The Penguin Book of Ghosts: Prepare to be haunted by England's most unforgettable ghosts [Hardcover]

Jennifer Westwood (Author), Jacqueline Simpson (Author)

Book Description

Series: Penguin Book Of... | Publication Date: March 24, 2010

Shiver at the story of the malevolent apparition of 50 Berkeley Square no one has survived seeing. Listen for the tapping cane, when Jeremy Bentham's mummified body walks through the corridors of University College. Watch out for the Roman centurion who still patrols the causeway linking Mersea Island to Essex. Shudder at the ghosts of kings and queens that keep returning to their old home at Windsor. Beware the black dog of Shap Fell: a sighting presages fatal accidents.England's history echoes with stories of unquiet spirits and hauntings, of headless highwaymen and grey ladies, of premonitions of death and indelible blood-stains. Here, county by county and place by place, Jennifer Westwood and Jacqueline Simpson gather together all the most interesting supernatural tales from The Lore of the Land. From a ghostly army marching across Cumbria to landlords' appeals against rates (because no one will rent their haunted house), from the phantom hitchhiker of the Blackwall Tunnel to Francis Drake's drum summoning him when England is in danger, these fascinating and unforgettable stories are part of our legendary past - and present.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jennifer Westwood's books include Albion: A Guide to Legendary Britain (1985), Gothick Cornwall (1992), Lost Atlantis (1997) and On Pilgrimage (2003). Dr Jacqueline Simpson's books include Icelandic Folktales and Legends (1971, 2004), The Folklore of the Welsh Border (1976, 2004), British Dragons (1980, 2000), and, with Steve Roud, A Dictionary of English Folklore (2000). She lives in West Sussex.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 480 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Global (March 24, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 184614101X
• ISBN-13: 978-1846141010
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5.4 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,111,337 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Penguin's Author Fails to Haunt a Reader, April 28, 2010

By 

Allen Wayner "MovieFun Al" (Rockville, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Penguin Book of Ghosts: Prepare to be haunted by England's most unforgettable ghosts (Hardcover)

I did not read very far into the Penguin Book of Ghosts, before I stopt - ready to donate it away! How can such a notable English literary series as Penguin accept such bland telling of these exciting haunted castles and their ghosts?? The author pads his style with boring rambles. I'm going to read all of my HAUNTED CASTLES OF THE WORLD, by Charles A. Coulombe, thru to the end, because he tells his stories directly and concisely, to let the reader's imagination roam.