Famous Modern Ghost Stories

The problem with including the word ‘modern’ in a book title is that it won’t be modern after a few years. This collection, published in 1921, includes some stories that weren’t modern at that time, with some being fifteen to twenty years old.

The above is an observation rather than a criticism, and worth pointing out to potential readers.

As for the stories, all written by different authors, I must admit to being disappointed overall. No one tale sparkled. I skipped one or two because they rambled on or, in one case, because the dialogue consisted of archaic language, which slows down the narrative, sounds unnatural to a contempary reader, and gets on my nerves.

Some tales barely qualify as ghost stories. If you get a buzz from show more being scared by supernatural tales, you’ll be let down by this collection. Certain passages are eerie, but nothing will give you shivers.

The one I liked best revolves around a fixed shadow of a dead family member that never moves from a wall. This had some eerie moments and I liked the three sisters. show less

3½ stars. Keep in mind that this was published in 1912 (?) so modern is a relative term!

I found this collection of ghost stories well-written and enjoyable (more than I expected as this is a genre I don't much like).

I enjoyed most of the stories in this book. It has a little bit of everything...even some Poe :)

From my review at Badelynge
This collection of fifteen famous ghost stories edited by Dorothy Scarborough was first published in 1921. Only about half of the stories have survived the past century with any notoriety intact. Scarborough's selection process was quite wide and loose with the term ghost. Most of the stories are drawn from American publications of the time, the Harper brothers gaining the biggest slice of the publishing credits. Gems for me are:

* The Willows by Algernon Blackwood, more a novella than a short story but one of the great horror stories of the 20th Century.
* The Beast With Five Fingers by W.F. Harvey - A very creepy story about a possessed severed hand. This story spawned two feature films.
* The Woman at show more Seven Brothers by Wilbur Daniel Steele - Very atmospheric ghost story set on a remote lighthouse. I admit I have a love of lighthouses and relish any story well told from their windy staircases, lamp-rooms and common rooms. This story is a little traditional but still well told.
* Ligeia by Edgar Alllan Poe - Poe shows off his sumptuous use of the English language, penning on the layers of creepiness with aplomb. Some of Poe's stories are worth reading just for the use of language alone: e.g. 'blacker than the raven wings of midnight'. Brilliant.

The rest of the stories range from quite good to quite trite. None of them are particularly bad but some seem to have been added to raise the story count. There are also a few oddities worth a read like Myla Jo Closser's At the Gate. The image of all the faithful dogs waiting patiently at the gates of Heaven for their owners to arrive is quite moving. None of the dogs will go through without their owners. show less