Ghost Stories of Henry James

This near-comprehensive volume of Henry James's ghost stories (I would have argued for the inclusion of one more tale, "The Last of the Valerii," which--if not a fully-fledged ghost story--has an overtly supernatural theme and a pronounced ghostly atmosphere) will please readers who have had to sift through multiple collections to find just two or three of these pieces. "The Turn of the Screw" is included, of course, and editor Martin Scofield argues convincingly in favor of the straightforward supernatural interpretation of James's classic novella. The author's mincing, excessively delicate approach to his work can grate on the nerves (as can his fondness for reminding the reader that his characters' psyches are so flawlessly show more synchronized that they're always finishing each other's sentences), but to anyone who doubts James's mastery of the ghostly tale, I offer "The Jolly Corner": specifically the scene in which Spencer Brydon, while exploring the rambling rooms of his allegedly vacant boyhood home, begins to realize that he is not alone. Even when the ghost's presence is not precisely menacing (which is often the case), as in "The Friends of the Friends," James holds your interest. show less

The stars are for "The Turn of the Screw" alone, perhaps the greatest pure ghost story ever written. The rest is forgettable, though "The Jolly Corner"'s investigation of daylight weirdness in an abandoned townhouse foreshadows Robert Aickman.

What do I say about Henry James? The Master of words, subtle and delicious, but also the guy who makes me read the same sentence (paragraph) 10 times trying to figure out what the hell he's talking about. Sometimes all at once. "The Turn of the Screw" is excellent, the others vary, none are awful. I really liked "The Jolly Corner", even though it's from the later period and is sometimes a tangle of words, it's still one of my favorites and has been stuck in my mind.

The writing in general isn't bad, he manages to snag my attention fairly quickly, but he suffers the fate of the majority who write short stories - he has no idea how to end them. Most were incredibly anticlimactic which in turn makes the whole story feel a waste. Which is sad, because I mostly enjoyed reading them, until that point.