Give Yourself a Fright

by Joan Aiken

Readers beware! Mischievous ghosts, ancient curses, and monstrous spirits inhabit these thirteen spine-tingling tales. Enter a world of fantasy where a blast of a whistle brings a boy from the past, where a ghostly awl perches night after night at the foot of your bed, and where a white seagull whispers the warning, "Listen." Each of these stories by Joan Aiken, a master of suspense, will chill and delight, lingering long after the book is closed.

Genres: Short Stories, Horror, Fiction, Young Adult

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Joan Aiken was a much loved English writer who received the MBE for services to Children's Literature. She was known as a writer of wild fantasy, Gothic novels and short stories.

She was born in Rye, East Sussex, into a family of writers, including her father, Conrad Aiken (who won a Pulitzer Prize for his poetry), and her sister, Jane Aiken Hodge. She worked for the United Nations Information Office during the second world war, and then as an editor and freelance on Argosy magazine before she started writing full time, mainly children's books and thrillers. For her books she received the Guardian Award (1969) and the Edgar Allan Poe Award (1972).

Her most popular series, the "Wolves Chronicles" which began with The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, was set in an elaborate alternate period of history in a Britain in which James II was never deposed in the Glorious Revolution,and so supporters of the House of Hanover continually plot to overthrow the Stuart Kings. These books also feature cockney urchin heroine Dido Twite and her adventures and travels all over the world.

Another series of children's books about Arabel and her raven Mortimer are illustrated by Quentin Blake, and have been shown on the BBC as Jackanory and drama series. Others including the much loved Necklace of Raindrops and award winning Kingdom Under the Sea are illustrated by Jan Pieńkowski.

Her many novels for adults include several that continue or complement novels by Jane Austen. These include Mansfield Revisited and Jane Fairfax.

Aiken was a lifelong fan of ghost stories. She set her adult supernatural novel The Haunting of Lamb House at Lamb House in Rye (now a National Trust property). This ghost story recounts in fictional form an alleged haunting experienced by two former residents of the house, Henry James and E. F. Benson, both of whom also wrote ghost stories. Aiken's father, Conrad Aiken, also authored a small number of notable ghost stories.

Reviews

[Kristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love Joan Aiken’s writing. Each one of her works gets better and better with each read. I loved her as a child and now, as an adult, I am so impressed with the deep wisdom of her writing. This collection has an overall theme of melancholy and death but there are moments of tenderness as well and justice. There are a few good scares too so that makes this a brilliant read. 👻

[Kidlitter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good collection to revisit around this spooky time of year but stay for Aiken's spare writing and her melancholy yet fearless grasp of the essential loneliness we all carry in ourselves, much darker than any spooks or goblins. But these stories are funny and wise too and there's comfort in that. Still, time to cuddle the cat!

[Sem · Rating 3 out of 5]

I need to take a break from Aiken. These collections are beginning to pall.

[Shreela Sen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixed!
All the stories are not equally good.
3.5