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Spooky Pennsylvania: Tales Of Hauntings, Strange Happenings, And Other Local Lore
Pull up a chair or gather round the campfire and get ready for thirty creepy tales of ghostly hauntings, eerie happenings, and other strange occurrences in Pennsylvania. Set in the Keystone State's big cites, rural communities, rugged mountains, and vast woodlands, the stories in this entertaining and compelling collection will have readers looking over their shoulders again and again.
Pennsylvania's folklore is kept alive in these expert retellings by master storyteller S. E. Schlosser and in artist Paul Hoffman's evocative illustrations. Readers will meet the phantom drummer of Valley Forge, cheer on the ghost who haunts a bowling alley in Allentown, search for the mysterious jail cell handprint in Carbon County, and feel an icy wind on the back of their necks on a warm Pennsylvania evening. Whether read around the campfire on a dark and stormy night or from the backseat of the family van on the way to grandma's, this is a collection to treasure.
Pennsylvania's folklore is kept alive in these expert retellings by master storyteller S. E. Schlosser and in artist Paul Hoffman's evocative illustrations. Readers will meet the phantom drummer of Valley Forge, cheer on the ghost who haunts a bowling alley in Allentown, search for the mysterious jail cell handprint in Carbon County, and feel an icy wind on the back of their necks on a warm Pennsylvania evening. Whether read around the campfire on a dark and stormy night or from the backseat of the family van on the way to grandma's, this is a collection to treasure.
224 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2006
12 people are currently reading
183 people want to read
About the author
S.E. Schlosser
39 books30 followersAuthor S.E. Schlosser has been telling stories since she was a child, when games of "let's pretend" quickly built themselves into full-length stories. A graduate of the Institute of Children's Literature and Rutgers University, she also created and maintains the website AmericanFolklore.net, where she shares a wealth of stories from all 50 states, some dating back to the origins of America.
(source: Amazon)
(source: Amazon)
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
February 18, 2024
Spooky Pennsylvania is a collection of vauge ghost stories with no details or facts to back up anything other than a list of books it has taken its stories from.
Without providing exact locations, names, or even time periods, this book won't satisfy any ghostly cravings.
Without providing exact locations, names, or even time periods, this book won't satisfy any ghostly cravings.
August 22, 2019
Very good stories, set throughout the state.
November 30, 2020
Very interesting tales of horror in my home state.
November 1, 2017
The vast majority of these stories aren’t scary. Like, a middle school student could read them and go to bed just fine. Some of them play on familiar old tropes, like the story “Sweet Cecily’s Song.” That one’s about a Native American girl who stands on a hill and sings for her beloved, only she gets murdered by a man the authorities refuse to chase. On the anniversary of her death, everyone throughout the valley can hear her song. Eventually the murderer shows up, visibly agitated, and is punished for his misdeeds. It’s a local take on the siren/Lorelei stories, which actually makes sense. After all, the Lorelei story is German, and there’s a decently large population descended from the Germans in Pennsylvania. “The White Lady” is similar to a lot of the “ghost on the highway” legends, too.
And then there was the handful that was absolutely hilarious. After I read “Ben and Me,” I had to actually put the book down and process it until I could stop laughing. The thought of someone chastising Ben Franklin’s ghost—and then him being afraid to be in the same room with her! Definitely a story meant to be read aloud to kids. Kids would also probably love “Old Coaly,” about the ghost of a beloved mule on Penn State’s campus. The narrator feeds it carrots.
Full review at A Writer Reads.
And then there was the handful that was absolutely hilarious. After I read “Ben and Me,” I had to actually put the book down and process it until I could stop laughing. The thought of someone chastising Ben Franklin’s ghost—and then him being afraid to be in the same room with her! Definitely a story meant to be read aloud to kids. Kids would also probably love “Old Coaly,” about the ghost of a beloved mule on Penn State’s campus. The narrator feeds it carrots.
Full review at A Writer Reads.
October 10, 2022
A lot of history - both good and bad - has taken place in Pennsylvania. And like any state, any place, really, that has been around for any manner of time, there are legends or folktales attached to certain pockets of it. Not just in select towns or cities, either, but in the woods that surround them, in the buildings or monuments placed within them, in the homes that people choose to live in.
