Well folks it’s almost October already, and that can only mean one thing around here at RobAroundBooks, it’s time for another rendition of my 31 Shots of Shock reading project; a project where I read one horror-themed short story every day throughout the month of October, during the lead up to Halloween.
Now, you may remember around about this time last year I put out a call for your suggestions on which horror-themed short stories I should read. Well, because I discovered some brilliant stories through you wonderful people I thought I’d be a bit cheeky and repeat the request, hoping that you will once again point me in the direction of some remarkable horror-themed short stories. So I ask you to drop me your suggestions below on ‘terror tales’ that I can’t afford to miss out on reading.. It doesn’t matter if your suggestions are for contemporary tales or classics, provided they’re reasonably easily sourced, and that I haven’t read them already. To give you some idea of what I have read following is a rundown on the stories that I’ve worked my way through over the past two years, in relation to this project (the links lead to my review of each story):
31 Shots of Shock 2009
- The Wrong Grave by Kelly Link
- The Wizards of ‘Perfil by Kelly Link
- Magic for Beginners by Kelly Link
- The Faery Handbag by Kelly Link
- The Specialist’s Hat by Kelly Link
- Monster by Kelly Link
- The Surfer by Kelly Link
- The Constable of Abal by Kelly Link
- Pretty Monsters by Kelly Link
- A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O’Connor
- The Buried Alive by John Galt
- The Spectre-Smitten by Samuel Warren
- The Man in the Bell by William Maginn
- The Haunted Doll’s House by M.R. James
- The Red Room by H. G. Wells
- An Eddy on the Floor by Bernard Capes
- At the End of the Passage by Rudyard Kipling
- The Tomb of Sarah by F. G. Loring
- Don’t Look Now by Daphne Du Maurier
- The Kit Bag by Algernon Blackwood
- The Cafe of Terror by E. Phillips Oppenheim
- The Dunwich Horror by H. P. Lovecraft
- On the Leads by S. Baring-Goulds
- A Terribly Strange Bed by Wilkie Collins
- Closing Time by Neil Gaiman
- The Old Nurse’s Story by Elizabeth Gaskell
- Midnight Express by Alfred Noyes
- An Account of Some Strange Disturbances in Aungier Street by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
- The Upper Berth by F. Marion Crawford
- The Haunted and the Haunters by Edward Bulwer-Lytton
- The Fountain House by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya
31 Shots of Shock 2008
- Telling Winter Stories by Charles Dickens
- Sredni Vashtar by Saki
- Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving
- The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- The Monkey’s Paw by W.W. Jacobs
- The Whisperers by Algernon Blackwood
- The Silver Mirror by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
- The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe
- The Mystery of My Grandmother’s Hair Sofa by John Kendrick Bangs
- Oh, Whistle, and I’ll Come to You, My Lad by M. R. James
- The Secret of Macarger’s Gulch by Ambrose Bierce
- Protection by Valery Brussof
- The Curse of the Fires and of the Shadows by W. B. Yeats
- The Ebony Frame by E. Nesbit
- The Striding-Place by Gertrude Atherton
- Earl Beardie’s Game At Cards by Anonymous
- The Dead Woman’s Photograph by Anonymous
- A School Story by M. R. James
- In Kropsberg Keep by Ralf A. Cram
- In the Confessional by Amelia B. Edwards
- Ghosts that Have Haunted Me by John Kendrick Bangs
- A Ghost Story by Mark Twain
- Glámr by Sabine Baring-Gould
- The Dampmere Mystery by John Kendrick Bangs
- An Inhabitant of Carcosa by Ambrose Bierce
- The Ghost in All the Rooms by Daniel Defoe
- The Shadow of a Midnight by Maurice Baring
- The Mystery of the Semi-Detached by E. Nesbit
- How He Left the Hotel by Louisa Baldwin
- The Bully of Brocas Court by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
- The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe
So that’s all of the horror-themed stories I’ve read (a sprawling list I know, but if nothing else it offers you some suggestions for your own reading), so if you have any additional story suggestions other than the ones listed then I’d love to hear about them.
I should also say that although I’ve created this reading project mainly for myself, I’m happy for anyone to join me. Last year Kristen over at We Be Reading joined me part of the way (we both read through Kelly Link’s Pretty Monsters (Canongate Books) and it was a lot of fun. So if you want to jump on board – either reading the same stories or picking your own – then I’ll be more than welcoming.
Oh and one more thing before I go. Allow me pay credit to the wonderful reader who inspired this reading challenge in the first place – one young lady who goes by the name Memory, who many of you will know as being the beautiful mind behind the Stella Matutina book blog. It was her idea in the first place to read a horror-themed short story every day through October in tribute to Halloween, so everything you see here is originally inspired by her.
About Rob
Here are a couple for you, Rob:
‘The Girl I Left Behind Me’ by Muriel Spark (available in ‘The Ghost Stories of Muriel Spark’ published by New Directions)
‘A Little Place off the Edgware Road’ by Graham Greene
Hope they chill you to your core!
says:
Hi Phil,
Nice of you to stop by and thank you for the suggestions. I have the Greene story so that’s good, and I’ll have a hunt for the Sparks. Much appreciated!
Warmest
Rob
I can’t believe it is already that time of the year:)
I am going to participate too!
says:
This is brilliant news Veens. I left a comment over at your place
Warmest
Rob
Hi Rob,
If you haven’t already, you simply must read some Robert Aickman. Superb English writer of uncanny, ghostly and “strange” stories (his own preferred term) in the mid-20th cent. Also (in an unrelated career) an expert on canals and waterways. His stories are eccentric and very unsettling. Try his “The Visiting Star”, “The Unsettled Dust” or anything you can get hold of.
says:
An interesting suggestion Sarah. I’ll look him out!
Thank you for taking the time to suggest
Warmest regards
Rob
Ha. I was just about to suggest “A Little Place off the Edgware Road” and I’ve been beaten to it! How about “Whores” by Christopher Priest? Also “Exotic Pleasures” by Peter Carey, perhaps?
says:
So kind of you to drop by Jonathan. Well, given that’s the second rec I’ve had for the Greene story I can’t afford not to read it. I’ll see if I can locate the other two. Thank you!
Warmest regards
Rob
Edith Wharton wrote several ghost stories. A good one would be “The Lady’s Maid’s Bell”. Have fun with your project this month!
says:
Thanks for taking the time to respond Valerie (I know I can always count on you). I’ll look that story out and add it if I can. Thank you.
Warmest
Rob
Hi! Thanks for the idea…my book club is joining. We’re reading 30 stories in 30 days by David Wellington thru Daily Lit email installments.
says:
Hi Kat,
You’ve really made my day telling me this. I wish you every success and hope you have a really good time with the reading. As a tribute to you and your book club, what I’ll do is subscribe to Daily Lit series myself (Wellington’s collection looks to be great), and I’ll add a couple of the stories to my own reading schedule for this reading project.
Thanks
Rob
Hi Rob,
Here’s some ‘light’ reading for the challenge. Gory tales for children but perfect for the 31 shots of shocks. Goodluck with it.
http://www.penguinclassics.co.uk/nf/…/0,,9780140455175,00.html
The fabled monarch Vikramaditya is considered to be a model of kingly virtues, and his reign a golden age of peace and prosperity. Narrated by the thirty-two statuettes of nymphs supporting his magic throne, the Tales describe his exploits and extol his extraordinary courage, compassion and kindness. Against an exotic setting of adventures and miracles, they depict such fantastical elements as fights with ogres, occult rituals and travels to other worlds, as well as very human situations of betrayal and rivalry. Dating from the late thirteenth or early fourteenth century, these colourful Tales are an intriguing mix of marvellous happenings, proverbial wisdom and sage precepts that entertain even as they instruct.