Great Ghost Stories

By Various

Book Overview

"I can assure you," said the young man, "that it will take a very tangible ghost to frighten me."

So says the foolishly brave narrator of H. G. Wells's "The Red Room," one of the thirteen great ghost stories gathered together in this deluxe illustrated volume. Selected and illustrated by Barry Moser, a master of the macabre, these spooky tales will send a shiver down the spine of even the bravest reader.

This new edition includes classic masterpieces of horror by H. P. Lovecraft, Brain Stoker, Richard Middleton, and Arthur Conan Doyle. There are also several chilling modern tales of the supernatural by such authors as Madeleine L'Engle and Joyce Carol Oates to petrify even the most seasoned explorer of the dark realms.

From the slowly gathering dread of being caught in the grips of a haunted house to the sure, sharp horror of realization that overcomes one entering the spirit world, nothing compares to the thrill of these tales from the great beyond. With Barry Moser's fourteen eerie watercolors, this collection is sure to satisfy readers with an insatiable taste for terror, as well as those who simply love the chill down the spine that comes from reading a great ghost

story.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0688145876
• ISBN13: 9780688145873
• Release Date: September 1998
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 1.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.8" x 9.0"
• Age Range: 1 year and up
• Grade Range: Grade 4 and higher

Customer Reviews

Excellent ghost stories interspersed with clunkers

Barry Moser is the editor and illustrator of this volume of "Great Ghost Stories." The illustrations are very fine, but the story selections are uneven. Some of the best ghost stories ever written are included in this volume, along with a few yawners and some stories that attempt to be funny. To misquote the greatest writer of ghost stories in the English language, M.R. James, three inclusions that will wreck any ghost story no matter who wrote it are pathos, humor, and sex. "Great Ghost Stories" doesn't include any of the latter, but pathos and humor do turn what could have been some decent stories into snorers. These are the thirteen 'Great Ghost' stories: "The Monkey's Paw" by W.W. Jacobs--This story is probably on everyone's top ten ghost story list. When a withered monkey's paw changes owners, it gives its new master three wishes. Be careful what you wish for. This is such a terrible story, I'm surprised it is included in a volume labeled for "9 - 12 year old" readers. "Samantha and the Ghost" by Philippa Pearce--A young girl finds a ghost stranded at the top of an apple tree. He is a really terrible violinist. Yawn. "The Red Room" by H.G. Wells--A young man attempts to spend a night in a haunted room. Trite plot but tremendous atmosphere. One of my top fifty ghost stories. "Poor Little Saturday" by Madeleine L'Engle--Saturday is a camel and I'd classify this as a witch story rather than a ghost story. It's got a likeable hero, a youngster with malaria, and a very haunting, ruined Southern mansion. "How It Happened" by Arthur Conan Doyle--Sherlock Holmes's creator wrote much better ghost stories than this one. A man crashes his automobile and meets an old friend who died in the Boer War. "Man-Size in Marble" by E. Nesbit--Another one of my top fifty ghost stories. A newly married couple's housekeeper insists on moving out of their rural cottage on the night before Halloween. Laura and her new husband should have followed their housekeeper's example. This story has some mushy Victorian dialogue, but it is a real shocker. "The Ghost" by Catherine Wells--H.G. Wells's wife wrote stories, too. A fourteen-year-old girl is confined to her bed by a feverish cold while a party goes on downstairs. One of the guests who happens to be her favorite actor visits her and promises to dress up as the family ghost and give everyone a good scare. "Polly Vaughn" a traditional British ballad retold by Barry Moser. If you groove on stories written in Deep South dialogue, you might enjoy this one. Otherwise, stick to the ballad. "The Music of Erich Zann" by H.P. Lovecraft--A poor student seeks lodging in a shabby hotel on the Rue d'Auseil. A crazed viola player in the attic is one of hotel's less attractive features. There is a creepy descent into a typical Lovecraftian maelstrom at story's end. "The Judge's House" by Bram Stoker--When the time to study for his examinations draws near, a college student rents an old judge's mans