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Famous Ghost Stories
Collection of 15 classic stories plus a section of anecdotes about ghosts and supernatural happenings
361 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1944
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210 people want to read
About the author
Bennett Cerf
184 books27 followersBennett Alfred Cerf (May 25, 1898 – August 27, 1971) was an American writer, owner of The Modern Library publishing house, and co-founder of the American publishing firm Random House.
Cerf was also known for his compilations of jokes and stories, and for his regular appearances on the panel game show What's My Line?
Cerf was also known for his compilations of jokes and stories, and for his regular appearances on the panel game show What's My Line?
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 2, 2009
Long-time Random House editor Bennett Cerf had impeccable literary taste, which stood him in good stead as an anthology editor. This collection of 19th and early 20th-century macabre stories isn't as extensive as the one assembled in Great Tales of Terror and the Supernatural (which I've reviewed earlier here on Goodreads), but the quality of the selections is fully as good; indeed, this serves as an excellent introduction to some of the genre's classic stories and writers. Some tales here are better than others, but none of them are without merit. The tone of most of them is serious and fear-evoking --though there are a few exceptions.
Of course, the causes of scary goings-on here are not always supernatural in character; "The Damned Thing," Bierce suggests, is a natural creature whose color the human eye can't detect, while the narrator of "The Haunted and the Haunters" insists that the events he's observing have a natural cause. Probably William Fryer Harvey's "August Heat" is best interpreted as an example of subconscious psychic pre-cognition (of a very unpleasant sort), while the nature of the uncanny menace in "The Willows" isn't explained --and it's unexplained quality is part of its horror. (Algernon Blackwood is an overrated writer, in my opinion, but the latter story is one of his better ones.) And one "ghost" story turns out not to involve the returning dead at all.
The rest of the stories are undeniably supernatural, however, though not all are actually ghost stories; a cursed talisman (in "The Monkey's Paw") and a pagan god make their appearances as well. My personal favorite here is "The Return of Andrew Bentley," by August Derleth and Mark Schorer. (I'd seen a TV adaptation of this as a Thriller episode when I was a kid, and had always remembered it as one of the scariest --and best!-- shows of that series; but I didn't know, until I read this, that it was taken from a written story!) Some of the other outstanding selections are ones I've mentioned in reviews of other collections; but two that haven't been noted are Dinesen's "The Supper at Elsinore," set in 19th-century Denmark, a masterful example of her [her real name was Karen Blixen] layered prose and psychological analysis, and Middleton's "On the Brighton Road." Bottom line: highly recommended!
Of course, the causes of scary goings-on here are not always supernatural in character; "The Damned Thing," Bierce suggests, is a natural creature whose color the human eye can't detect, while the narrator of "The Haunted and the Haunters" insists that the events he's observing have a natural cause. Probably William Fryer Harvey's "August Heat" is best interpreted as an example of subconscious psychic pre-cognition (of a very unpleasant sort), while the nature of the uncanny menace in "The Willows" isn't explained --and it's unexplained quality is part of its horror. (Algernon Blackwood is an overrated writer, in my opinion, but the latter story is one of his better ones.) And one "ghost" story turns out not to involve the returning dead at all.
The rest of the stories are undeniably supernatural, however, though not all are actually ghost stories; a cursed talisman (in "The Monkey's Paw") and a pagan god make their appearances as well. My personal favorite here is "The Return of Andrew Bentley," by August Derleth and Mark Schorer. (I'd seen a TV adaptation of this as a Thriller episode when I was a kid, and had always remembered it as one of the scariest --and best!-- shows of that series; but I didn't know, until I read this, that it was taken from a written story!) Some of the other outstanding selections are ones I've mentioned in reviews of other collections; but two that haven't been noted are Dinesen's "The Supper at Elsinore," set in 19th-century Denmark, a masterful example of her [her real name was Karen Blixen] layered prose and psychological analysis, and Middleton's "On the Brighton Road." Bottom line: highly recommended!
September 14, 2013
Amusing (to me anyway) anecdote before I begin my review: I recently went on a What's My Line (from the '50s and '60s) viewing binge and thoroughly enjoyed the regular panel members--including a certain Bennett Cerf, eminent editor of Random House. I had no idea that I had a collection of stories edited by Mr. Cerf sitting on my TBR stack just waiting to be read.
Mr. Cerf has given us an excellent selection of his favorite ghost stories, including a section of dinner-table anecdotes that he has collected during his various dining-out excursions. And the personable Bennett Cerf certainly had many of those. There were a couple of stories that I had encountered before ("The Monkey's Paw" and "The Willows"), but primarily a fresh collection of spooky tales. Four stars.
Run-down of stories:
"The Haunted & The Haunters" by Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1865): A man hears about a genuinely haunted house....and is determined to spend the night there. He's not afraid and neither is his servant. Or so they say.
"The Damned Thing" by Ambrose Bierce (1893): What if there are colors that the human eye can't see? And what if the most horrible things are colored in that shade?
"The Monkey's Paw" by W. W. Jacobs (1902): A classic, often reprinted story. At its heart, a warning to "be careful what you wish for....you just might get it."
"The Phantom 'Rickshaw" by Rudyard Kipling (1888): Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned....and she makes a pretty determined ghost as well.
"The Willows" by Algernon Blackwood (1907): Two friends are canoeing down the Danube. They run into more than they bargained for on an island covered by "willows."
"The Rival Ghosts" by Brander Matthews (1921): All is fair in love and war...and ghosts. What is a man in love to do with a couple of warring ghosts?
"The Man Who Went Too Far" by E. F. Benson (1904): A man searches for joy in nature and finds it and what seems to be eternal youth....and something more.
"The Mezzotint" by Montague Rhode (M. R.) James (1904): Mr. Williams is sent, on approval an engraving (the titular mezzotint) of a view of a manor-house. It comes highly recommended from trusted dealer. But it seems a very amateurish thing. Williams is of a mind to send it back. Then he realizes that scene is not static...it changes and a frightful story is acted out.
"The Open Window" by 'Saki' [H. H. Munro] (1930): 15 year-old Vera tells Mr. Framton Nuttel, in the country for a rest cure for his nerves, a tragic story while he waits to meet her aunt. Her uncle and two members of her aunt's family went shooting one day three years ago and never came back. Until today.
"The Beckoning Fair One" by Oliver Onions (1911): A classic haunted house story where an unsuccessful writer moves into rooms in an otherwise empty house, in the hope that isolation will help his failing creativity. Things get creative all right--but not in the way he anticipates.
"On the Brighton Road" by Richard Middleton (1912): A tramp on the Brighton Road meets up with an 18 year old boy...who has been running away from home for six years. The tramp tells him, "I dropped by the roadside last night and slept where I fell. It's a wonder I didn't die." The boy looks at him sharply. "How do you know you didn't?" How indeed?
"The Considerate Hosts" by Thorp McClusky (1939): Marvin is driving home on a beastly, stormy night. When he's forced to take a detour, his car dies and he's forced to seek shelter with a couple of ghosts out for revenge.
"August Heat" by W. F. Harvey (1910): Two men meet, as if by chance, on a hot August day but each has had a vision of sorts about the other's future. And the "heat is stifling. It is enough to send a man mad."
"The Return of Andrew Bentley" by August W. Derleth & Mark Schorer (1933): Uncle Amos calls on the narrator to guard his burial vault when he dies--for he is deathly afraid of the return of Andrew Bentley. It will take a great deal to keep Bentley from haunting Uncle Amos.
"The Supper at Elsinore" by Isak Dinesen (1934): A ghost story that tells the tale of a lost brother and the two sisters who essentially died when he did. The meeting of the three siblings is a very interesting take on the standard visit from the departed.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
Mr. Cerf has given us an excellent selection of his favorite ghost stories, including a section of dinner-table anecdotes that he has collected during his various dining-out excursions. And the personable Bennett Cerf certainly had many of those. There were a couple of stories that I had encountered before ("The Monkey's Paw" and "The Willows"), but primarily a fresh collection of spooky tales. Four stars.
Run-down of stories:
"The Haunted & The Haunters" by Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1865): A man hears about a genuinely haunted house....and is determined to spend the night there. He's not afraid and neither is his servant. Or so they say.
"The Damned Thing" by Ambrose Bierce (1893): What if there are colors that the human eye can't see? And what if the most horrible things are colored in that shade?
"The Monkey's Paw" by W. W. Jacobs (1902): A classic, often reprinted story. At its heart, a warning to "be careful what you wish for....you just might get it."
