#alvin schwartz

[franki-lew-yo]

It's not just the Art: A look into why Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark was scary as a kid and is so oddly charming as an adult

Found some comments hating on Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark because, despite the Stephen Gammell art, the stories themselves are "all hokey basic urban legends".

To me, that's why I loved this series and why I think it was affective childhood horror.

The "pale woman" story about the beady-eyed swollen looking lady would haunt my dreams...and yet, if you remember the story she's actually not a threat she's the one who's warning the protagonist to get out of the hotel they're in. Whatever was going on in that hotel, she wasn't the scariest part of it and that's what worked about that one- though I was still too scared to read her story in fear of looking at her as a kid.

It's what made the stories that are morbid-fun campfire jokes feel more uncanny ("Hearse Song", "The Viper"), and what made the basic-simple urban legends all the more meaningful when they let your mind fill in the blanks after the picture/using the picture as a jumping off point ("The Big Toe", "The Liver", "The Bride"). An important aspect of horror/children's horror, I think, is to ground you in the reality of how innocent things can be used for evil and also how things that look scary aren't ACTUALLY evil, like the pale lady is in her story.

This is best illustrated in Alvin Schwartz's earlier scary story collection In a Dark, Dark Room. Before he and Gammell did Scary Stories, Alvin's collection here was a good concise list of basic campfire stories, but they didn't have that extra bite to them- a bite needed and finally sold home with the literally graphic art of Gammell.

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark was used by my sister and I exactly as how it was advertised- and that was telling it to scare each other and our cousins on vacation and see how long we could go before we'd get the heebie jeebies on a dark ride home or at night when we were supposed to be in bed. The lasting impact of these urban legends/folklore regurgitations matters not because they are inherent classics but in how and when their told to you in that early stage of life. The uncanny, nasty but sometimes harmless monsters and creatures of Gammell's art helped bring these stories to wicked life while the stories' matter-of-fact reciting kept the images in your mind all the more. A nightmare of symmetry.

[superman-the-secret-third-thing]

Ah, the vanity of Golden Age Lois

what a queen

Source: Superman #70 "Lois Lane Meets Annie Oakley!" (1951) by writer Alvin Schwartz & artist Wayne Boring

[hail-to-the-pumpkin-song]

Horror icons in the style of Alvin Schwartz’s Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark!

Art by Watchful

[mistressofthemacabresworld]

[godzilla-reads]

😱 More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, collected by Alvin Schwartz, illustrated by Brett Helquist

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟/5

Welcome to the frightening world of Scary Stories, a collection of folklorist Alvin Schwartz’s most alarming tales of horror, dark revenge, and supernatural events.

As a kid I was always reading this series, with Stephen Gammell’s original illustrations, which are much, much more freaky. These stories make you shiver, like in “The Cat’s Paw”, and sometimes laugh, like the story “The Brown Suit”, and keep your interest going from story to story. I do think that the original illustrations really made these stories scarier, but I appreciate Brett Helquist’s art as well.

[the-final-sentence]

In her hair was the Christmas tinsel he had given her.

Alvin Schwartz, from "The Wreck"

[wanderingmind867]

I accidentally stumbled upon the wikipedia page for DC writer Alvin Schwartz, and it's so wild. He wrote Superman and Batman comics in the 40s and 50s, left and became an Ad executive. Then he moved to Canada and became a documentarian. And the wildest thing: in his autobiography, he apparently drops the bombshell that is believes superman is real. A tulpa; a fictional character so admired and beloved that he came to life due to belief in him (or something like that). I think it then said he claimed to have met Superman in real life. But he stayed up in Canada after he moved here, which is really cool to me. And his beliefs are just fascinating.

[have-you-read-this-short-fiction]

[random-dragon-exe]

Okay, let's see something here:

Ok, so I had to redo this poll with a both option so here you go people, vote away!

[bracketsoffear]

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (Alvin Schwartz, ill. Stephen Gammell) "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark is a collection of short stories, written for children. The stories themselves are pretty standard stories that are just spooky enough for kids, but the illustrations are what most people remember. Each story is accompanied by a picture that are still unnerving to look at as adults, let alone as kids. Growing up with this book, it felt like a test of bravery just to turn the page. It reminds me a lot of the Season 4 TMA episode, in Callum Brodie's domain - an avatar of The Dark planting images of monsters in kids' heads and letting their imaginations do the rest of the work in scaring them."

Stolen Sun (Korney Chukovsky) "A Russian children's poem that narrates how the crocodile consumed the Sun and how the bear gave him a proper pummeling and forced him to release the star back into the sky. No, it doesn't make sense in context either, but it does take on the motifs of Slavic myths about a dragon stealing the Sun and imprisoning it for thirty-three years, cueing global night and cold."

[morbidlymaddy]

[donclasico]

“ The Girl with the Green Ribbon ”. Watercolor and acrylics on 300g GVARRO paper. Based on Alvin Schwarzt short horror tale with the same title.

[strangestnobody]

Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark - Alvin Schwartz and Stephen Gammell

[roseunspindle]

March 2024 Reading Wrap-up

Very engrossing. Also very vague on who's side is lying the least. ^_^

A fun little addition to the Kane Chronicles. Did want to beg that healer kid to please stop experimenting on themselves. ^_^'

Fun little read, though I think I prefered the drawings to most of the stories.

Finally finished this one. You can tell how unenthusatic Harry is about participating in the tournament. (Also very annoyed with Ron for his BS and even more annoyed with Hermione for pushing mostly Harry into forgiving Ron for being an ass.) Shame on Harry and Ron for their treatment of their dates. I wish Krum would have remained a main character from here on out. I really liked him. Poor Winky.

Three for three so far on me loving Kalynn Bayron's books, this one sucks you in pretty quickly.

Certainly began wondering if any kids were going to die in this book. Also seriously Mr. Mysterious Toyshop owner... full disclosure on the things you see is requested.

re-read, naturally the very beginning of the nod to the gremlins is always hilarious.

Qui-gon is a bit of a dick...not everyone is going to fall to the dark side dude!

Also the Jedi must be doing something wrong where children genuinely feel they are "failures" if they do not become knights. Also the "we are not to know we are to do" massively rankles. I did like the arch Obi-wan went on in the book. Your light saber shouldn't be your only answer to everything.

[godzilla-reads]

😈 Scary Stories 3: More Tales to Chill Your Bones collected by Alvin Schwartz, illustrated by Brett Helquist

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟/5

Welcome to the frightening world of Scary Stories, a collection of folklorist Alvin Schwartz’s most alarming tales of horror, dark revenge, and supernatural events.

In the third and final installment to this series, we meet ghosts and ghouls, scarecrows and scaredy cats. My two favorite stories were “Harold” (about an unsettling scarecrow creation) and “Sam’s New Pet” (about an unfortunate discovery). Some of these stories are fun and entertaining, and some will certainly chill you.

[the-final-sentence]

Everyone aboard was killed.

Alvin Schwartz, from "Room for One More"