Zombie: Stories of the Walking Dead

by Peter Haining (Editor)

Contents

Dead Men Working in the Cane Fields – W.B. Seabrook
Salt is Not for Slaves – G.W. Hutter
The Country of the Comers-Back – Lafcadio Hearn
Jumbee – Henry S. Whitehead
White Zombie – Vivian Meik
I Walked with a Zombie – Inez Wallace
American Zombie – Dr. Gordon Leigh Bromley
While Zombies Walked – Thorp McClusky
The House in the Magnolias – August Derleth
The Zombie of Alto Parana – W. Stanley Moss
Ballet Negre – Charles Birkin
The Hollow Man – Thomas Burke

Genres: Horror, Zombies

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 10, 1985

About the author

Peter Alexander Haining was an English journalist, author and anthologist who lived and worked in Suffolk. Born in Enfield, Middlesex, he began his career as a reporter in Essex and then moved to London where he worked on a trade magazine before joining the publishing house of New English Library.

Haining achieved the position of Editorial Director before becoming a full time writer in the early Seventies. He edited a large number of anthologies, predominantly of horror and fantasy short stories, wrote non-fiction books on a variety of topics from the Channel Tunnel to Sweeney Todd and also used the pen names "Ric Alexander" and "Richard Peyton" on a number of crime story anthologies. In the Seventies he wrote three novels, including The Hero (1973), which was optioned for filming.

In two controversial books, Haining argued that Sweeney Todd was a real historical figure who committed his crimes around 1800, was tried in December 1801, and was hanged in January 1802. However, other researchers who have tried to verify his citations find nothing in these sources to back Haining's claims. A check of the website Old Bailey at for "Associated Records 1674-1834" for an alleged trial in December 1801 and hanging of Sweeney Todd for January 1802 show no reference; in fact the only murder trial for this period is that of a Governor/Lt Col. Joseph Wall who was hanged 28 January 1802 for killing a Benjamin Armstrong 10 July 1782 in "Goree" Africa and the discharge of a Humphrey White in January 1802. Strong reservations have also been expressed regarding the reliability of another of Haining's influential non-fiction works, The Legend and Bizarre Crimes of Spring Heeled Jack.
He wrote several reference books on Doctor Who, including the 20th anniversary special Doctor Who: A Celebration Two Decades Through Time and Space (1983), and also wrote the definitive study of Sherlock Holmes on the screen, The Television Sherlock Holmes (1991) and several other television tie-ins featuring famous literary characters, including Maigret, Poirot and James Bond. Peter Haining's most recent project was a series of World War Two stories based on extensive research and personal interviews: The Jail That Went To Sea (2003), The Mystery of Rommel's Gold (2004), Where The Eagle Landed (2004), The Chianti Raiders (2005) and The Banzai Hunters (2007).

He won the British Fantasy Awards Karl Edward Wagner Award in 2001.

Reviews

[Dreadlocksmile · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter Haining, ed., Zombie - First published back in 1985 by Traget Books, the collection of short stories edited by Peter Haining entitled “Zombie” was one of the first of its kind to publish such a collection of stories about this type of supernatural being. We are indeed familiar with the many stories of vampires, mummies and werewolves, but a compilation of shorts of the walking dead is far less common.

The short stories included in the book are as follows:
1. Dead Men Working In The Cane Fields – W.B. Seabrook
2. Salt Is Not For Slaves – G.W. Hutter
3. The Country Of The Comers-Back – Lafcadio Hearn
4. Jumbee – Henry S. Whitehead
5. White Zombie – Vivian Meik
6. I Walked With A Zombie – Inez Wallace
7. American Zombie – Dr. Gordon Leigh Bromley
8. While Zombies Walked – Thorp McClusky
9. The House In The Magnolias – August Derleth
10. The Zombie Of Alto Parana – W. Stanley Moss
11. Ballet Negre – Charles Birkin
12. The Hollow Man – Thomas Burke

The book kicks off with W.B. Seabrook’s “Dead Men Working In The Cane Fields” (1929) which I believe was one of the earliest stories to be written about our dear friend, the zombie. The short became hugely popular, enough so as to provide the inspiration to the very first zombie movie, “White Zombie” made back in 1932. Seabrook (1886-1945) scoured the earth in search of facts and firsthand information regarding the supernatural and the occult. Indeed, it was his report of these ‘dead men working in the cane fields’ that first caught the eye of the Hollywood producer Victor Halperin. The short story remains to this day a chilling vision of black magic and the powers of the occult.