I had fun reading about some of them. The Commonwealth is full of rich lore and strange happenings, and it was nice to have so many bound together in one book.
While I already was familiar with a few of tales, like the Civil War ghosts that haunt the battlefields of Gettysburg or the phantasmic banging heard throughout steel mills in Pittsburgh, there were others I was encountering for the first time. I'd never heard the one where George Washington's spirit appeared on the side of the Union in the midst of a battle, for instance. Or the one where someone chastised Ben Franklin's ghost in a Philadelphia library. I will say I was disappointed there weren't more tales from western PA. Sleepy Hollow wasn't mentioned at all, which was a glaring omission considering it's one of the most well-known folktales from that side of the state.
I also thought using first person throughout was a strange choice. Disorienting, to be honest. I would've preferred a more removed third person narrative. It would've felt more like I was being told the tale instead of feeling like I was some detached, disconnected entity hovering inside of it.
Still, I enjoyed this overall and appreciated its localized scope.
BOOK BLOG
I had fun reading about some of them. The Commonwealth is full of rich lore and strange happenings, and it was nice to have so many bound together in one book.
While I already was familiar with a few of tales, like the Civil War ghosts that haunt the battlefields of Gettysburg or the phantasmic banging heard throughout steel mills in Pittsburgh, there were others I was encountering for the first time. I'd never heard the one where George Washington's spirit appeared on the side of the Union in the midst of a battle, for instance. Or the one where someone chastised Ben Franklin's ghost in a Philadelphia library. I will say I was disappointed there weren't more tales from western PA. Sleepy Hollow wasn't mentioned at all, which was a glaring omission considering it's one of the most well-known folktales from that side of the state.
I also thought using first person throughout was a strange choice. Disorienting, to be honest. I would've preferred a more removed third person narrative. It would've felt more like I was being told the tale instead of feeling like I was some detached, disconnected entity hovering inside of it.
Still, I enjoyed this overall and appreciated its localized scope.
BOOK BLOG
June 6, 2024
There's a couple of gems in here, but those are mostly the retelling of ghost stories that everyone has heard around a campfire already. The stories that may be truly unique to Pennsylvania are pretty lame. Which is a shame because PA does have some solid spooky stories.
Honestly, the whole book is kind of lame. This exists to be sold in PA bookstores and giftshops not to be read as any serious attempt at folklore. The author gives a pretty unimpressive bibliography, which is mostly made up of other, presumably more detailed collections of spooky folklore. She doesn't cite these sources in the stories, so I guess if you wanted to look into it further, you can check every source and try to work backwards to figure out what she took from where. It's kind of disappointing for a book that would seem to want to encourage people to connect more with local culture.
I could really only recommend this book for children. It's written at about a 5th grade reading level, and the stories... most of which feature an unimaginative glowing blue specter...are simple and light on scares.
Honestly, the whole book is kind of lame. This exists to be sold in PA bookstores and giftshops not to be read as any serious attempt at folklore. The author gives a pretty unimpressive bibliography, which is mostly made up of other, presumably more detailed collections of spooky folklore. She doesn't cite these sources in the stories, so I guess if you wanted to look into it further, you can check every source and try to work backwards to figure out what she took from where. It's kind of disappointing for a book that would seem to want to encourage people to connect more with local culture.
I could really only recommend this book for children. It's written at about a 5th grade reading level, and the stories... most of which feature an unimaginative glowing blue specter...are simple and light on scares.
September 26, 2018
Meh. If this was just a book of ghost stories it would be good, but claiming they are ghost stories of Pennsylvania is a stretch. Read better. If you want "real" ghost stories skip this one.
December 24, 2019
Interesting takes is PA written in the first person. Enjoyable.
December 4, 2020
This was a cute book! I was hoping the stories would be scarier, but it's a fun collection of ghost stories and history from various corners of my home state.
October 25, 2021
This book is about ghost stories. The folklore of Pennsylvania is as varied at the locations. It is a great read for Halloween.
March 6, 2023
A fun collection of Pennsylvania ghost stories. Good for a campfire!
October 2, 2023
Great ghostly tales all around Pa. Other longer tales ar3 in the end. Great read for this time of year. Quick stories so you can pick it up whenever and read a tale.
