Ghosts Vampires And Werewolves : Eerie Tales from Transylvania - Hardcover

Mihai I. Spariosu; Dezso Benedek

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0531068609 ISBN 13: 9780531068601

Publisher: Scholastic Inc., 1994

Synopsis

Includes sixteen tales from Transylvanian folklore, arranged in three sections: Ghosts, Vampires, and Werewolves; Haunted Treasures; and Eerie Fairy Tales.

About this title

From School Library Journal

Grade 4 Up-This gruesomely satisfying anthology confirms Transylvania's reputation as a breeding ground for ghastly goings-on. In the introduction, the authors, native Transylvanians, provide a background sketch of the area and insight into the psyche of its people, but the book's intent is clearly to entertain. The 16 stories, each of which is illustrated with a full-or half-page pen-and-ink drawing, are divided into 3 sections. Part one covers the more common types of ghouls-ghosts, vampires, and werewolves. "Haunted Treasures" highlights a popular theme and provides a historical foundation. For centuries, gold mines dotted the Transylvanian mountains, so naturally a number of legends sprang up concerning lost fortunes-many with ghostly guardians. "Eerie Fairy Tales" are traditional, European-style tales with a few macabre twists. Despite the grisly action, most of the selections have positive endings. Justice is served, evildoers are punished, and only rarely do the innocent suffer permanent damage. An appendix explains each story's origin and defines unfamiliar terminology. Fright fans, along with storytellers and folktale devotees, will delight in this collection.
Mary Jo Drungil, Niles Public Library District, IL
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 6-10. A handsome stranger courts a beautiful maiden by day and turns into a rotten corpse at night. A severed hand is sent special delivery to an abandoned castle. A young man watches in horror as his arms become covered in dark gray fur, and, with a long howl, he joins a pack of werewolves in the wilderness. Scary, sometimes gruesome, with dark humor and dramatic immediacy, these stories are great for storytelling and reading aloud. The authors are immigrants to the U.S., now teaching comparative literature at the University of Georgia. They heard versions of these stories while growing up in the Transylvanian Alps and retell them here in the simple, direct style of the oral tradition. There's a fascinating general introduction, and brief notes at the back discuss each story, including where the authors heard it, who told it to them, and how it fits with general folklore motifs and with the religious and political history of the region. Laszlo Kubinyi's shadowy pen-and-ink drawings with close cross-hatching capture the mystery of demons and transformation in the moonlight. Hazel Rochman

About this edition

• Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
• Publication date: 1994
• ISBN 10: 0531068609
• ISBN 13: 9780531068601
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 104
• Illustrator: Laszlo Kubinyi