One Thousand and One Ghosts (Hesperus Classics) [Paperback]

Alexandre Dumas (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2004 | Series: Hesperus Classics

Written at the height of the 1848 revolutions, Alexandre Dumas’ One Thousand and One Ghosts is a macabre collection of supernatural tales, told with unrelenting detail and almost unbearable suspense. Paralyzed with fear, a man confesses to the murder of his wife, and rather than return to the scene of the crime, begs to be locked in prison. As the police probe further, they learn the ghastly truth—that in a fit of fury, the man decapitated his wife, only to see the detached head turn around and whisper to him. Gathering together to decide whether such “deathly activity” is, in fact, possible, a doctor, a priest, and the police in turn tell their own tales of ghostly activity. The result is one of the most remarkable collections of supernatural stories ever written. French novelist and playwright Alexandre Dumas was a key figure in Romantic theater; his most famous works are The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'It deserves to have been disinterred and brought back to haunt us, as one of this fine and varied series of translations.' - TLS 'Dumas's 1849 novella, never before translated into English, is an entertaining ... example of late-Gothic.' - The Times

Product Details

• Paperback: 152 pages
• Publisher: Hesperus Press (October 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1843910829
• ISBN-13: 978-1843910824
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #834,911 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Early Horror Fiction, June 22, 2005

By 

grasshopper4 (Arkansas) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: One Thousand and One Ghosts (Hesperus Classics) (Paperback)

Okay, so it's not quite Stephen King. Still, these stories are actually pretty scary. They are presented as if a group of people were telling ghost stories late in the evening. Some of them deal with the guillotine; one of these features a great use of irony, even if it is a bit predictable. All of the stories are masterfully macabre, and I found that they became increasingly more compelling as I continued to read them.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not what you are expecting., March 28, 2008

By 

Wendy Elizabeth Greve (North Carolina) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: One Thousand and One Ghosts (Hesperus Classics) (Paperback)

I really enjoyed this book. I have read a lot of Dumas, and I expected his good writing. However, I disagree with the product description that this book is macabre and full of suspense.

If you are looking for ghost tales, or something grisly, or for an adrenaline rush, I just don't think this book is for you--partially because it is not modern. If you get of those sentiments from Dumas' other work, you'll like this.

It's still classic Dumas; it's still very good. Begin the book with an open mind; finish it will zeal. While the content of the book is unusual--talk about chopped off heads and ghostly encounters--that has far more to do with the times (the book was only written 50 years after the reign of Madame Guillotine) and with speculation.

How long do people live, once they are considered dead? This book also has romantic elements.

::Spoiler warning:: One man's love, a hiding aristocrat in the French Revolution, is guillotined, something he does not know until he comes across her head (he's a physician trying to figure out how long people remain conscious after being guillotined).

One young woman is remarkably pale; two brothers loved her. The evil one dies and his ghost tries to kill her so that she can join him in the grave. The good brother (and the one she loves) saves her, but dies in the process. **Update: I named my two goldfish Edvige and Gregoriska after this tale. They died, in exactly the right order. Quite uncanny.**

You see, really, it is classic Dumas in an unconventional package.