February 20, 2024
a fun and concise retelling of the state’s most popular folklore and local legends
October 29, 2024
Some very cool short pieces in here
April 9, 2011
This book was great! It has 30 stories about scary happings in Pennsyvania! From "Bloody Mary" to "The Jersey Devil Returns" I loved them all. My faveorite one was "Dark Calthlin" a story about a poor man falling in love with a rich woman, but after a long period of time he forgot about the rich woman and married some one from his village. But he was still in love with Calthin" (the rich woman). Then Calthin was ill and needed help, he came to her side and tried to heal her. unaware his wife was there, she grabed a knife and killed Caltlin and her husbands arms (tear)!
I loved this book because it was a mystery book and i enjoy a good mystery. This book is good for people who like to hear storys that may or may not be true. This book is a true head turner (haha) and will keep you wide awake at night (joking) but you won't want to put it down. I've noticed that i love scary mysterys.
I loved this book because it was a mystery book and i enjoy a good mystery. This book is good for people who like to hear storys that may or may not be true. This book is a true head turner (haha) and will keep you wide awake at night (joking) but you won't want to put it down. I've noticed that i love scary mysterys.
April 15, 2013
This book has stories of hauntings, strange happenings and folklore of Pennsylvania. There are stories from Valley Forge, Erie, Harrisburg, Reading, Gettysburg and many more places.
There are definitely some interesting stories in this book and it was quite well-written. The author definitely knows how to hold the reader's attention. I think one of my favorite stories was about the Jersey Devil, but all were very good and many I hadn't read before. Very enjoyable collection of paranormal stories from Pennsylvania.
There are definitely some interesting stories in this book and it was quite well-written. The author definitely knows how to hold the reader's attention. I think one of my favorite stories was about the Jersey Devil, but all were very good and many I hadn't read before. Very enjoyable collection of paranormal stories from Pennsylvania.
February 6, 2014
Well-written and had some gems, but 28 of the tales were from the Eastern side of the state. Only two of the stories came from the Pittsburgh area. Some of the spooky legends seemed far-fetched and a few others I have read before just under different titles. For example, I remember reading a story titled "Prom Date" as a kid in The Scariest Stories Ever Told series that was nearly exactly the same as "Axe Murder Hollow"
A few that I loved were "The Toy Room," "The Flood" and "Room for one More"
A few that I loved were "The Toy Room," "The Flood" and "Room for one More"
July 17, 2021
I think it is a great book. It has it's spooky stories. As soon as I received this book from my public library, I couldn't put it down. I think they did a good job making this book. There are some inappropriate things in this book, no bad words, they just go to much in detail with murder. I think one of the creepiest story was the toy room.
July 2, 2021
We started a tradition a few years ago to read goat stories on road trips. Living in Pennsylvania, we were excited to read these. Unfortunately, the stories don't seem genuine or originated to Pennsylvania. Perhaps I'm wrong, but the language used in retelling the stories is out of place. Only one story was captivating.
May 17, 2011
A collection of thirty folktales highlighting famous and not-so-famous Pennsylvania ghosts,
mysterious happenings, powers of darkness, and wonders of the invisible world. I liked the book,
there were a few interesting stories in there. It was a quick, easy read.
mysterious happenings, powers of darkness, and wonders of the invisible world. I liked the book,
there were a few interesting stories in there. It was a quick, easy read.
October 19, 2013
It was really interesting but some of the stories were very vague. One of the towns in which a tale took place was near where I live, but no specific locations were mentioned. It could have happened anywhere. Quite a few of the stories were a little too far-fetched for my liking.
October 13, 2014
In a sense this book cheats because a significant portion of the stories are Pennsylvanian spinoffs of other traditional US folklore (Bloody Mary, etc.), but still fun and is good about including stories from the different cultures and peoples that make up Pennsylvania.
November 22, 2010
It is a great collection of stories. I read ths one while working out. It's great to take your mind off the stairmaster :)
December 5, 2012
Good read. Short ghost stories from all over PA.
September 2, 2013
It is very interesting to read about Pennsylvania and all of the different stories that people have to tell. It is very cool because i know some of the places.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews