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Ghosts, Spooks and Spectres
A collection of horror stories, many with a humorous turn.
- GenresHorrorAnthologies
238 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1967
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
May 23, 2020
The editor of this anthology, one Charles Molin, deserves a good spanking.
A 1967 collection of antique ghost stories, all from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, except a few anonymous tales from the unidentified depths of time. It includes some big names, HG Wells, Conan Doyle and Thurber among them, and the anonymous category of tales ranges from the famous but silly ‘Teeny-Tiny’, to a Manx folktale (it was interesting to learn about the Buggane, a kind of goblin from the Isle of Man) to some ghostly old Indian stories.
Many of the stories are slim and insubstantial works (one, The Phantom Ship, is a chapter from a novel, though that’s not mentioned) and all but one are light-hearted fare. The chief objective of most of the pieces is to evoke laughter, not fear.
Wilde’s Canterville Ghost (interestingly, the first of Wilde's stories to be published, in 1887) is a standout. It's a send-up of the conventional ghost story and, obvious when you read it and know both, the basis of Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice (1988). What makes this story even more interesting is that it has a reasonably convincing gay subtext.
The Brown Hand (1899) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and The Inexperienced Ghost (1902) by HG Wells are two other very good stories, and stories in which comedy isn’t the object (or at least, in the latter, isn’t the overriding one). Good audio versions of both can be found for free on YouTube, the former by Greg Wagland and the latter by Theo Murray (who sounds just like Peter Dinklage). The Five Fingered Beast (1919) by WF Harvey is funny and macabre at the same tine, and quite an exciting read.
The story that stands out the most, especially against the light-hearted comedic tone of this collection, and indeed the standout story of the collection, is Dickens’s very serious, and seriously spooky, ‘The Signalman’ (1866). I’m a fan of Dickens but had never read this famous story (which was made into an episode of the BBC’s iconic ‘Ghost Stories for Christmas’ series in 1976). It doesn’t fit easily into this collection, except in its vintage, but I was happy to find it included, and gladdened to find that it scared the bejesus out of my eight-year-old (more than any story from a book ever has). It even sent shivers down my own spine.
The antiquated language in these stories meant that I ended up reading most of them to myself (even with ‘The Signalman’ I had to explain as I went along) but I didn’t mind that. I had been hoping for some scary stories to tell my son, and the book was already disappointment in this respect anyway. Even if ‘Ghosts, Spooks and Spectres’ is for children (which it presumably is since it’s published by Puffin), I feel that a collection with that title should contain scary stories (and the blurb warns: “read this book at your peril, and don’t blame us if you can’t sleep afterwards”). Where is MR James, or even the EF Benson, for example? And if you want to make children laugh, why choose the ghost story as the vehicle?
For this misguidedness, the editor of this anthology, one Charles Molin, deserves a good spanking if he’s still alive. I’d happily administer it personally.
A 1967 collection of antique ghost stories, all from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, except a few anonymous tales from the unidentified depths of time. It includes some big names, HG Wells, Conan Doyle and Thurber among them, and the anonymous category of tales ranges from the famous but silly ‘Teeny-Tiny’, to a Manx folktale (it was interesting to learn about the Buggane, a kind of goblin from the Isle of Man) to some ghostly old Indian stories.
Many of the stories are slim and insubstantial works (one, The Phantom Ship, is a chapter from a novel, though that’s not mentioned) and all but one are light-hearted fare. The chief objective of most of the pieces is to evoke laughter, not fear.
Wilde’s Canterville Ghost (interestingly, the first of Wilde's stories to be published, in 1887) is a standout. It's a send-up of the conventional ghost story and, obvious when you read it and know both, the basis of Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice (1988). What makes this story even more interesting is that it has a reasonably convincing gay subtext.
The Brown Hand (1899) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and The Inexperienced Ghost (1902) by HG Wells are two other very good stories, and stories in which comedy isn’t the object (or at least, in the latter, isn’t the overriding one). Good audio versions of both can be found for free on YouTube, the former by Greg Wagland and the latter by Theo Murray (who sounds just like Peter Dinklage). The Five Fingered Beast (1919) by WF Harvey is funny and macabre at the same tine, and quite an exciting read.
The story that stands out the most, especially against the light-hearted comedic tone of this collection, and indeed the standout story of the collection, is Dickens’s very serious, and seriously spooky, ‘The Signalman’ (1866). I’m a fan of Dickens but had never read this famous story (which was made into an episode of the BBC’s iconic ‘Ghost Stories for Christmas’ series in 1976). It doesn’t fit easily into this collection, except in its vintage, but I was happy to find it included, and gladdened to find that it scared the bejesus out of my eight-year-old (more than any story from a book ever has). It even sent shivers down my own spine.
The antiquated language in these stories meant that I ended up reading most of them to myself (even with ‘The Signalman’ I had to explain as I went along) but I didn’t mind that. I had been hoping for some scary stories to tell my son, and the book was already disappointment in this respect anyway. Even if ‘Ghosts, Spooks and Spectres’ is for children (which it presumably is since it’s published by Puffin), I feel that a collection with that title should contain scary stories (and the blurb warns: “read this book at your peril, and don’t blame us if you can’t sleep afterwards”). Where is MR James, or even the EF Benson, for example? And if you want to make children laugh, why choose the ghost story as the vehicle?
For this misguidedness, the editor of this anthology, one Charles Molin, deserves a good spanking if he’s still alive. I’d happily administer it personally.
October 24, 2019
A fun read of short stories looking at the more light hearted ghost stories.
A perfect October read and a great opportunity to read The Canterville Ghost 👻👻
A perfect October read!
A perfect October read and a great opportunity to read The Canterville Ghost 👻👻
A perfect October read!
October 22, 2024
A surprisingly light-hearted collection of ghost stories.
Ghosts, Spooks and Spectres has a quintessentially English sense of humour when it comes to the unquiet dead. The editor Molin has compiled stories about ghosts farcically assuming the identity of the living, causing mayhem in the local community and generally being a nuisance around the house. While there are a few genuinely unsettling tales in the mix, there is much more irreverence.
There are some household names featured, including Charles Dickens, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, H G Wells and even Saki and James Thurber. Every writer involved, including those who share the nom de plume 'Anonymous', offers a slightly different take on a haunting. That's precisely why I enjoyed Ghosts, Spooks and Spectres so much: one story might be spare and moralistic, but the next may well be characterful and droll.
If I had any complaints with this collection, it's that there could have been a few more serious takes on ghosts to balance things out. Perhaps some M. R. James or Edith Wharton. On that subject, there is also a glaring scarcity of female authors, which seems an even greater shame.
That being said, I found Ghosts, Spooks and Spectres a brief but thought-provoking paranormal read. I recommend it to those who enjoy a good Victorian ghost story which raises a smile as well as wicked spirits.
Notable Stories
• The Strange Visitor by Anonymous – a brief tale told in verse, with a bizarre entrance and deadpan reaction.
• The Ghost Ship by Richard Middleton – the endearing community of Fairfield is haunted by a bad influence.
• The Beast with Five Fingers by W. F. Harvey – a blasé playboy is bothered by the demonic hand of his dead uncle.
Ghosts, Spooks and Spectres has a quintessentially English sense of humour when it comes to the unquiet dead. The editor Molin has compiled stories about ghosts farcically assuming the identity of the living, causing mayhem in the local community and generally being a nuisance around the house. While there are a few genuinely unsettling tales in the mix, there is much more irreverence.
There are some household names featured, including Charles Dickens, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, H G Wells and even Saki and James Thurber. Every writer involved, including those who share the nom de plume 'Anonymous', offers a slightly different take on a haunting. That's precisely why I enjoyed Ghosts, Spooks and Spectres so much: one story might be spare and moralistic, but the next may well be characterful and droll.
If I had any complaints with this collection, it's that there could have been a few more serious takes on ghosts to balance things out. Perhaps some M. R. James or Edith Wharton. On that subject, there is also a glaring scarcity of female authors, which seems an even greater shame.
That being said, I found Ghosts, Spooks and Spectres a brief but thought-provoking paranormal read. I recommend it to those who enjoy a good Victorian ghost story which raises a smile as well as wicked spirits.
Notable Stories
• The Strange Visitor by Anonymous – a brief tale told in verse, with a bizarre entrance and deadpan reaction.
• The Ghost Ship by Richard Middleton – the endearing community of Fairfield is haunted by a bad influence.
• The Beast with Five Fingers by W. F. Harvey – a blasé playboy is bothered by the demonic hand of his dead uncle.
November 12, 2025
Really really sweet little collection, a testament to the quality of children's publishing back in the day.
Guess what, not a weak story within, to mine eyes; I enjoyed every single one. There's a lovely mix of properly spooky (Dickens' classic The Signalman, Le Fanu's Madam Crowl's Ghost), humorous (Wilde's The Canterville Ghost, Wells' The Inexperienced Ghost), alongside older 'trad' tales and folklore.
