Spooky New England: Tales Of Hauntings, Strange Happenings, And Other Local Lore

by S.E. Schlosser, Paul Hoffman (Illustrations)

A collection of folktales highlighting famous and not-so-famous New England ghosts, mysterious happenings, powers of darkness, and wonders of the invisible world.

Pull up a chair or gather round the campfire and get ready for 35 creepy tails of ghostly hauntings, eerie happenings, and other strange occurrences in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. Set in New England's historic towns, charming old islands, and sparsely populated backwoods, the stories in this entertaining and compelling collection will have you looking over your shoulder again and again.

Yankee folklore is kept alive in these expert retellings by master storyteller S.E. Schlosser, and in artist Paul Hoffman's evocative illustrations. You'll meet seaweed-covered phantom sailors and a ghostly black dog, hear otherworldly voices and things that go bump in the night, and feel an icy wind on the back of your neck on a warm summer 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.

Genres: Horror, Paranormal, Short Stories, Nonfiction, Folklore, Ghost Stories, Supernatural

280 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2003

About the author

Author 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)

Reviews

[Ruby Hollyberry · Rating 1 out of 5]

So far this is pretty awful. Sorry I bought it. Probably going in the used bookstore recycle pile.

This book should have been marketed as a children's title. The writing is at about the fourth to fifth grade level. On that level, some of the stories are interesting. However, this is not what I would call a GOOD children's book. The author is a poor writer.

[Linda Lipko]

There is nothing in depth about this book of folk lore regarding New England haunts. None of the stories are creepy or scary. The writing is mediocre and falls flat.

It was a quick and breezy -- something to read when I am weary and not wanting to concentrate on anything thought provoking.

[Allie Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though I was wary about starting this book after reading some negative reviews, I am glad I decided to give it a chance. As a native New Englander, I thoroughly enjoyed these stories of local spooky lore, made all the more interesting by places I know and have visited. Most of these tales I hadn’t heard before, and though the stories are short they are nonetheless entertaining. Almost meant to be spoken aloud, this collection is filled with 40 tall tales that would be ideal for reading around a campfire at night. Perfect short stories accompanied by imaginative illustrations to get anyone in the mood for Halloween!

[Jennifer Spiliakos · Rating 1 out of 5]

There are many other well written, engaging, interesting options for tales like these. Skip this one and find something better.

[Hector · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book a few years back during a middle school field trip to Plimouth Plantation, Massachusetts. It's a rather entertaining book that has some good stories. It isn't outright spooky or scary, like the Scary Stories series. However it does have character and that's what saves it. I still love to reread the book and it hasn't lost its charm. Sure the stories won't keep you up at night, however they are memorable and they are stories that you wouldn't hear often. The book isn't filled with your run of the mile, spooky stories or familair beings, and I think that's the point. It's "local lore". Every story is listed as happening in a particular area. Don't pass the chance to read it. Also, this belongs to a series of books and compared to some of the others, this one is better.

[Gato Negro · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this in one day in one sitting, only because I was unable to go any place and I didn't have any other way to pass the time. Otherwise, I might have folded the cover back onto this after the first third.

To be clear, the stories are not spooky. There are ghost sightings, some oddities, a number of ship stories (pirates, shipwrecks, etc.) and a few Christian-themed offerings.

I did like the way the chapters began by noting in which town each tale originates/ed. Other than that I don't have a lot of praise to offer.

The writing could have been crisper, and the anecdotes could have been structured differently in order to be more mysterious and frightening.

Lastly, this should have be marketed as children's literature.

[The Booked Mama · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of short tales is perfect for a night around a campfire. New England folklore is filled with history, ghosts and mysterious happenings and this book highlights some of the most popular tales from all over the region. Though this wasn't my favorite read it was a fun one to pass the time during this spooky season. One ghost story based in Vermont was recently highlighted on a podcast I listen to. It was a fun connection! Keep this one on hand for future camping trips and fireside chats.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is actually part of an imprint of similar books for regions all over the US, all written by the same author. So in other words, these are fairly shallow retellings by someone not actually from New England, which means there is almost no cultural or historical context presented, and little sense of setting or place. Also the writing is very simple - basically Middle Grade level.

Paul Hoffman's illustrations, however, were very good.

Content warning for violent child death in one of the stories.

[Seana McCarthy · Rating 3 out of 5]

**If I could I would rate this 3.7**
Over all I really enjoyed these stories and felt like the book was well put together. I just wish the author wrote the year each story took place. It was hard to understand the settings at times. Some stories intrigued me more than others. It took me a bit longer to read than I had hoped, It was a bit slow moving at times so I often would read a few stories and switch to something else. But over all (as a fellow New Englander) I really enjoyed this read.

[Alyssa Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a native New Englander, I really appreciated learned some of the local lore. I didn't know most of the stories but they were interesting to read. The stories were short but each managed to get me invested immediately and were quite memorable. I appreciate the work and research that were put in to finding and writing these stories!

[Lexy Showers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super quick read of some spooky tales. Nothing crazy in depth or super long. Just fun for a little scare! Lots of negative reviews about the writing style of this author, but I just found it to be a nice short read to break up my typical 300+ page books. I read it in only a few hours and enjoyed several of the stories within. Was definitely a bit bone chilling!

[Lorraine · Rating 2 out of 5]

As others have mentioned, there is not much in this collection of alleged spooky stories to tie them to NewEngland other than a brief note of a town and state after the story title. Many could take place in any location. Additionally there are resources noted at the end of the book, but no reference to which stories are from which reference. Overall, a disappointment.

[Britt · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got this book for free which makes sense after reading it. I actually read a similar book by this author called Spooky Massachusetts that I didn’t realize I read last year which was similarly disappointed. Urban legends and folklore that are good to read at a kid’s campfire at Halloween.

[Kissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice collection of folktale and ghost stories from the New England area. Some of the spookier tales gave me "Scary Tales To Tell In The Dark" vibes. Others I just appreciated for giving insight into local culture. Overall, a nice book to pass the time with.

[Izzie Flynn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave up. This was not at all what I was expecting unfortunately. This might be enjoyable to younger readers but I have to say this was difficult. I mostly held out this long because I'm stubborn but I'm out. Not my thing whatsoever. The illustrations were lovely though.

[Doug Tabner · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not bad per se, just not what I was expecting. I was looking for old folk tales, and this is more of a collection of spooky stories.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wouldn't necessarily say anything in this book is "spooky". Although some of the stories were pretty good and they were interesting.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this a while back now found it to be an entertaining array of supernatural tales tied to the region.

[Julia Babcock · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was ok, it had some good story’s in it and other ones that where not so good, but in all it was a generally ok book

[Devin Fogle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book up while in vacation. Loved every page of it.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars rounded up.

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is very poorly written, like reading a shopping list, looks good as a Halloween prop though🎃

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read!

[Olivia Meek · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. There were many stories I had never heard before which made it all the more interesting. As Sandy said in the intro we need to keep these stories alive.

[Natalie Tobey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe 2-3 spooky stories but the rest are eh...I think my 12 year old nephew will like it though

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read

[Luther Tdarous-Carr · Rating 3 out of 5]

I believe this book could be really good when you are with friends in the dark but other then that it is just an average scary story book.But it does have a couple good storys.

[Angela Oser · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok. Some of the stories were a little far fetched!

[Matty Standerski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve had this book for years and am glad I finally read it! fun little read, lots of interesting stories some more interesting than others but I had a fun time with this book. Solid 3.5 stars

[Crystal Swafford · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you loved scary stories books as a kid, this book is great entertainment as an adult. These hodge podge themed stories come alive in a way that others in a similar genre do not.