Witches, Wraiths and Warlocks: Supernatural Tales of the American Renaissance

by Ronald Curran

America's preoccupation with the supernatural has deeper roots than the current vogue for the macabre might suggest. The classic tales selected for this definitive collection clearly show the formative influence of the myths and legends of England and Germany. Each tale is repre­sentative of its native source, whether it is the literary traditions of New England and the South, or the serio-comic folklore of the Frontier, the Negro, or the American Indian.CONTENTSIntroductionFolk TalesCotton Mather - Enchantments Encounter'dWilliam Root Bliss - Old Deb And Other Old Colony WitchesM. V. Ingram - General Andrew The Great Soldier and Statesman's Visit to The Bell WitchRichard M. Dorson - The Cat-WitchFrederick Gottschalck - The Witch Dance On The BrockenCharles M. Skinner - The Leeds DevilVirginia Frazer Boyle - Stolen FireRichard M. Dorson - Seeing The Devil In Three ShapesSamuel Adams Drake - Jonathan Moulton And The DevilThomas Chandler Haliburton - Barney Oxman And The DevilCharles M. Skinner - The Death WaltzRichard Chase - The Haunted HouseAnon - The GhostCharles M. Skinner - The Long SleepLauncelot - The Legend Of The PipeAnon - Coffined AlivePopular LiteratureAnon - The Castle Of CostanzoAnon - The Parricide Punishedanon - The Wig And The Black CatMiss Elizabeth P. Hall - The WitchE. E. - The VeilMrs Volney E. Howard - The Midnight Voyage Of The SeagullAnon - The SphinxAnon - Tale Of A ConjurerAnon - The Enchanter Faustus And Queen ElizabethAnon - The DreamAnon - The Captive's DreamJohn Waters - The Wooden Legged GhostI. P. A. - A Ghost StoryRudolph - The Village DoctorThe Literary TraditionNathaniel Hawthorne - Young Goodman BrownWashington Irving - The Legend Of Sleepy HollowEdgar Allan Poe - The Black CatMark Twain - A Ghost StoryNathaniel Hawthorne - Rappaccini's DaughterHerman Melville - The Tartarus Of MaidsEdgar Allan Poe - LigeiaWashington Irving - Rip Van WinkleEdgar Allan Poe - The Fall Of The House Of UsherHerman Melville - The Bell-TowerBibliography

Genres: Horror, Short Stories, Anthologies

Hardcover

First published June 1, 1971

Reviews

[Kent Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but most of the actual stories are too centered on the romantic aspect. The best one is The Midnight Journey of the Seagull because it was one of the only ones to really embrace a sinister atmosphere without sounding like a bad imitation of Shakespeare. And one thought on Herman Melville, author of the most wildly overrated classic novel in history, and his two short stories in this. His knowledge of obscure adjectives was a source of great pride. It's easy to tell.