"The Phantom 'Rickshaw" by Rudyard Kipling (1888): Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned....and she makes a pretty determined ghost as well.
"The Willows" by Algernon Blackwood (1907): Two friends are canoeing down the Danube. They run into more than they bargained for on an island covered by "willows."
"The Rival Ghosts" by Brander Matthews (1921): All is fair in love and war...and ghosts. What is a man in love to do with a couple of warring ghosts?
"The Man Who Went Too Far" by E. F. Benson (1904): A man searches for joy in nature and finds it and what seems to be eternal youth....and something more.
"The Mezzotint" by Montague Rhode (M. R.) James (1904): Mr. Williams is sent, on approval an engraving (the titular mezzotint) of a view of a manor-house. It comes highly recommended from trusted dealer. But it seems a very amateurish thing. Williams is of a mind to send it back. Then he realizes that scene is not static...it changes and a frightful story is acted out.
"The Open Window" by 'Saki' [H. H. Munro] (1930): 15 year-old Vera tells Mr. Framton Nuttel, in the country for a rest cure for his nerves, a tragic story while he waits to meet her aunt. Her uncle and two members of her aunt's family went shooting one day three years ago and never came back. Until today.
"The Beckoning Fair One" by Oliver Onions (1911): A classic haunted house story where an unsuccessful writer moves into rooms in an otherwise empty house, in the hope that isolation will help his failing creativity. Things get creative all right--but not in the way he anticipates.
"On the Brighton Road" by Richard Middleton (1912): A tramp on the Brighton Road meets up with an 18 year old boy...who has been running away from home for six years. The tramp tells him, "I dropped by the roadside last night and slept where I fell. It's a wonder I didn't die." The boy looks at him sharply. "How do you know you didn't?" How indeed?
"The Considerate Hosts" by Thorp McClusky (1939): Marvin is driving home on a beastly, stormy night. When he's forced to take a detour, his car dies and he's forced to seek shelter with a couple of ghosts out for revenge.
"August Heat" by W. F. Harvey (1910): Two men meet, as if by chance, on a hot August day but each has had a vision of sorts about the other's future. And the "heat is stifling. It is enough to send a man mad."
"The Return of Andrew Bentley" by August W. Derleth & Mark Schorer (1933): Uncle Amos calls on the narrator to guard his burial vault when he dies--for he is deathly afraid of the return of Andrew Bentley. It will take a great deal to keep Bentley from haunting Uncle Amos.
"The Supper at Elsinore" by Isak Dinesen (1934): A ghost story that tells the tale of a lost brother and the two sisters who essentially died when he did. The meeting of the three siblings is a very interesting take on the standard visit from the departed.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting. Thanks.
July 25, 2009
A sterling collection of well-known and unknown works, nearly all of which deserve to be classics. Perhaps the best is "The Beckoning Fair One." Evocative. Chilling. Unexpected. Just what I look for in a ghost story!
December 2, 2011
A fine ghost story collection from the 1940s, assembled by Random House founder and editor Bennett Cerf. The older tales--"Beckoning Fair One"; "The Willows"; "The Man Who Went Too Far" are the best. A couple of them are forgettable "joke tales" of the kind Robert Bloch made famous. The Dinesen story "Supper at Elsinore" suffers from a chatty, too-fleshy ghost that seems too much of psycho-symbolic stand-in than something eerie and unearthly. The collection is worth a read though, especially for those seeking older examples of classic ghost stories.
October 27, 2021
hit the spot...good to reread "the monkey's paw" and loved the bonus anecdotes.
November 9, 2025
Borrowed a hardcover copy from my local library on a whim. 2½ stars, rounded up.
Because it's a collection of different stories in various tones, it was difficult to rate. This was in the horror section, and I love ghost stories, but none of these were even remotely frightening to me, which could be due to any number of things ranging from matters of personal taste to changes in cultural attitudes over time. So, I was disappointed by the complete and utter lack of spine-chilling vibes, but to make matters worse, the short stories are also definitely, obviously the products of their times, which is to say they are at times extremely, jarringly racist and frustratingly sexist even in the moments when the characters aren't being as loudly misogynist as possible. There are a few enjoyable moments littered throughout the collection— cheeky bits and delightful descriptions— but overall, meh. Honestly, having this as my current ongoing read has demotivated me from reading much of anything recently.
