author doesn't agree with masquerading as a informative guide on Bigfoot and how to find him.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

As a lover of podcasts and documentaries on conspiracy theories and cryptozoology, I was excited to receive this ARC as I haven’t read a book like this before. That being said, maybe I just was not the target audience for this one in particular.

I found parts of it interesting- hearing about the myth and mystery behind Bigfoot, as well as some insight into what it is like to be an actual “Bigfooter.” However, I felt as if that only made up for about half of the book. The other half being a lot of information on other things like birds, insects, geographic locations, etc. There was also far too much talk of the political climate surrounding Covid and Trump’s presidency for my liking. While I understand that this is field notes of a search for Bigfoot during that time and may be interesting to some, it just wasn’t what I was looking for, nor what I was expecting, and every time I thought we had gotten past it, it would somehow be brought up again. I felt as if this book was cut in half and was only the parts about Bigfoot, it would have been much better.

Overall, it is not necessarily a bad read, just a bit unmemorable and not seeming to add a whole lot to the conversation, and certainly not the fun, of Bigfoot. I think for the average person looking into Bigfoot, it’s best to search elsewhere.

Book is a little lost
Some is stories from Bigfoot Hunters. Some is mini history lessons that you need to look very close to find the connections. So much about a woodpecker.

I also wish this book was written 5 years ago. Couldn't care less about dude's thoughts on Trump or COVID or masking. Just because I agree with you, doesn't mean I care to hear about it every three seconds

He says himself that complaining is his favorite, and it shows in his random, little digs.
Overall, probably a fun guy to have a beer with around a fire, but I wouldn't say hi if I saw him in the grocery store unless I had an hour to kill

This book is good, but not memorable. It's well written, and I appreciate that it didn't shy away from racial and social commentary and talked about how the history of colonialism and xenophobia affects the bigfoot myth. He also acknowledged how the hobby of bigfoot hunting is mostly done by white men, including himself. He's a skeptic but not a disbeliever, which is a refreshing perspective to read from.

Yet, this book is somewhat forgettable. I don't feel like I learned anything new or interesting. I can't imagine I'm going to remember a single detail about this in a week. Which is sad considering how much time the author put into this.

Overall, this book would be good for someone completely new to the subject or someone really into bigfoot. For someone with a casual interest like me, I don't think it was worth my time.

The audiobook narrator is easy to understand and fits the tone of the book; no notes on that.