Shades of Darkness: More of the Ghostly Best Stories [Hardcover]

Robert Westall (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1994

A companion volume to Demons and Shadows, this collection of eleven stories of the unexplained includes the tale of a nosy schoolgirl who helps a desperate ghost right a wrong and that of an antique camera that holds the clue to an old crime.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up-Another fine collection of short stories by the late British author. Westall's tales are spooky and eerie, rather than downright scary. He creates likable characters and effectively sets them in slightly supernatural situations. "The Haunting of Chas McGill," for example, is a gem of a tale, perfectly plotted. During the London blitz in 1939, a boy discovers that a deserting British soldier (or perhaps his ghost) is hiding out in the old school into which he has moved. He comes up with a way to save the soldier, but in a delicious twist, his scheme has a surprising effect on his own family. Most of the stories are equally satisfying. Five of them feature adult characters exclusively. They are excellent, but seem slightly out of place, especially since Westall created such memorable children. In stories like "Fifty-Fafty" and "The Red House Clock," the thoughts and feelings of the boys who narrate are fascinating. When supernatural elements subtly appear towards the end of these stories, they have a significant impact because readers are already so involved with the lives of the characters. Three of the eleven stories also appear in The Call and other Stories (Viking, 1993); one has not been previously published; some are from out-of-print collections. A treat for horror fans as well as for those who appreciate well-told short stories.
Steven Engelfried, West Lynn Library, OR
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 7-12. A companion to Demons and Shadows , this offers a varied selection of 11 eerie tales (10 of them previously anthologized) in which ordinary people stumble over the boundaries of the comprehensible and onto a shifting landscape of desperate ghosts, vengefully possessive spirit cats, and benign vampires. From the gentle and timely haunting of a young man by his grandfather's ghost in "The Cat, Spartan" to the grim, poetic justice wreaked on a greedy neighbor in "The Red House Clock," the finely crafted, strongly British flavored stories resonate with the spine-tingling drama for which the late Westall is known. About half of the tales feature adult protagonists, and the stories are probably too subtle for readers who prefer the guts and gore variety of supernatural fiction. Still, these are genuinely haunting and insightful tales that deserve a place in YA collections. Karen Harvey

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 310 pages
• Publisher: Farrar Straus & Giroux (J); 1st edition (April 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374367582
• ISBN-13: 978-0374367589
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #592,592 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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