In a Dark, Dark Room and Other Scary Stories facts for kids
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| Author | Alvin Schwartz |
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| Illustrator | Dirk Zimmer |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Published | August 2, 1984 |
In a Dark, Dark Room and Other Scary Stories is a popular book filled with spooky tales. It includes scary stories, poems, and urban legends, all rewritten for young readers. The famous author Alvin Schwartz wrote these stories, and Dirk Zimmer created the cool illustrations. This book came out in 1984 and is part of the "I Can Read!" series. It has seven different stories inside: "The Teeth," "In the Graveyard," "The Green Ribbon," "In a Dark, Dark Room," "The Night It Rained," "The Pirate," and "The Ghost of John."
Contents
Spooky Stories for Kids
The Green Ribbon
"The Green Ribbon" is the third story in the book. It is about a girl named Jenny. She always wears a mysterious green ribbon around her neck. Jenny meets a boy named Alfred. She never tells him why she wears the ribbon.
Even when Jenny and Alfred get married, she still wears the ribbon. Years later, when they are old, Jenny finally lets Alfred untie it. When he does, her head falls right off! This story comes from an old French tale. It became well-known because of Washington Irving's story "The Adventure of the German Student" from 1824.
The Teeth
This story is about a kid who is rushing home. He meets a man and asks him for the time. When the man answers, the kid sees he has very long teeth. This sight scares the kid, and he runs away.
He then meets another man. This man asks him why he is running. But this second man has even longer teeth! The kid keeps running. The teeth of each person he meets get bigger and bigger. The kid runs all the way home, very frightened.
In a Graveyard
"In a Graveyard" tells the story of a woman. She is in a graveyard and talks to the graves. She asks them if she will be thin when she dies. This short story explores a strange and spooky question.
The Night It Rained
You might have heard a story like this one before. It's about a man driving his car. He sees a small boy standing alone in the pouring rain. The man kindly offers the child a ride home.
The child is shivering in the car. So, the man gives him a sweater to wear. The next day, the driver goes back to the house to get his sweater. The people living there tell him their son died years ago. The driver then realizes what happened.
In a Dark, Dark Room
This story is about a special box inside a house. The story begins by describing the house to the reader. It slowly takes the reader deeper into a community. This place is often described as "dark."
When you reach the very last line, a box is shown. This box, of course, holds a ghost! The ghost appears on the next page. This story has many other versions. Some of them start in a "dark, dark wood" instead of a room.
The Pirate
Ruth goes to visit her relatives. She is playing with her cousin Susan. Susan tells Ruth that a pirate once lived in the room where Ruth is staying. Ruth bravely says she does not believe in ghosts. She claims she is not afraid at all.
That night, Ruth goes to bed. She checks everywhere in the room but finds nothing. When she gets into bed, she laughs. She says, "There's no one in this room but me!" Then, a scary voice from nowhere replies, "AND ME!"
The Ghost of John
"The Ghost of John" is a short poem. It is written in a limerick style. The poem is about a skeleton. It is a fun and spooky little rhyme.
