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Spooky Campfire Stories
Nothing goes better with a gooey s'more and a glowing campfire than a good ghost story. This collection of scary classics and frightening folktales will send shivers up your spine. These stories can be read aloud or easily retold; either way, your fellow campers may want to sleep with the light on. Spooky Campfire Stories is part of Falcon's Take Along series, books that are lightweight, portable entertainment for the entire family. Pick up one or the entire set for your next trip down the trail.
116 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
September 27, 2023
Edit 7/27/20: After googling some of these stories online for some further analysis/summary, I discovered another great thing about this book: it collects some very rare, hard-to-find stories that were originally published in Weird Tales, an acclaimed horror/fantasy magazine that's been around since the 1920s, and are no longer accessible to casual readers. These stories in this collection were from issues published in the 1930s and therefore yielded no result for an online or physical copy. Take advantage of the fact that they are included here, complete, clearly and cleanly printed! I love and appreciate that the editor took the time to collect stories from the very best-known in the genre as well as unknown authors who proved their skill by getting their work collected in the most prestigious of horror publications at some point, but never really gained fame/traction - and may not have even continued their career as authors! Giving this book back the 1 star I docked since it's such an awesome hidden gem! The quality of this collection is truly phenomenal.
Original Review, 7/22/20
This is a great little anthology of 12 stories that are all vaguely spooky/dark in some way, with a fantastic selection of authors. I couldn't resist the purchase when I saw so many authors I've read and loved in such a small, compact collection of stories: Edgar Allan Poe, Shirley Jackson, Ambrose Bierce, Jack London, and my personal favorite, Alvin Schwartz. Not to mention Rose Wilder Lane, daughter and co-writer/editor of Laura Ingalls Wilder of Little House on the Prairie fame.
But surprisingly, it was some of the other authors in the collection, who I had never read before, who provided my favorite stories: Ethel Helene Coen and Janice M. Del Negro, for example.
But enough about why I enjoyed this book - I'll explain why I'm docking a star:
Though marketed for all ages, and to families on camping trips, this collection doesn't actually seem to be that appropriate/accessible for young kids who want a scary story. Why? Because...
1. It's not actually scary. At all. I only found the "Faces at the Window" story and "One Chance" to have chilling moments. Obviously no one wants to traumatize very young kids, but children old enough to be camping and staying up for a scary story probably want something more along the lines of the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark series, which includes stories written for the purpose of being told aloud, with cues to shout/scream/etc. This leads me to the second reason for not thinking this is the best book for camping with kids:
2. Though there are great classics in here, they're too advanced for young kids. Take this sample paragraph from "To Build a Fire," for example:
Perhaps not boring to an adult reading this excellent short story for pleasure, but imagine reading those super long sentences to young kids!
And some deeper, philosophical passages will likely be lost as well despite being written beautifully:
(And don't get me started on "The Tell-Tale Heart," which was the bane of every student in my 6th grade class when we had to read it for school. I can't even count how many times I'd had to read it and I am so far-removed from being objective about it).
For anyone reading this book for pleasure, however, it's great that these stories are the unabridged originals. But keep in mind that only one of these stories was written and published in the 21st century - the vocabulary and writing will obviously be somewhat dated.
3. There's inconsistency in the theme, type, writing style, and length of the stories. This is great for someone who wants to pick up a diverse collection of slightly-dark stories, but it's not great for reading aloud while camping, especially if you're trying to read more than one as no two are very similar. Plus, only "The Wendigo" has anything to do with camping at all, though the man in "To Build a Fire" does pause during his journey to, well, build a fire. Thematically, it'll range from classic ghost stories to the bizarre.
TL;DR: A great collection of not-very-scary stories that is better suited to be in the library of an adult who enjoys classic anthologies (but wants to consume them in bite-sized stories) than to energetic young kids on a camping trip. Great literary quality, not suited to reading aloud.
My personal rating of the individual stories:
"The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe: ★★ - already read probably a dozen times in my life, but the abrupt ending never gets better.
"The Boarded Window" by Ambrose Bierce: ★★★★ - great twist ending, as characteristic of Bierce.
From "Faces at the Window" by Rose Wilder Lane: ★★★ - another twist ending, though awkwardly narrated.
"He Walked by Day" by Julius Long: ★★★★★ - lovely story, with likable characters
"The Wendigo" by Alvin Schwartz: ★★★★★ - by far the story best suited to a campfire reading in this collection
"The Severed Hand" by Janice M. Del Negro: ★★★★★ - riveting, original, and with a perfect ending.
"Knock, Knock, Who's There?" by J.J. Reneaux: ★★★ - a bit too unoriginal/predictable, and too much spoiled/explained in the notes before the story.
"Ma Yarwood's Wedding Ring" by Rita Cox: ★★★★ - simplistic, but probably great for younger audiences, though it has nothing to do with camping/the outdoors.
"Home" by Shirley Jackson: ★★★★ - interesting and well-fleshed out, but ending is abrupt and feels unresolved.
"Our Chance" by Ethel Helene Coen: ★★★★★ - my favorite story in this collection. chilling twist ending that is so memorable.
"The Fly" by Arthur Porges: ★★ - I was really confused the whole time I was reading it.
"To Build a Fire" by Jack London: ★★★★★ - A great short story that displays the best of Jack London's writing talent in a bite-sized entry that, of course, features a dog companion. The longest story in the collection by far (30 pages), and certainly one of the best.
My recommendations for reading aloud to kids while camping, if your heart is set on using this book for that purpose:
- The Wendigo
- Ma Yarwood's Wedding Ring
- The Severed Hand
- Knock, Knock, Who's There?
- He Walked by Day
Original Review, 7/22/20
This is a great little anthology of 12 stories that are all vaguely spooky/dark in some way, with a fantastic selection of authors. I couldn't resist the purchase when I saw so many authors I've read and loved in such a small, compact collection of stories: Edgar Allan Poe, Shirley Jackson, Ambrose Bierce, Jack London, and my personal favorite, Alvin Schwartz. Not to mention Rose Wilder Lane, daughter and co-writer/editor of Laura Ingalls Wilder of Little House on the Prairie fame.
But surprisingly, it was some of the other authors in the collection, who I had never read before, who provided my favorite stories: Ethel Helene Coen and Janice M. Del Negro, for example.
But enough about why I enjoyed this book - I'll explain why I'm docking a star:
Though marketed for all ages, and to families on camping trips, this collection doesn't actually seem to be that appropriate/accessible for young kids who want a scary story. Why? Because...
1. It's not actually scary. At all. I only found the "Faces at the Window" story and "One Chance" to have chilling moments. Obviously no one wants to traumatize very young kids, but children old enough to be camping and staying up for a scary story probably want something more along the lines of the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark series, which includes stories written for the purpose of being told aloud, with cues to shout/scream/etc. This leads me to the second reason for not thinking this is the best book for camping with kids:
2. Though there are great classics in here, they're too advanced for young kids. Take this sample paragraph from "To Build a Fire," for example:
The man flung a look back along the way he had come. The Yukon lay a mile wide and hidden under three feet of ice. On top of this ice were as many feet of snow. It was all pure white, rolling in gentle undulations where the ice hams of the freeze-up had formed. North and south, as far as his eye could see, it was unbroken white, save for a dark hairline that curved and twisted from around the spruce-covered island to the south, and that curved and twisted away into the north, where it disappeared behind another spruce-covered island. This dark hairline was the trail - the main trail - that led south five hundred miles to the Chilkoot Pass, Dyea, and salt water; and that led north seventy miles to Dawson, and still on to the north a thousand miles to Nulato, and finally to St. Michael, on Berin Sea, a thousand miles and half a thousand more.
Perhaps not boring to an adult reading this excellent short story for pleasure, but imagine reading those super long sentences to young kids!
And some deeper, philosophical passages will likely be lost as well despite being written beautifully:
It did not lead him to meditate upon his frailty as a creature of temperature, and upon man's frailty in general, able to only to live within certain narrow limits of heat and cold; and from there on it did not lead him to the conjectural field of immortality and man's place in the universe.
(And don't get me started on "The Tell-Tale Heart," which was the bane of every student in my 6th grade class when we had to read it for school. I can't even count how many times I'd had to read it and I am so far-removed from being objective about it).
For anyone reading this book for pleasure, however, it's great that these stories are the unabridged originals. But keep in mind that only one of these stories was written and published in the 21st century - the vocabulary and writing will obviously be somewhat dated.
3. There's inconsistency in the theme, type, writing style, and length of the stories. This is great for someone who wants to pick up a diverse collection of slightly-dark stories, but it's not great for reading aloud while camping, especially if you're trying to read more than one as no two are very similar. Plus, only "The Wendigo" has anything to do with camping at all, though the man in "To Build a Fire" does pause during his journey to, well, build a fire. Thematically, it'll range from classic ghost stories to the bizarre.
TL;DR: A great collection of not-very-scary stories that is better suited to be in the library of an adult who enjoys classic anthologies (but wants to consume them in bite-sized stories) than to energetic young kids on a camping trip. Great literary quality, not suited to reading aloud.
My personal rating of the individual stories:
"The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe: ★★ - already read probably a dozen times in my life, but the abrupt ending never gets better.
"The Boarded Window" by Ambrose Bierce: ★★★★ - great twist ending, as characteristic of Bierce.
From "Faces at the Window" by Rose Wilder Lane: ★★★ - another twist ending, though awkwardly narrated.
"He Walked by Day" by Julius Long: ★★★★★ - lovely story, with likable characters
"The Wendigo" by Alvin Schwartz: ★★★★★ - by far the story best suited to a campfire reading in this collection
"The Severed Hand" by Janice M. Del Negro: ★★★★★ - riveting, original, and with a perfect ending.
"Knock, Knock, Who's There?" by J.J. Reneaux: ★★★ - a bit too unoriginal/predictable, and too much spoiled/explained in the notes before the story.
"Ma Yarwood's Wedding Ring" by Rita Cox: ★★★★ - simplistic, but probably great for younger audiences, though it has nothing to do with camping/the outdoors.
"Home" by Shirley Jackson: ★★★★ - interesting and well-fleshed out, but ending is abrupt and feels unresolved.
"Our Chance" by Ethel Helene Coen: ★★★★★ - my favorite story in this collection. chilling twist ending that is so memorable.
"The Fly" by Arthur Porges: ★★ - I was really confused the whole time I was reading it.
"To Build a Fire" by Jack London: ★★★★★ - A great short story that displays the best of Jack London's writing talent in a bite-sized entry that, of course, features a dog companion. The longest story in the collection by far (30 pages), and certainly one of the best.
My recommendations for reading aloud to kids while camping, if your heart is set on using this book for that purpose:
- The Wendigo
- Ma Yarwood's Wedding Ring
- The Severed Hand
- Knock, Knock, Who's There?
- He Walked by Day
November 19, 2024
I found this little book at a secondhand shop, and was thrilled to see one of Edgar's stories inside. This is a fun, spooky collection of chilling stories to share with teens and adults alike. I'm grateful to have decided to read this in the day time and not at night. 😅😂
~Passing this book on to the next reader~
~Passing this book on to the next reader~
February 20, 2022
Picked up this gem of spooky stories while visiting Shenandoah National Park last fall. Some well-known classics are included, in addition to some tales I was unfamiliar. The longest of the tales is Jack London's To Build a Fire.
Obsessed with London while in upper elementary school, I devoured his White Fang, The Call of the Wild, and The Sea Wolf, in that order, multiple times, but I never came upon his short story To Build a Fire.
Further researching it, I learned that To Build a Fire has two different endings, one published in 1902 and the other published in 1908. The 1908 version is included in Spooky Campfire Stories, and it is a darker tale.
There is also a stark, but well-received, film adaptation of the 1908 version depicting the protagonist's perilous journey -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBB06... .
Obsessed with London while in upper elementary school, I devoured his White Fang, The Call of the Wild, and The Sea Wolf, in that order, multiple times, but I never came upon his short story To Build a Fire.
Further researching it, I learned that To Build a Fire has two different endings, one published in 1902 and the other published in 1908. The 1908 version is included in Spooky Campfire Stories, and it is a darker tale.
There is also a stark, but well-received, film adaptation of the 1908 version depicting the protagonist's perilous journey -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBB06... .
September 11, 2019
I love short stories. I enjoyed these spooky stories. I just love Shirley Jackson. Jack London's story was also really good. A fun read. I don't know that I would say these were for young readers though. But they are not over the top either.
December 19, 2018
A few stories were especially good: To Build a Fire by Jack London (such description!), Home by Shirley Jackson (love this kind of spooky tale), and The Severed Hand by Janice M. Del Negro were the standouts to me. Some of the others seemed like parts of stories as they had very abrupt endings. I don’t know that I’d actually read any of these stories around a campfire, but I’m happy to have read some of them to myself.
April 1, 2021
This was a fun short read for anyone looking for short spooky stories. I found this at a State park camp store and could not resist with stories by Edgar Allen Poe, Shirley Jackson and more I had never heard of. It was fun to read a few stories before bed and now I have some new writers I need to look into.
June 23, 2019
A bit uneven. If "The Wendigo" by Alvin Schwartz had been, instead, "The Wendigo" by Algernon Blackwood it would have been a much stronger collection. Also, while "To Build a Fire" by Jack London is a solid story, it is hardly spooky.
September 20, 2019
most compilations are not that good in my experience. this book was really good. liked at least 90% of the stories.
November 13, 2019
Some stories were good, others were okay. This was supposed to be a halloween read for me, got a little behind. I throughly enjoyed the book tho.
July 18, 2021
A very nice collection of short stories, some creepy, a couple very creepy. Nice enjoyable read.
May 18, 2024
Spooky stories but too wordy and complex to be campfire stories.
December 31, 2024
Read this to the kids while camping this summer. Some gun spooky stories that weren’t so spooky. Some were fun but some were so silly
September 26, 2025
many fun stories. perfect for heading into spooky season
April 25, 2015
Amy Kelley Hoitsma's "Spooky Campfire Stories, 2nd: Outdoor Myths and Tales for All Ages (Paperback)" is entertaining enough, though I did enjoy some of the stories more than others. My favorite was Janice M. Del Negro's "The Severed Hand". I hadn't heard or read it before and it was cool to have Mr. Fox get his (I guess there are advantages to having seven brothers)
I didn't really care for Ambrose Bierce's "The Boarded Window" or Rose Wilder Lane's "Faces at the Window" because I thought them to be rather lame and uninteresting.
Overall, though, I do like short stories and this book did provide some entertainment for a couple days, so I can't argue. I would buy more volumes if they came out in the future.
I didn't really care for Ambrose Bierce's "The Boarded Window" or Rose Wilder Lane's "Faces at the Window" because I thought them to be rather lame and uninteresting.
Overall, though, I do like short stories and this book did provide some entertainment for a couple days, so I can't argue. I would buy more volumes if they came out in the future.
October 14, 2010
I have serious doubts about scary stories and spooky stories. This is a book that I WOULD put out on the shelves of my fifth grade classroom, but seriously, nothing in it scared me. Maybe I should have read it next to a fire. She has two other books in this "A Take Along Book" series about funny trail tales and nature writers that are much better. I'm way too realistic to get caught up in stories like these.
July 24, 2020
YUS With help from the What's The Name Of That Book Group I finally found this!!!
This was a pretty good book! I definitely would say that the Wendigo story was my favorite. Not all of the stories were all that scary but I loved the ones that were. :D :D :D
This was a pretty good book! I definitely would say that the Wendigo story was my favorite. Not all of the stories were all that scary but I loved the ones that were. :D :D :D
October 2, 2013
Of course, Edgar Allen Poe's "Tell-Tale Heart" was the best one.
February 23, 2014
Read this one with the kids.
December 14, 2025
The short stories were all really good! I enjoyed each of them, but none stood out to me.
July 7, 2017
Great little stories to get you in the Halloween mood.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews