#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories - Various authors, Edited by J.a. Cuddon
For this one I am doing the ones I liked the best. There were quite a few stories in the book but to go through all the bad ones as well might make the review a bit toooooo long.
Most of the ones I did not like that much were too cluttered, too long - the main flaw of them is that they drag too many characters into the story and/or the simple storyline is dragged out over too many pages. To me this kind of padding out just makes me switch off. I like my stories relevant and to the point.
One way I managed to make the reading experience a bit better for myself by not reading the introduction (27 pages saved)and then not reading 3 tales that I had recently read (a further 61 pages saved). And yet with all this "help" it still took me aaaaaaages to finish and I am not sure why?
The Beggarwoman ofLocarno
A woman is ill treated when she seeks refuge. She pays back the owners in a way they do not expect. Good atmosphere, short sweet and to the point.
Wandering Willie's Tale - Walter Scott
Has some kind of Scottish spelling and uses Scottish words so it makes it a bit had to read. A man pays his debts but his receipt of the payment of his debt gets lost and the the lord of the manor dies. Our man Steenie has to go through a lot to get his receipt back.
The Queen of Spades - Alexander Pushkin
A man is tempted to play cards and then wants to win every game. Rumour has it that an old woman holds the secret to how to win at cards. Lady luck is on his side at first but as with all gamblers he learns that there is no such thing as the perfect play or the perfect hand. The woman whose secret he tries to use to his own purposes gets him from beyond the grave. Revenge is sweet.
Le Horla - Guy de Maupassant
I really liked this one! It starts out as a diary from a man who is describing the fact that he feels ill at times. He cannot put his finger on it and the feeling comes and goes. In the end he is convinced that there is something that has taken control of him and is taking him over. He tries to catch it out and even has a go at destroying it (cue article which gives us a clue as to what might be happening to him - a bit too coincidental but Guy is forgiven for that one as the tale is quite good).
Sir Edmund Orme - Henry James
This one is interesting as it is not really the main character who is being haunted. It is the woman he loves or rather her mother that is the one most afflicted by the presence of Sir Edmund. Love conquers all in the end and although mother does not make it to the end they manage to lay the ghost.
The Moonlit Road - Ambrose Bierce
The interesting thing about this one was that it looks at the same event from different perspectives. All the ones involved in the story get to tell their side and it is all brought together in a very factual way. A very nice way to set a story up and as you get the differing perspectives you piece it together.
AHaunted Island
An isolated island, indians intent on murder and a man intent on finishing a project. He is staying in a cabin on a island and feels uneasy staying in his original bedroom so he moves rooms. Just as well as a bit later two indians get out of their canoe and come and do some damage to his spiritual self. Still, it cannot be nice to see yourself scalped and dragged down the stairs.
My Adventure inNorfolk
A man on a trial run of a holiday home gets a bit more than he bargains for. A woman's car breaks down in the early hours of the morning and that's not really what you want with a body on the backseat. The little twist in the tale is cute!
The Inexperienced Ghost - H.G. Wells
A man finds himself chatting to a ghost and in trying to help him along lands himself in deep trouble. Not a good one to read if you talk with your hands a lot. Apparently you never know what might happen when you flap them things around.
One Who Saw - A.M. Burrage
A man goes to stay in a hotel where he has a room with access to a garden, totally enclosed. He keeps seeing a woman sitting there. The hotel staff try to dissuade him from going into the garden and he finds out the truth about the lady in the end. It is a tale of woe as per usual, but it is done rather well and it is not too over-dressed with characters.
Afterward - Edith Wharton
We are told at the start that there is a ghost about the place but that you will not find out till afterwards when you first saw it. A couple live perfectly happily at a house until hubby disappears suddenly, never to be seen again and the wife is left to wonder why. She puts it all together in the end though as do we.
The Tower - Marghanita Laski
Very nice one. A woman is exploring the countryside and gets drawn into climbing a tower. There is a bit of a quick back story of a who the tower was built for but that does not detract attention from the main event. Keep counting them steps!
The Wind - Ray Bradbury
If people ever say that they can hear voices on the blowing of the wind then this tale must be their dream come true. A phone conversation during a windy night. Unfortunately for both men concerned the wind has some sinister plans and it will huff and it will puff....
The Axe - Penelope Fitzgerald
A man is writing a report about having to lay off staff and not liking it one bit. It focuses on mr Singlebury who decides to stay on even after he has been let go.... much to the alarm of our author. And then there is this damp smell that seems to be getting worse day by day?!
Most of the ones I did not like that much were too cluttered, too long - the main flaw of them is that they drag too many characters into the story and/or the simple storyline is dragged out over too many pages. To me this kind of padding out just makes me switch off. I like my stories relevant and to the point.
One way I managed to make the reading experience a bit better for myself by not reading the introduction (27 pages saved)and then not reading 3 tales that I had recently read (a further 61 pages saved). And yet with all this "help" it still took me aaaaaaages to finish and I am not sure why?
The Beggarwoman of
A woman is ill treated when she seeks refuge. She pays back the owners in a way they do not expect. Good atmosphere, short sweet and to the point.
Wandering Willie's Tale - Walter Scott
Has some kind of Scottish spelling and uses Scottish words so it makes it a bit had to read. A man pays his debts but his receipt of the payment of his debt gets lost and the the lord of the manor dies. Our man Steenie has to go through a lot to get his receipt back.
The Queen of Spades - Alexander Pushkin
A man is tempted to play cards and then wants to win every game. Rumour has it that an old woman holds the secret to how to win at cards. Lady luck is on his side at first but as with all gamblers he learns that there is no such thing as the perfect play or the perfect hand. The woman whose secret he tries to use to his own purposes gets him from beyond the grave. Revenge is sweet.
Le Horla - Guy de Maupassant
I really liked this one! It starts out as a diary from a man who is describing the fact that he feels ill at times. He cannot put his finger on it and the feeling comes and goes. In the end he is convinced that there is something that has taken control of him and is taking him over. He tries to catch it out and even has a go at destroying it (cue article which gives us a clue as to what might be happening to him - a bit too coincidental but Guy is forgiven for that one as the tale is quite good).
Sir Edmund Orme - Henry James
This one is interesting as it is not really the main character who is being haunted. It is the woman he loves or rather her mother that is the one most afflicted by the presence of Sir Edmund. Love conquers all in the end and although mother does not make it to the end they manage to lay the ghost.
The Moonlit Road - Ambrose Bierce
The interesting thing about this one was that it looks at the same event from different perspectives. All the ones involved in the story get to tell their side and it is all brought together in a very factual way. A very nice way to set a story up and as you get the differing perspectives you piece it together.
A
An isolated island, indians intent on murder and a man intent on finishing a project. He is staying in a cabin on a island and feels uneasy staying in his original bedroom so he moves rooms. Just as well as a bit later two indians get out of their canoe and come and do some damage to his spiritual self. Still, it cannot be nice to see yourself scalped and dragged down the stairs.
My Adventure in
A man on a trial run of a holiday home gets a bit more than he bargains for. A woman's car breaks down in the early hours of the morning and that's not really what you want with a body on the backseat. The little twist in the tale is cute!
The Inexperienced Ghost - H.G. Wells
A man finds himself chatting to a ghost and in trying to help him along lands himself in deep trouble. Not a good one to read if you talk with your hands a lot. Apparently you never know what might happen when you flap them things around.
One Who Saw - A.M. Burrage
A man goes to stay in a hotel where he has a room with access to a garden, totally enclosed. He keeps seeing a woman sitting there. The hotel staff try to dissuade him from going into the garden and he finds out the truth about the lady in the end. It is a tale of woe as per usual, but it is done rather well and it is not too over-dressed with characters.
Afterward - Edith Wharton
We are told at the start that there is a ghost about the place but that you will not find out till afterwards when you first saw it. A couple live perfectly happily at a house until hubby disappears suddenly, never to be seen again and the wife is left to wonder why. She puts it all together in the end though as do we.
The Tower - Marghanita Laski
Very nice one. A woman is exploring the countryside and gets drawn into climbing a tower. There is a bit of a quick back story of a who the tower was built for but that does not detract attention from the main event. Keep counting them steps!
The Wind - Ray Bradbury
If people ever say that they can hear voices on the blowing of the wind then this tale must be their dream come true. A phone conversation during a windy night. Unfortunately for both men concerned the wind has some sinister plans and it will huff and it will puff....
The Axe - Penelope Fitzgerald
A man is writing a report about having to lay off staff and not liking it one bit. It focuses on mr Singlebury who decides to stay on even after he has been let go.... much to the alarm of our author. And then there is this damp smell that seems to be getting worse day by day?!
Title: The Penguin Books of Ghosts
Author: various,Ed. by J.A. Cuddon
512 pages
Claremont Books
ISBN nr 1-85471-001-X
Books Bought: 0
Books to be read: 65
No comments:
Post a Comment