Top Ten Tuesday:
Halloween/Scary Stories I Want to Read/Reread
I confess I'm not much of a horror genre reader. But this time of the year does make me think I should familiarize myself with a few of the best horror writers and their short stories.
1. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James (1898) I'm actually reading this novella right now. It begins with a group of people sitting around the fire telling ghost stories.
2. The Monkey's Paw by W.W. Jacobs (1902) -- A cautionary tale about human desire and unintended consequences.
3. A Ghost Story by Mark Twain (1870) -- A twist on the usual ghost story proving Twain is the master of wit and satire.
4. A Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe (1843) -- A narrator tries to convince his reader of his sanity by describing a murder he committed. I read this in junior high, a lot of years ago.
5. The Lottery by Shirley Jackson (1948) -- I read this one in a graphic novel several years ago. It's about a town which hosts a lottery to ensure a good harvest. But the winner is the loser.
6. Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? by Joyce Carol Oates (1966) -- Based on a true story of three murders committed by Charles Schmid.
7. Survivor Type by Stephen King (1982) -- A shipwrecked surgeon resorts to self-cannibalism.
8. The Sound of Thunder by Ray Bradbury (1952) -- A Sci-Fi story with time travel and a plot twist. It sounds like a good one for our age of politics right now.
9. Lamb to the Slaughter by Roald Dahl (1954) -- A wife murders her husband and then serves his leg to the detectives as a leg of mutton.
10. The Canterville Ghost by Oscar Wilde (1887) -- A ghost and an American family. This story, which I've read before, is quite humorous.
Have you read any of these? What did you think of it? Can you recommend other Halloween/scary stories you enjoy?
No comments:
Post a Comment
I look forward to your comments and interactions! Join in the conversation.