The next short is Garnett Weston’s “Salt Is Not For Slaves” which was first published in the magazine “Ghost Stories” back in August 1931. Weston (1894-1948) took up the pen-name G.W. Hutter for the piece (Hutter was his wife’s maiden name) and penned a story around the haunting message of feeding zombie workers salt, thus waking them from their zombie state and sending them back to their graves. On the strength of the short, Weston was selected to become the scriptwriter for the previously mentioned film “White Zombie” by Halperin himself.

The third short in the book is Lafcadio Hearn’s “The Country Of The Comers-Back” more commonly known as “Le Pays De Revenants.” First published as an essay in “Harper’s Magazine” way back in 1889, the piece depicts a particularly interesting description of a zombie child and a very bewitching zombie woman. Hearn (1850-1904) became interested in the supernatural zombie whilst on the island of Martinique between the years of 1887-1889, where he heard of their presence from the local people.

Next we come to the short story “Jumbee” by Henry S. Whitehead (1882-1932). Whitehead apparently came face to face with the practices of voodoo between 1921-1929, when he acted as Archdeacon to the Virgin Islands in the West Indies. Here his inspiration for the chilling zombie tale “Jumbee” was collected. The story is simple in its nature but holds a morbid undertone that comes forth at its conclusion, creating this altogether fascinating piece of literature.

Vivian Meik’s tale of the macabre “White Zombie” was perhaps the first writer to actually take the zombie origins back to the ancestral home in Africa. First published in 1933, Meik (1895-1959) gained his inspiration for the short whilst travelling extensively in Asia and Africa, during which he encountered a whole host of strange and bizarre sights. Meik deliberately named the short after the Bela Lugosi film “White Zombie” due to his fascination and the enjoyment he gained from it. The story is not the same as that of the film, or indeed a reworking of the film's original tale, W.B. Seabrook’s “Dead Men Working In The Cane Fields,” but is just as unique and outstanding.

Next we come to the American journalist Inez Wallace’s newspaper article “I Walked With A Zombie.” Wallace (1893-1947) worked along the lines of the much admired “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte to create the mysterious drama about a young nurse who is retained by a strange, wealthy West Indies planter to look after his sick wife. The tale weaves a gripping plot that enfolds in a climatic and tense manner leaving you gasping for breath.

The seventh short in the book is Dr. Gordon Leigh Bromley’s “American Zombie.” First published as a magazine article, the tale is one of a horrific reminder of the occult powers. The short by Bromley (1900-1973) inspired the talented writer-director Val Lewton to create another film about zombies in 1945 entitled “Isle Of The Dead” starring Boris Karloff.

Next we come to the 1939 tale by Rhorp McClusky “While Zombies Walked” which was a contribution to the legendary pulp magazine “Weird Tales”. The story is based around a gang of the walking undead who are employed to work the cotton fields of the South. The story was so well-received that it appeared as the lead story for the issue of September 1939.

The ninth tale takes the form of the short “The House In The Magnolias” by August Derleth (1909-1971). The story originally appeared in the publication “Strange Tales” in July of 1932. Derleth’s tale is as macabre as they come, with a dramatic and suspense-filled use of description. Apart from his fame as a writer of such horror stories, Derleth was also the man who founded the publishing business of Arkham House, which gave first book publication to such successful and famous writers of supernatural and fantasy fiction as H.P. Lovecraft, Robert Bloch and Ray Bradbury.

Next comes W. Stanley Moss’s tale “The Zombie Of Alto Parana” which saw its first publication in 1952. The story once again takes us to the heart of the South American jungle where strange happenings take place. The story dwells on the edge of the character's sanity, leaving open an underlying sense of unease and the unpredictable. The tale is gripping from the start, dragging you into this atmospheric and dark story.

Next is the short story “Ballet Negre” by the English horror story writer Charles Birkin. This dark and twisted story of a strange dance company from Haiti who come to visit Britain shows an inventive and original take on the supernatural stories of the zombie. The strange tale builds to a climax that ends with such a brutal conclusion, bringing a whole new angle and idea towards the creation of the zombie.

Finally we come to the last short in the book, Thomas Burke’s short “The Hollow Man.” Burke (1866-1945) sees a new perspective on the idea of the zombie, creating the undead being as a lost soul who just wants to return to sleep again after being disturbed by the ‘Leopard Men’. The tale casts a dark and haunting angle on the subject, showing how the zombie can be made into such a diverse source of subject matter.

All in all, the 224-page collection of zombie short stories brings together some otherwise difficult to find, yet daring and important pieces of horror literature history. The stories deliver a wide range of styles and angles on the zombie, showing the changing fashion in horror stories throughout the years. The book includes an interesting introduction by the editor, Peter Haining who is obviously very passionate about the subject matter.

[Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a neat little horror anthology from editor Peter Haining. The zombie stories found herein are typically of the old fashioned voodoo/Caribbean variety rather than the modern-day flesh-eating movie zombies that must have been all the rage when this book first came out. I personally find them all the more interesting considering literary 'modern zombies' are ten a penny these days.

W.B. Seabrook's DEAD MEN WORKING IN THE CANE FIELDS is a straightforward eyewitness account from Haiti of some very strange goings-on. It's factual, as well, which adds a frisson of excitement to the proceedings. G.W. Hutter's SALT IS NOT FOR SLAVES is about a slave revolt that uncovers a terrible secret. It was written by the guy who wrote the Bela Lugosi film WHITE ZOMBIE and is also written in a factual style that makes it atmospheric and unusually frightening. Lafcadio Hearn's THE COUNTRY OF THE COMERS-BACK is another true-life piece of writing, chronicling West Indian stories and legends. It's rich in atmosphere and tribal belief.

Henry S. Whitehead is one of my favourite authors and thus JUMBEE is a favourite of this collection. It involves not just zombies but ghosts and a werewolf to boot, shedding light on many local beliefs along the way. Classic material. Vivian Meik's WHITE ZOMBIE is about a widow who runs a plantation with a terrible secret, one you can easily guess given this anthology's theme. Meik was a real-life adventurer and the African adventures recounted here feel authentic as a result. Inez Wallace's I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE contains three factual accounts of the dead that walk and is pretty straightforward.

The 'true' stories continue in AMERICAN ZOMBIE, by Dr Gordon Leigh Bromley. This time the action is transposed to Harlem and the everyday setting makes it feel more frightening in a way. WHILE ZOMBIES WALKED is by Thorp McClusky, one of the foremost Weird Tales authors, and sees the narrator heading to the West Indies to discover what's happened to his girlfriend. It's a wonderful slice of pulp fiction, featuring every story element you could wish for, a real gem. THE HOUSE IN THE MAGNOLIAS sees August Derleth doing a Southern gothic before he became immersed in the Cthulhu Mythos, and his tale is romantic and chilly and well recommended.

W. Stanley Moss contributes THE ZOMBIE OF ALTO PARANA sees sinister forces at work in the Brazilian jungle when an Englishman's plan to discover a silver mine goes awry. It's a psychological piece similar to THE MAN WHO LIKED DICKENS by Evelyn Waugh, and no less chilling. BALLET NEGRE sees Charles Birkin's protagonist a journalist who is desperate to interview two Haitian dancers. It's a detective story in format, with an expectedly gory pay-off. The final story here is Thomas Burke's THE HOLLOW MAN, about a London restaurant owner visited by an old friend he killed over a decade previously. It's a subtle chiller and so different to all the rest that it's quite spellbinding, and the writing is first-rate.

[Johnny · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars is a very high rating but you can't judge a book by its title or its cover. All of these short terror stories were written so well and with such a brooding atmosphere. They were written by people who loved writing so much that they could turn a tale of zombies into a very well written story.
Most of the stories are about people being brought back from the dead or being found to still be working in the fields after death and then forced to return to their graves after eating salt.
The one I liked best was While Zombies Walked. Which was more a story about the man who learns of a way to bring people back from the dead and control them with a voodoo doll and the man who interferes in his work while coming to visit his girlfriend who won't return his calls. It reminds me of the villians in some of Dennis Wheatley's books.
I enjoyed this book and it makes me want to read more about voodoo

[Mark H · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four stars, despite the cover that creeps me out, and despite the repetitive nature of these stories, all by different writers over several decades. Because the folklore stems from Haiti, most of the writers refer to similar sets of zombie ‘rules’. But while several stories have similar punchlines, this collection is valuable for bringing together the source material for several famous zombie movies. Mostly short stories, but also some magazine articles. Haining’s preface explains the connections and readons for each story’s inclusion.
Informative, creepy and rare!