My fave was the charmingly phantasmagoric The Ghost-Ship by Richard Middleton, someone I'll have to keep an eye out for, which placed the mundane aside the sublime in a way I haven't quite encountered in its time.
Like any great collection, this gave me the gift of a trove of new literary leads.
Guess what, not a weak story within, to mine eyes; I enjoyed every single one. There's a lovely mix of properly spooky (Dickens' classic The Signalman, Le Fanu's Madam Crowl's Ghost), humorous (Wilde's The Canterville Ghost, Wells' The Inexperienced Ghost), alongside older 'trad' tales and folklore.
My fave was the charmingly phantasmagoric The Ghost-Ship by Richard Middleton, someone I'll have to keep an eye out for, which placed the mundane aside the sublime in a way I haven't quite encountered in its time.
Like any great collection, this gave me the gift of a trove of new literary leads.
May 22, 2020
Mostly good stories. I had read a few of them before, and there were a few that were feeble (the short folk-tale ones). Worth a whirl.
September 18, 2023
A humorous looks a the lighter side of the supernatural
The Canterbury Ghost / Oscar Wilde/ 1887
Teeny-tiny / anonymous
The Signalman / Charles Dickens /1866
The Strange Visitor / anonymous
Madam Crowl's Ghost/ J. Sheridan La Family/ 1888
A Ghostly Wife anonymous
The legend Of Hamilton tighe/ Richard Bartram / 1889
The Phantom Ship / Captain Marryat/ 1839
The Brown Hand / Sir Arthur Conan Doyle / 1899
The Ghost Brahman / anonymous
The Ghost Ship / Richard Middleton /1912
The Water Ghost Of Harrowby Hall/ John Kendrick Bangs/ 1894
The Inexperienced Ghost / H G Wells / c1890
The Buggane The Tailor / DOA Broome/ 1951
Laura / Sali / c1900
The Betrayal Of Nance/ R Blakeborough/ ?
The Ghost Who Was Afraid Of Beina Bagged / anonymous
The Beast With Five Fingers / W F Harrvy / 1919
The Night The Ghost Got In / James Thurber / 1915
The Story Of Glam / Andrew Lang / c ,1990
The Canterbury Ghost / Oscar Wilde/ 1887
Teeny-tiny / anonymous
The Signalman / Charles Dickens /1866
The Strange Visitor / anonymous
Madam Crowl's Ghost/ J. Sheridan La Family/ 1888
A Ghostly Wife anonymous
The legend Of Hamilton tighe/ Richard Bartram / 1889
The Phantom Ship / Captain Marryat/ 1839
The Brown Hand / Sir Arthur Conan Doyle / 1899
The Ghost Brahman / anonymous
The Ghost Ship / Richard Middleton /1912
The Water Ghost Of Harrowby Hall/ John Kendrick Bangs/ 1894
The Inexperienced Ghost / H G Wells / c1890
The Buggane The Tailor / DOA Broome/ 1951
Laura / Sali / c1900
The Betrayal Of Nance/ R Blakeborough/ ?
The Ghost Who Was Afraid Of Beina Bagged / anonymous
The Beast With Five Fingers / W F Harrvy / 1919
The Night The Ghost Got In / James Thurber / 1915
The Story Of Glam / Andrew Lang / c ,1990
December 27, 2011
This was a very amusing book about ghosts. It is more for humor and a good laugh than to get scared. " the Inexperienced Ghost" was cute as was "Laura" and "The Ghost who was afraid of being bagged". None of these stories are current or modern. Personally, I get a big kick out of reading what people believed 100 or more years ago, just as others 100 years hence will laugh at what we believe in today.
July 4, 2009
I put this in horror with some reservations. These are generally very light hearted stories, often with humorous elements. Nothing very tense or fear inducing here. I bet a lot of folks would love their playfullness but I'm not really a fan of humorous ghost stories.
February 21, 2014
I really didnt like it ,the first few stories were not that good.
And I skipped the stories in the middle it was so bad.
So I read the last few, they were better but it still did not want to make me read the rest of the book.
And I skipped the stories in the middle it was so bad.
So I read the last few, they were better but it still did not want to make me read the rest of the book.
August 11, 2014
Series of short stories about ghosts, mostly British and India based ghosts.
January 27, 2018
Contains "The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall," among other favorites.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews