The Haunted House: A Collection of Original Stories

by Jane Yolen, Martin H. Greenberg, Doron Ben-Ami (Illustrator)

Come in . . . if you dare. . . . Every kid who has ever lived in the house at 66 Brown's End agrees that it is haunted; but no one agrees on the kind of haunting that goes on there. Lyssa hears a strange crying in the night coming from the basement in Mary K. Whittington's "Somewhere a Puppy Cries." In Bruce Coville's "Biscuits of Glory," Benji Perkins encounters a spirit in the kitchen. Jason is taunted by a mischievous bathroom ghost in "And the Light Flickered" by Barbara Diamond Goldin. While the spooks in these seven mysterious tales may lurk in different rooms, the fear is always the same. Grown-up always make excused, but the children known the haunting is real. Jane Yolen and Martin H. Greenberg, editor of Things That Go Bumb In The Night, Vampires, and Werewolves, have assembled another creepy collection of stories that will have readers wondering just what that strange noise in the next room really was.

96 pages, Library Binding

First published September 1, 1995

About the author

Jane Yolen is a novelist, poet, fantasist, journalist, songwriter, storyteller, folklorist, and children’s book author who has written more than three hundred books. Her accolades include the Caldecott Medal, two Nebula Awards, the World Fantasy Award, three Mythopoeic Awards, the Kerlan Award, two Christopher Awards, and six honorary doctorate degrees from colleges and universities in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Born and raised in New York City, the mother of three and the grandmother of six, Yolen lives in Massachusetts and St. Andrews, Scotland.

Reviews

[Ixchel · Rating 5 out of 5]

READ BUT BEWARE YOU CHOOSE A SCARE!!!! This story is about somethings that happen after each family moves out of the house that is actually haunted. My favorite story that kind of gave me the chills was the first one when the girl goes in the celler cause she hears noises and its actually a puppy but she didn't know that she let out a ghost into the living room. Even though there are many stories some will chill your spine but others won't. The one that didn't really scare it actually made me think a bit was The Paper Doll Ghost. It was kind of sad how the girl died and her aunt made her have a really depressing time waiting to get three-dimetional and go with her parents. If you read this book it will be even more spooky in the night.

[Esmeralda Vela · Rating 5 out of 5]

In my opinion The Haunted House is the most awesome book.Of all the books I read I think this is the book I love the most.It has lots of scary stories in one book.Some of the stories are also weird.If you love weird and scary books this book is right for you.I got one of my friends in love with this book so I hope I get you in love with this book.

[Steph · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the idea of the book with different rooms being haunted by different ghosts. But the stories were mediocre and not scary at all.

[Susan Forsgren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a one that will hold even the student who says "I don't like to Read".

[Cheryl A. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe ok for younger children, but mostly pretty lame. Not memorable, no reread value, nothing for a family to share together.

[Ainsley Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it!

[Dani · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a collection of short stories by many different authors. They are cute little stories recommended for the ages of 7 to 10 year olds. My favorite story out of the book was "The gourmet ghost" by Janet E. Gill. This story was about a brother and sister who has a ghost in their dining room who eats everything because the ghost is so hungry. It has the cutest ending!! The brother watched it eats the neighbor's dog and when his bully came over, he was hoping the ghost who eats everything, would eat him too. The ghost found the best tasting thing in the world, which was the dog!! I would recommend this book to your children who love to read.

[TW Mystery Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read the introduction called "Come in if you dare..." Then read any of the stories, each about 12 pages in length. The best stories are "Somewhere a Puppy Cries", about a girl who finds the ghost of a puppy in the creepy cellar. The twist at the end is that she welcomes the ghost puppy into her bed as a new pet. "The Gourmet Ghost" is about a insatiable hungry ghost that eats the child's pancakes, plate, a neighbor's dog, and a chandelier. There is great suspense at the end when the reader thinks the ghost might eat the neighborhood bully. In "The Train Room" a ghost inside a wooden toy train conductor teaches a naughty boy a lesson against crashing the trains.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sufficiently scary for middle grade readers, without being too terrifying.

[Frannie Burd · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book of ghost stories for kids. None were scary and most were just strange.

[Natalie Henriquez]

This book was good.But, the thing that bothered me was at the end of the chapter the ghost was in a different room.For some reason it really bothers me.The first chapter creeped me out a little.The second one didn't at all.