Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark is an ageless collection of chilling scary tales and legends, in which Alvin Schwartz offers up some of the most alarming tales of horror of all time. Read more if you dare!
Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark Book Cover
GOT U COVERED 📔
Author: Alvin Schwartz
Illustrator: Stephen Gammel
Published: 1973
Publisher: HarperCollins
Description: A head with a toothy grin, emerged from the ground, and is smoking a pipe near a cemetery and wooden home.
There are ghosts in this chapter. One comes back as a real person. Another takes revenge on her murderer. And there are other stranger happenings. - pg.21
SYNOPSIS 📖
Are you ready to delve into the chilling world of folklore and urban legends? "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" by Alvin Schwartz is a collection of spine-tingling tales that have been haunting readers for generations. With a masterful blend of suspense, horror, and macabre, Schwartz weaves a web of stories that will leave you looking over your shoulder long after you've closed the book. From vengeful spirits to mysterious creatures lurking in the shadows, each story is crafted to send shivers down your spine. Perfect for those who dare to explore the unknown and embrace the thrill of a good scare, "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" is a timeless classic that continues to captivate audiences of all ages. With eerie illustrations by Stephen Gammell adding to the sense of dread, this collection is a must-read for those brave enough to confront the darkness within its pages. Are you prepared to uncover the secrets that lie within these chilling tales?
THOUGHTS 💭
Campfire tales, urban legends, and sleepover spooks. Who doesn’t love a spooky tale to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up? They are especially effective as a child. When you’re gullible and naïve, you’ll fall for any old story if told most convincingly.
If I’m being honest, I had not known of this book before the film. I know right? And I call myself a horror fan. But I never saw it in the library or any bookstores, so it was never within my readership bubble. It’s understandable though. This doesn’t seem like your typical child-friendly horror book. In the late 2010s, I started listening to scary audio stories, Chilling Tales For Dark Nights, which I reckon was heavily inspired by Alvin Schwartz.
So for this book, I decided, it might be better to follow suit and have it narrated to me instead of reading it myself…after all, it is “to tell” not “to read’. Plus it would be 10x creepier with a stranger in my ear, pulling my imagination in all directions.
On Spotify, I went and found an upload of the audiobook. I popped on my headphones, pressed play, and transported myself into the dark.
As I was listening to the stories, quite a few stuck out to me:
The Thing: whenever an open field and an unknown man-looking figure is standing there or walking towards you…it’s a no from me.
The Guests: stories that warp reality or play with perception can be a spooky trip; this story is no exception.
Room For One More: talk about a near brush with death, this story gave me Final Destination vibes.
The Hook: a classic urban legend featured in many films and a fun read.
High Beams: This story is quite chilling. Of course, I know this from the Urban Legend film, but the idea of someone hiding in your backseat is just hair-raising.
The Babysitter: the call is coming from inside the house. Ah!! Such a bone-chilling, core-shaking thought.
These were spooky and made me feel a bit uneasy as the narrator read them to me aloud.
I have a printed copy of the book, therefore we can’t forget to mention the illustrations. Some of them are quite scary and disturbing looking. They are in black and white, making them appear more eerie and dark. I still can’t believe I’ve never seen these up until recently.
This collection consists of only 29 stories that are less than 2 minutes to read, so it’s fast-paced and can be finished within an hour.
It’s going to be a soft recommendation for me. This would be a perfect gift for a preteen looking to entertain at their next sleepover, add some chill to everyone at the campsite, or scare up the school playground. There’s enough material in here to achieve all the above.
I will have to check the other two in the series to see if the stories get more scary and creepier with each book. I sure do hope so.
I grade this book a B-
Share your thoughts on this book and comment about what was your favourite story from the collection