The Haunted and the Haunters — just, like, fine. Not a bad start to the book, but the ending of the short story put me off. It felt nonsensical and eyeroll-worthy compared to the reasonable bits leading up to it.
The Damned Thing — interestingly, this one kind of reminds me of modern sci-fi. Not bad.
The Monkey's Paw — underwhelming.
The Phantom Rickshaw — hated this one.
The Willows — really good use of suspense. I actually liked this one.
The Rival Ghosts — pretty funny, honestly? Reads like a crack fic, for those familiar with the term.
The Man Who Went Too Far — interesting, but I have to admit I don't really get it.
The Mezzotint — this one had a lot of potential, and I was interested, but it felt like it could've done with more exploration of concept. As-is, it fell a little flat for me.
The Open Window — absolutely fucking hilarious. 15 year old girl pranks grown ass adult and mentally goes "me when I lie"
The Beckoning Fair One — complicated feelings about this one. As a concept it's basically the predecessor to Christine, but instead of a jealous car, it's a possessive house. Kind of hilarious to watch this dude peacock for what he knows is a ghost (an OG monsterfucker, I guess) but I'm put off by the way he treats his friend, and while it seemed purposeful, I found the wishy-washy nature of his thought patterns/feelings about the situation hard to follow. I also found the ending pretty unsatisfying.
On the Brighton Road — short, sweet, cheeky, effective. Kind of makes me think of the track NOT ENTIRELY ALONE by the Narcissist Cookbook.
The Considerate Hosts — kind of casually, lowkey irreverent in a way I found really enjoyable. Not scary but definitely still a ghost story. Just... kind of on the side of the ghosts being normal people.
August Heat — another case of an intriguing idea that was barely given the space to be a bullet point. I would've liked if this had gone somewhere (anywhere?) but it ends very abruptly without actually going into... anything. There's a difference between leaving things open to the audience and just... not writing the story.
The Return of Andrew Bentley — this, at least, is something of a spooky story, though I couldn't really get past the overly dark and villainous characterisation of magic, sorcery, familiars, etc. Sure, man, whatever. lmfao
The Supper at Elsinore — I honestly can't even begin to fathom why the fuck this is the story the compiler decided to close the collection with. It is so incredibly fucking boring— just an absolute slog— and it isn't even a ghost story until maybe the last 20% of it. Then, surprise, the dead guy who is framed as a beloved protagonist turns out to be a slaver and probably a rapist. What the hell, man.
Because it's a collection of different stories in various tones, it was difficult to rate. This was in the horror section, and I love ghost stories, but none of these were even remotely frightening to me, which could be due to any number of things ranging from matters of personal taste to changes in cultural attitudes over time. So, I was disappointed by the complete and utter lack of spine-chilling vibes, but to make matters worse, the short stories are also definitely, obviously the products of their times, which is to say they are at times extremely, jarringly racist and frustratingly sexist even in the moments when the characters aren't being as loudly misogynist as possible. There are a few enjoyable moments littered throughout the collection— cheeky bits and delightful descriptions— but overall, meh. Honestly, having this as my current ongoing read has demotivated me from reading much of anything recently.
The Haunted and the Haunters — just, like, fine. Not a bad start to the book, but the ending of the short story put me off. It felt nonsensical and eyeroll-worthy compared to the reasonable bits leading up to it.
The Damned Thing — interestingly, this one kind of reminds me of modern sci-fi. Not bad.
The Monkey's Paw — underwhelming.
The Phantom Rickshaw — hated this one.
The Willows — really good use of suspense. I actually liked this one.
The Rival Ghosts — pretty funny, honestly? Reads like a crack fic, for those familiar with the term.
The Man Who Went Too Far — interesting, but I have to admit I don't really get it.
The Mezzotint — this one had a lot of potential, and I was interested, but it felt like it could've done with more exploration of concept. As-is, it fell a little flat for me.
The Open Window — absolutely fucking hilarious. 15 year old girl pranks grown ass adult and mentally goes "me when I lie"
The Beckoning Fair One — complicated feelings about this one. As a concept it's basically the predecessor to Christine, but instead of a jealous car, it's a possessive house. Kind of hilarious to watch this dude peacock for what he knows is a ghost (an OG monsterfucker, I guess) but I'm put off by the way he treats his friend, and while it seemed purposeful, I found the wishy-washy nature of his thought patterns/feelings about the situation hard to follow. I also found the ending pretty unsatisfying.
On the Brighton Road — short, sweet, cheeky, effective. Kind of makes me think of the track NOT ENTIRELY ALONE by the Narcissist Cookbook.
The Considerate Hosts — kind of casually, lowkey irreverent in a way I found really enjoyable. Not scary but definitely still a ghost story. Just... kind of on the side of the ghosts being normal people.
August Heat — another case of an intriguing idea that was barely given the space to be a bullet point. I would've liked if this had gone somewhere (anywhere?) but it ends very abruptly without actually going into... anything. There's a difference between leaving things open to the audience and just... not writing the story.
The Return of Andrew Bentley — this, at least, is something of a spooky story, though I couldn't really get past the overly dark and villainous characterisation of magic, sorcery, familiars, etc. Sure, man, whatever. lmfao
The Supper at Elsinore — I honestly can't even begin to fathom why the fuck this is the story the compiler decided to close the collection with. It is so incredibly fucking boring— just an absolute slog— and it isn't even a ghost story until maybe the last 20% of it. Then, surprise, the dead guy who is framed as a beloved protagonist turns out to be a slaver and probably a rapist. What the hell, man.
January 14, 2009
This volume, a 1944 edition of the Modern Library, was collected by Bennet A. Cerf and includes classics like "The Monkey's Paw" (W.W. Jacobs) and "The Beckoning Fair One" (Oliver Onions), "The Mezzotint", (M.R. James) "The Damned Thing" (Ambrose Bierce), and "The Haunted and the Haunters" (Edward Bulwer-Lytton).
What I like about this volume is something you can only find when you dig through anthologized short-story volumes that may contain repeat stories but have different compilers/editors-- that is, the collectors have their own little section where they include an essay, or in this case a wonderful little section of ghost anecdotes collected by the collector himself, Mr. Cerf. You can't find anything like this anywhere else but in these little volumes put together by passionate, retiring, ghost-story loving confirmed bachelor types.
An excerpt from Mr. Cerf's private anecdote collection:
"The girl, in complete panic, could scarcely wait for morning. She trumped up some excuse to her hosts, and rushed back to new York. Her doctor had an office on the eighteenth floor of a modern medical center. She taxied there from the station, and told him her story in tremulous tones.
The doctor's matter-of-fact acceptance of her tale did much to quiet her nerves. He persuaded her that she had been the victim of a peculiar hallucination, laughed at her terror, kissed her paternally on the brow, and dismissed her in a state of infinite relief."
Ah... my kingdom for the days of paternal doctors who kissed my tremulous brow and dismiss me to my hallucinatory terrors.
As my stepmother would say, "oy vey!"
The stories in this book however, are really a must-read for everyone. Check out the little known "The Supper at Elisnore" by Isak Dinesen.
What I like about this volume is something you can only find when you dig through anthologized short-story volumes that may contain repeat stories but have different compilers/editors-- that is, the collectors have their own little section where they include an essay, or in this case a wonderful little section of ghost anecdotes collected by the collector himself, Mr. Cerf. You can't find anything like this anywhere else but in these little volumes put together by passionate, retiring, ghost-story loving confirmed bachelor types.
An excerpt from Mr. Cerf's private anecdote collection:
"The girl, in complete panic, could scarcely wait for morning. She trumped up some excuse to her hosts, and rushed back to new York. Her doctor had an office on the eighteenth floor of a modern medical center. She taxied there from the station, and told him her story in tremulous tones.
The doctor's matter-of-fact acceptance of her tale did much to quiet her nerves. He persuaded her that she had been the victim of a peculiar hallucination, laughed at her terror, kissed her paternally on the brow, and dismissed her in a state of infinite relief."
Ah... my kingdom for the days of paternal doctors who kissed my tremulous brow and dismiss me to my hallucinatory terrors.
As my stepmother would say, "oy vey!"
The stories in this book however, are really a must-read for everyone. Check out the little known "The Supper at Elisnore" by Isak Dinesen.
May 10, 2011
An excellent anthology, Mr Cerf did a great job of collecting great little stories. Bravo!
Want to read
August 13, 2016Stephen King recommended story "The Beckoning Fair One" in his Forenote to the Paperback Edition from King's Berkley's 1983 edition of Danse Macabre (revised).
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews