The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories From Elizabeth Gaskell to Ambrose Bierce

by Various; Newton, Michael

• ISBN13: 9780141442365
• ISBN10: 0141442360
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-04-27
• Publisher: Penguin Classics

Summary

‘The ghost is the most enduring figure in supernatural fiction. He is absolutely indestructible... He changes with the styles in fiction but he never goes out of fashion. He is the really permanent citizen of the earth, for mortals, at best, are but transients’ - Dorothy ScarboroughThis new selection of ghost stories, by Michael Newton, brings together the best of the genre. From Elizabeth Gaskell's 'The Old Nurse's Story' through to Edith Wharton's 'Afterword', this collection covers all of the most terrifying tales of the genre. With a thoughtful introduction, and helpful notes, Newton places the stories contextually within the genre and elucidates the changing nature of the ghost story and how we interpret it.

Author Biography

Michael Newton's introduction discusses why ghost stories scare us and why they flourished from the mid nineteenth to the early twentieth century, examining their changing conventions throughout history. This edition also includes suggested further reading, notes, a glossary and a chronology.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	p. ix
Chronology of the Ghost Story 1820-1914	p. x
Introduction	p. xv
Further Reading	p. xxxvi
A Note on the Texts	p. xlii
The Old Nurse's Story	p. 3
What Was It?	p. 25
The Haunted and the Haunters: or, The House and the Brain	p. 39
The Cold Embrace	p. 67
The North Mail	p. 77
No. 1 Branch Line: The Signal-man	p. 91
Green Tea	p. 105
The Ghost in the Cap'n Brown House	p. 140
Thrawn Janet	p. 151
The Open Door	p. 162
At the End of the Passage	p. 204
Nightmare-Touch	p. 224
The Monkey's Paw	p. 231
The Wind in the Rose-Bush	p. 243
'Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad'	p. 261
The Moonlit Road	p. 281
The Jolly Corner	p. 291
The Readjustment	p. 326
Afterward	p. 333
Glossary of Scots Words	p. 365
Biographical and Explanatory Notes	p. 371
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