Module 15: Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

Schwartz, Alvin. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. 1st ed. New York NY: HarperCollins Children's Books, 1981. Print.

The book is a short collection of stories to be told aloud in small groups to frighten the listeners. These range from the supernatural to the psychotic including cannibalism and dismemberment (who eats a toe?). The book itself includes historical notes and even techniques on how to tell each type of story set along with alternate endings or ways to tell the story so the story teller can vary if and when they would like.

The book and the genre itself do not appeal a great deal to me as I lean more towards thriller than outright horror. The tales have little to no back story and in some instances are set in illogical circumstances. The only redeeming quality is the advice for telling each subset of stories along with the interesting historical notes.

I would use this book as a Halloween display and maybe use it in storytelling as long as the setting was kept light and fun.

Review:

Burk, Leslie. "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark." School Library Journal 28.5 (1982): 81. Web. 7 May 2011.

“Gr 3-8—This folklore collection is unusually good. True to the genre, the stories contained are suitable for telling, particularly at Halloween and around the campfire. Contemporary and humorous stories are blended with spooky ones. The scholarship in the source notes and bibliography will be useful to serious literature students. Although the cover art is not charming, it hints at the peculiarly macabre, shadowy black-and-white illustrations inside. The stories are not unbearably grotesque; they are suitable even for the low elementary grades.”