Scary Stories Treasury

by Alvin Schwartz, Stephen Gammell (Illustrator)

Schwartz's three best-selling collections of scary folklore -- Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, and Scary Stories 3 -- are made available in one book, each one in its complete form.

Reviews

"A wonderful collection of tales that range from creepy to silly to haunting. ...Gammell's drawings add just the right touch..." -- John Scieszka, Entertinment Weekly

"Guaranteed to make your teeth chatter and your spine tingle." -- School Library Journal

"Read these if you dare." -- The New York Times

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Short Stories, Childrens, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Paranormal

325 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1981

About the author

Alvin^Schwartz
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Alvin Schwartz was the author of more than fifty books dedicated to and dealing with topics such as folklore and word play, many of which were intended for young readers. He is often confused with another Alvin_Schwartz, who wrote Superman and Batman daily comics strips and a novel titled The Blowtop.

For Batman - See: Alvin^^Schwartz https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...

Reviews

[✨Bean's Books✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still awesome!
These books are filled with short stories written down by the great Alvin Schwartz. These stories are comprised of myths, folklore and urban legends from all over the world. But beware dear reader, these stories may be too scary for you! 😱
Wonderfully written sets of little tales of horror. These stories were a beloved part of my childhood. I can still remember my friends and I staying up late at night sitting in a circle with a flashlight and these books and taking turns reading our favorite stories to each other. As we did our best to freak each other out so these stories remain ingrained in my memory. They bring back fond memories and are still delightful to read even as an adult.
Stephen Gammell's horrifying illustrations still give me the creeps even as an adult. They are without a doubt the stuff that nightmares are made of.
I look forward to seeing what Guillermo del Toro can do to bring these horrorifying images to life on the big screen!
As any true lover of horror will tell you, these books are a must to add to your collection. And if you haven't already read them, then you definitely should! Just remember to tell these scary stories... in the dark. 👻

Or you can watch my review on YouTube here:
https://youtu.be/M0H2gOyFgfU

[Coos Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

No voy a hacer una reseña demasiado extensa porque, para quienes conocen mis videos y me han escuchado hablar de esto, sabrán que voy a hacer un especial sobre estos tres libros + la película muy pronto. Pero pueden ver reseñas individuales de los primeros dos libros en sus respectivas ediciones originales. Con este ejemplar pude releer los dos primeros, y leer por primera vez el tercero. Todos me encantaron, y si bien son cuentos que no se destacan por una narrativa perfecta o complejidad en sus tramas, me parece que es importante reivindicar estos libros (y urgente).

Pronto haré ese especial, así que los invito a mi canal: https://www.youtube.com/coosburton

[Rachelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Don't you ever laugh as a hearse goes by,
For you may be the next to die..."


This book still holds up, I love it just as much now as I did when I first read it as a kid! The Hearse Song is a classic as well as High Beams, The Hook, The Babysitter, & love a good vanishing hitchhiker story. All of creepy folklores greatest hits combined into a great collection!

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had all three of Schwartz's Scary Stories books as a child, and remember reading them over and over. The tales are mostly re-tellings of classic urban legends. The stories are creepy, but what really made this book great were the disturbing images by Stephen Gammell. I remember staying up late reading these stories and staring at the images with a mixture of fascination and horror.

Seriously, pretend you're a ten year old girl for a second and just look at these.






Now an adult, I went in search of a copy of this book to share with my nephew who loves scary stories. Much to my dismay, I learned that the original version with the images by Stephen Gammell is out of print and has been banned by several institutions! The newer versions have a new illustrator and less-creepy imagery.

Stephen Gammell's illustrations MADE this book. If you're looking to buy, try to find an old copy if you can. Make sure the seller's description says the illustrations are by Gammell. It's totally worth it. It will probably freak your kids out, but that's the whole point.

[JoAnna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these!!!!!:)

[✦BookishlyRichie✦ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Usually I would've re-read this in October, but since the movie was coming out I had to crack this scary motherfucker open for the hundredth time. When I was a kid I had all three of these books and the illustrations used to scare the shit out of me. Only two of the stories REALLY scared me and those were "Harold" and "Red Spot" and those two stories are heavily featured in the movie. I can't wait to see the movie this Tuesday and film a Book VS Movie video on it, I think it's going to be a lot of fun.

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this last October and I never added to my tbr pile! I listened to the audiobook. It was fun. I read this many, many years ago when I was a kid and I couldn't resist all the creepy and scary books in my library growing up. Honestly, some of these stories are still scary. I believe the first volume is the best. In my opinion, the quality of the stories diminishes with each volume. I personally didn't care for the really short, very jokey stories. They are pretty silly (corny), and maybe it was the way the narrator read them, I was rolling my eyes on those. I probably appreciated them when I was a kid, because I was also the girl who read all the joke books from my library.

As an aside, I recently watched the movie version that came out last year. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The movie was just scary enough to be scary, but not too disturbing. There is some imagery that gave me chills.

Anyway, back to the books. I think it's fun to reread these as an adult. I wish I had the paper version as the illustrations are so great. However, it was still a fun time listening.

Overall Rating: 3.5/5.0 stars. Individually, I would rate Book 1 as 4 stars, Book 2 as 3.5 and Book 3 as 3.0 stars.

[Lucía Cafeína · Rating 2 out of 5]

Me ha dado más miedo la portada que todo el libro, de verdad.
Está compuesto de un montón de historias de miedo muy cortitas, dirigidas sobre todo a un público más joven, y aunque sí esperaba que consiguiesen ponerme un poquito los pelos de punta, y solo lo han conseguido un par, ha resultado la mar de entretenido.

[TraceyL · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute collection of spooky short stories. The narrator was awesome and actually made them sound scary. A lot were rehashes of old urban legends.

[Adia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

a collection of very brief stories, some spooky (ghosts, ghouls, poltergeists), some frightening (murderers, insanity, the bizarre), and some just gross (graveyard-bone soup, stolen toes, and body decomposition). a few were a bit too disgusting for my taste, and most were so simple and lacking in detail that they almost felt like sketches of scary stories...but maybe elaborate horror is too much to ask of a children's book.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found the folklore very interesting. I learned things I never knew before. The ghost stories were particularly chilly. Considering how deep I was into horror as a teenager these are perfect for that age group, even younger.

The illustrations are horrifying and perfect. Beautiful really. There should be an award.

[Marta Marlau · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5/5 ⭐️ Realmente no da miedo y está dirigido al público infantil. La idea es buena, teniendo historias para contar a niños/as por la noche y pasar un rato divertido.
Eso sí, a mí se me ha quedado corto. Los relatos no tienen más de 2 o 3 páginas y pensaba que serían más extensos y trabajados.
Próximamente reseña en https://rincondemarlau.blogspot.com

[Nusrat Mahmood · Rating 4 out of 5]

একদম ছোট ছোট ভুতু গল্প। কিছু ভয় জাগায়, কিছু শুধুই খানিকটা শিরশিরানি। আরেকবার পড়তে হবে রাতের বেলায় যখন সবাই ঘুমিয়ে পরে, বাতাসে হাল্কা পর্দা নড়ে, সানসেটের উপড়ে থাকা বিড়ালের বাচ্চাটা কেঁদে উঠে- তখন!

[The Candid Cover (Olivia & Lori) · Rating 4 out of 5]

So pumped to see this movie! Review to come.

[Nakia's Hideaway · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 out of 5 stars! (average for all 3 books)

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark - 5 stars

This one was a favorite from my childhood so it was nostalgic to revisit all of the stories again.

Favorites...
The Babysitter
Cold as Clay
Alligators
Room for One More
Wait Till Martin Comes

Also enjoyed...
The Thing
White Wolf
The Girl Who Stood on Graves
The Wendigo

Finally, all of the stories in the "AAAAAAAAAAAH!" section are perfect for telling spooky stories. Love the instructions included with each story to help you get the biggest jumps.

More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark - 3 stars

I found most of the stories in the second book to be pretty predictable. So I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first, but it's definitely still a fun read.

Favorites...
Somebody Fell from Aloft
The Bad News
The Brown Suit

Also enjoyed...
Something was Wrong
The Wreck

Scary Stories 3: More Tales to Chill Your Bones - 4 stars

I definitely enjoyed this third book more than the second one. And overall I enjoyed most of the stories in the collection.

Favorites...
The Appointment
You May Be Next

Also enjoyed...
The Bus Stop
Just Delicious
Like Cats' Eyes
The Dead Hand (gorey goodness)
Maybe You Will Remember
It's Him
The Red Spot


All in all I definitely recommend adding the Scary Stories Treasury to your collection!

[Krystin | TheF*ckingTwist · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book Blog | Bookstagram

Cute. But weird.



⭐⭐⭐ | 3 stars

[Andromeda M31 · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you were born in the 80's, there's no way you escaped reading the Scary Stories books when you were young. This edition collects all three books, along with all those illustrations you remember!

I found the Treasury edition on sale while waiting for the DC to NY bus, and I had to have it. I've pulled it out at several black outs since then to scare my foreign national room mates who recognize some of the stories from versions in their home countries. And yes, they can still be scary to twenty-somethings.

As always, what really makes these books are the strange and oozing illustrations by Gammell. These images were burned into my brain when I was seven, and it's amazing how vivid they've stayed within my memory. The stories are simply told and demand to be retold with your own personal flair. As an adult, I was able to appreciate the Notes and Sources at the end of each book, listing the origin and analysis of the story. After talking with my room mates, I almost wish there was a 4th book going beyond the Western Ghost stories.

Buy it. Read it to your children. You know you want to.

[La rata lectora /Canal literario de Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

De este libro se dice que es juvenil...tiene más de infantil que de juevenil dado lo espabilados que estan los jovenes hoy en día y todo el material de terror al que acceden de primera mano. Sin embargo, este libro es una joya a la que hay que acudir con mucho cariño, teniendo en cuenta el enorme esfuerzo de su autor por recoger todo esto. El folklore de tradición oral tiene un valor, en mi opinión, incalculable.
Creo que es con esta premisa con la que si eres adulto debes acudir a esta obra. Historias buenas tiene el libro, pero son historias de dos o tres páginas.

[Fiebre Lectora · Rating 2 out of 5]

Resulta una antología de cuentos de terror que no dan demasiado miedo, pero que sí acaban siendo bastante entretenidos.
Reseña completa: http://fiebrelectora.blogspot.com/201...

[Samantha Matherne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great spooky book to start October with. The audio has sound effects and fantastic narration. I never read this book before and appreciate my experience being this great audio recording of it. The book lives up to its name - Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark - because I have heard at least a couple of these in my teen years from friends. I had no idea that they came from a series of scary stories. Some gave me goosebumps, which is the best kind of spooky story.

[Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah, the memories. I recently picked up this omnibus of spooky favorites from childhood, including the three “Scary Stories” books by Alvin Schwartz “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark,” “More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark,” and “Scary Stories 3: More Tales to Chill Your Bones” and read them for the first time in my adulthood. I really don’t know what about these dark, macabre, downright creepy tales fascinated me so much as a child; normally, I was terrified of anything remotely scary, having to leave the room if a movie showed even the slightest tinge of blood and shying away from even the most innocuous rubber zombie mask. Perhaps because of this, I found these tingly stories all the more attractive. Perhaps, in spite of my fear, I enjoyed a feeling of dark, ghostly unease, and reading about the supernatural allowed me to experience it on my own terms. From then on, I was hooked on reading of ghostly, eerie places and phenomena (both “real” and fantasy) and the spooky atmosphere of these and similar stories filled me with a delicious dread. Even if I still could not bear to walk into the horror section of the video store, I relished “Scary Stories.” Especially around late October, as Halloween (always a favorite holiday) approached and the wind blew the leaves from the trees over the plowed fields and pumpkin patches, I returned to such stories again and again.

After so many years have passed, I am still greatly impressed by each of Schwartz's “Scary Stories” entries gathered in this one volume. Despite being short, none more than three pages these stories are still extremely effective, still bringing chills to my sister and me (one particular story my sister could still not sit through). The majority are drawn whole cloth by Schwartz from the deep lake of American and Canadian folklore, which in turn takes aspects from ancient stories from a multitude of cultures. These stories touch the very essence of human fears, desires, and delights. Each remains deceptively simple in its telling, rarely going into detail about the ghostly events they describe but leaving just enough to get across the plot, and they are all the more spooky for it. Interestingly, many don’t really have a point or “moral,” which lends to them an aura of “truth” as if they were an actual recalled experience. Also, it must be said that Stephen Gammell's art that goes along with many of the stories really gives them that extra edge of dread. These drawings have a drippy, macabre, unsettling ambiance that turns even the most mundane object (a chair, a stairway) into a horrifying, unnerving apparition. They are without a doubt the most frightening aspect of the book, and Gammell was an excellent choice to illustrate these scenes. Not all is scary, though. Each book also includes a collection of joke stories that bring humor as a counterpoint to the horror of the unknown. Best of all, in my mind are the copious references, citations, notes, and bibliography that Schwartz includes tracing the provenance and background of each of the tales, and invites the reader to continue their exploration of spooky folklore from North America and elsewhere. For me folklore has a timeless quality that lends itself to telling around a fire in the dark, delighting in imagining all the spooky details.

In conclusion, the Scary Stories theory is ideal in my mind for spine tingly storytelling for both adults and children at any time of the year, but particularly around Halloween. I was happy to see that this book remains as memorable now as it had when I was just an easily frightened kid!

[☠Kayla☠ · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books scared me to death as a kid, but I loved going back and rereading these as an adult and reliving my childhood. I remember sitting outside under a blanket with my best friend and listening to her read these to me. I was so scared she constantly had to reassure me they weren't real and they were just scary stories. Or sitting in the library at school surrounded by classmates as we all read our favorite stories, telling ourselves again that this stuff couldnt happen in real life... or could it?
It's funny how as kids we can be scared of everything but as preteens, teens, and adults we love the scary things that used to frighten us. These will always be my favorite scary stories. Now I cant wait for the movie to come out.

[Jmorenocidoncha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este libro es espeluznante y divertido al mismo tiempo, pero aún más valioso de lo que puede parecer a simple vista. La exhaustiva labor filológica realizada por Alvin Schwartz a lo largo de los años para reunir estas historias, transmitidas fundamentalmente a nivel oral, es fundamental para entender que nuestros miedos son los mismos, independientemente de dónde vengamos y de qué tiempo. Estas historias se han contado, se cuentan y se seguirán contando para hacernos estremecer de terror.

[Stacia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though they are probably aimed for the 10- to 12-year-old audience, I had a lot of fun reading these tales. They would be perfect around-the-campfire tales with the right storyteller. They also served a dual-purpose for me: spooky reading + banned/challenged books. I also enjoyed the end notes detailing the background & history of the various tales.

[Finn Lectora · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recopilación de historias propias del folclore y que respetan un formato de cuento popular contado de noche al calor de una fogata.

No ocupan más de 2-3 páginas. Además, hay ilustraciones en casi todas ellas, representando algún tipo de escena escalofriante usando la gama de grises.

El autor ha hecho una gran labor, en cuanto a mantener la veracidad en este tipo de material. Al fin y al cabo, se desprende ese miedo hacia aquello que nos acecha desde la oscuridad.

[Anne (Not of Green Gables) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm clearly not the age demographic for this collection (though that is subjective, read whatever you want!), but it seemed like a fun little time on this Halloween Eve. More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark #2 was the most enjoyable for me. I'm glad I chose to physical read as I listened to the audiobook. The creepy artwork adds to the experience.

[Alana]

Me taking notes on this like it's a textbook, there's some great advice in here!

[Amberle Husbands · Rating 5 out of 5]

I spent my parents' hard earned money at scholastic book fairs, as an elementary school kid, on all three of the individual "Scary Stories" collections. I was thrilled the other day when I saw this treasury in the bookstore, and couldn't resist bringing it home. It combines all three of the collections, and includes the amazing illustrations by Stephen Gammell that absolutely scared the bejeezus out of me as a child!

I have to admit, reading through the stories now, that even as a kid these must have been pretty vanilla. I guess the fact that they have whole chapters dedicated to stories where the last line instructs you to jump at one of your friends yelling "AAAAAAAGHGHGHGH!" should have given it away. Still, there are a lot of stories that honor the old, classic urban legends; you know, phantom hitch-hikers, hook-handed psychopaths on lover's lane, face-nesting spiders, and dog-sized rats from Mexico. The short story, "The Wendigo", pays homage to Algernon Blackwood in a way that was lost on me as a child; it gave me chills for far, far longer than any of the others.

The real reason this book has such an unshakable soft-spot in my heart, though?

The drawings... For goodness' sake, the drawings! Stephen Gammell's artwork gave me nightmares back then that still make me shiver today. Yet, even as a kid, I was addicted to them. When I was six, I wanted to tattoo myself with them. Today... I just want to paper the walls of my office with them.

[SabCo T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Because the movie for this series is coming out soon, I decided to re-visit the source of a few childhood traumas I experienced reading this as a kid lol

Honestly though, even when I first read the books in elementary/early middle school; it wasn’t really the stories that bothered me [except the ‘Red Spot’/spider-eggs-in-face story] - it’s the art by Stephen Gammel. That’s what ultimately stuck in my head after all this time, because even know some of the more macabre and surreal art provided for the books are just incredible, and super creepy for children’s stories.

Most of the stories are rehashes of urban legends or well known lore, and going back and reading them as an adult really hit me just how simple they are, and keeping to the point. It was also pretty amusing how blunt they are. Essentially; ‘The couple always fought and fought. Then one day the wife had enough. She cut off his head, and that was that.’

It was also amusing to see how many were written with the idea of reading aloud to others, including clues as to how/what sort of voice you should use to do so, and when to jump out and scare the shit out of your friends, lol.

It was a nice nostalgia trip, for sure. I hope the movie keeps at least some of the creeps and charm the series does.

[La loca de los libros · Rating 3 out of 5]

¿Miedo? Ninguno. Las historias son muy cortas (salvos las del último libro, que personalmente son las que más me han gustado) y están catalogadas como juveniles así que a mi se me han quedado muy flojas. En éste caso me quedo con la película que tuvo algunas cosillas que me inquietaron mucho más. Lo he intercalado con otras lecturas porque es muy ligero y se lee en nada. Me han resultado interesantes los apuntes del final de cada libro (en éste volúmen están incluidos los tres libros) donde te aclara de donde viene cada historia dentro del folclore popular. Las historias que más me han gustado son las que hacen referencia a leyendas urbanas, es un tema que me encanta, porque algunas tienen algo de cierto. Por último, comentar que las ilustraciones son preciosas y le dan un toque al libro 😍 Es ideal para que lo lea un grupo de preadolescentes en Halloween a la luz de una linterna 👻 Muchas historias te indican que en alguna parte debes saltar sobre tu compañero diciendo "buuu!!" o "lo tienes tú!!!" (refiriéndose a alguna parte del cuerpo que anda buscando un espectro 😂)