Friday, October 23, 2015

Review of The Haunted House and Other Spooky Poems and Tales

The Book and the Record: The Haunted House and other Spooky Poems and Tales

The Haunted House and other Spooky Poems and Tales
When I was in elementary school, I purchased "The Haunted House and Other Spooky Poems and Tales".  One of the most exciting events during the school year was selecting our book purchases from the scholastic readers.  I remember pouring over those pamphlets, marking books I wanted and then having to go back and choose which ones I could buy that month.  I honestly don't remember my parents putting a limit on how much I could spend, but there must have been some type of limit because I clearly remember having to make those difficult choices.

My all time favorite selection was a book and record set entitled "The Haunted House and other Spooky Poems and Tales."  I spent hours reading the stories and poems in the book and when I really wanted to scare myself, I would listen to the vinyl record.

Oh, how I loved that book and record!



The Haunted House and Other Spooky Poems and Tales Book


Review Written by Sylvestermouse

scanned pages in The Haunted House and other Spooky Poems and Tales
This is such a great little book.  We still have the book and I used to read stories from it to my children when they were little.  I believe this book currently sits on my son's bookshelf.

"The Haunted House and Other Spooky Poems and Tales" book has all of the tell-tale signs of being read over and over again.  In places, the ink is smudged from use and some of the pages are loose from the spine, but they are all still there even though they are yellowed from age.  I have copied two of the pages in the photo on the right.

It seems a little odd that this little paperback book would be such a treasure to our family, but everyone loves it.  Some of the stories are eerie, actually quite scary, but some of the poems are hilarious.  I still have one of the silly poems memorized.

"Here lies the body of Anna, done to death by a banana.  It wasn't the fruit that laid her low, but the skin of the thing that made her go!"

I know it is down right ridiculous, but it always made me laugh.  I envisioned poor Anna in a long, black Victorian style dress with lace trim, all prim and proper, slipping on a banana peel.  In my mind, as she was falling, her face registered shock and indignation over the annoying banana peel on the floor just waiting to do her in.  I bet she cut the fruit up into a fruit salad earlier that day and the peel was just seeking revenge.


The Story Exactly as Written on the Pages Copied Above


The Flattered Flying Fish (The Shark and the Flying Fish)

 

pages from The Haunted House and other Spooky Poems and Tales Said the Shark to the Flying Fish over the phone:

"Will you join me tonight? I am dining alone.
Let me order a nice little dinner for two!
And come as you are, in your shimmering blue."

Said the Flying Fish: "Fancy remembering me,
And the dress I wore at the Porpoises' tea!"

"How could I forget?" said the Shark in his guile;
"I expect you at eight!" and rang off with a smile.

She powdered her nose; she has put on her things;
She is off with one flap of her luminous wings.

O little one, lovely, light-hearted and vain.
The Moon will not shine on your beauty again!

E. V. Rieu


The Haunted House and Other Spooky Tales Record

Sadly, I no longer have this album, but I remember the voice of the gentlemen reading the stories was enough to send me shrieking under my bed covers.

I found excerpts from the record on YouTube.  These stories still send chills down my spine. I have included them below. Listen to them for yourself and let me know what you think.


The Haunted House and Other Spooky Poems and Tales ~ 
Video I

Includes: "The Haunted House" Poem, "Winter Moon", "Sir Roderick's Song" Poem, "The Young Lady from Glitch", "Ruth & Johnny" Poem and more.
 It also includes "The Bat" and the tale, "The Velvet Ribbon", two of my personal favorites!



The Haunted House and Other Spooky Poems and Tales ~ 
Video II
Includes: "The Earl King" poem (this is the hardest for a parent to hear), "Dust" poem, and the story, "The Cradle that Rocked by Itself"



So What Do You Think? Does the Reader's Voice Alone Send Chills Down Your Spine?



Want Your Own Copy of the Book or Record? 

These records are hard to find. I sure wish I still had mine.

There is absolutely nothing better than the original vinyl records.
 

 






The Photos used in this article were all scanned from my original book 



Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”


9 comments:

  1. What a fun review of a vintage spooky book from Halloween Past! Enjoyed your quiz, although I only got ONE right...lol... and voted in the poll.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ah, Elf! I'll tell you a little secret. The trick to acing the quiz is to listen to the videos :) All the answers are actually there. Hey! I bet I know the question you got right! It was the cousin to the bat, right? roflol

      Delete
  2. Love it! Very spooky voice on the recording, cool poll, and awesome quiz! 'Tis the Halloween season for sure!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh this was fun! Took the poll and the quiz. I'm not sure which ones I got correct but it was 3 out of 6. I'm sure I knew the one about the man calling children (parents fear him the most!), and I think I got the one about who walks on the stairs. I listened to some of the videos but not all. FUN!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Fun posting and quiz...like Elf I only got one...but then I didn't listen to the videos LOL

    ReplyDelete
  5. I remember ordering from Scholastics too, and it was a highlight and couldn't wait to place those orders - a few of my boys were like this when they were younger as well, we placed orders for them too. I can't recall this book, but I wouldn't be surprised if I ordered it too!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I remember reading the "The Earl King" in German, and it is a tough one for a parent. It's even more haunting in the original. I am probably more freaked out by spooky stories than most people, and I simply won't see a spooky movie.

    ReplyDelete
  7. YES. The voice that reads the story is fantastic. Great review of The Haunted House!

    ReplyDelete

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