Spooktober kickoff: "Spooks and Spirits and Shadowy Shapes"

October is here, which means a monthlong celebration of Halloween and a full month (hopefully) of terrified nail-biting over the Philadelphia Phillies' playoff fate. As I mentioned a few days ago, there's going to be a heavy emphasis on books this month, and we're kicking off with a ragged 1970s paperback edition of Spooks and Spirits and Shadowy Shapes, an anthology of ghost stories aimed at young readers and illustrated by Robert L. Doremus (1913-2010).

The book was first published in hardcover in 1949 by E.P. Dutton & Co. and received subsequent hardcover and paperback editions over the decades. Copies of hardcover editions are scarce and list online for $70 or more; perhaps they're just too beloved for families to part with them. Perhaps they got worn out from being read hundreds of times. A little of both?

I'm not sure if the paperback version is abridged and contains fewer stories than the original hardcovers. My Xerox Education Publication paperback has 127 pages and nine stories, with the table of contents listed at right. The stories are by Emma L. Brock, Elizabeth Yates, Aileen Fisher (2), Elizabeth Coatsworth, Ruth D. McCrea, Gertrude Crampton, Adele DeLeeuw and Mary R. Walsh. That's right — all women. Very cool! 

In an October 30, 1949, column for The Houston Chronicle headlined "Halloween Attitude Growing Dangerous," Evelyn S. Thompson complains: "The past few years has [sic] seen the development of an attitude toward Halloween that has produced devastating results. Our younger generation has come to look upon this day as a time when all restraint can be thrown aside and we have evidence of vandalism on every side. Property is abused and destroyed. Instead of wholesome fun that could be the keynote of this 'spooky' holiday, we find the police force augmented and property owners in distress, fearful of the destruction the pranksters may create."

In 1949! Apparently, youth pranks and vandalism around Halloween were especially bad in the United States (and elsewhere) until the holiday was "tamed" with the widespread introduction of trick-or-treating in the early 1950s.

And what did Thompson think of as "wholesome fun"? Books! She touts Spooks and Spirits and Shadowy Shapes as "an excellent collection of modern stories" for ages 8 to 12. "They are easy reading for the average youngster in graces [sic] four to six, and are breath-taking, but each has a plausible explanation," Thompson wrote.

So in the end, perhaps no actual spooks or spirits. Boo! 

Writing an Amazon review of the book in 2015, Marilyn Schneider states: "I have been looking for this treasure from my childhood 'forever'. I got it from the little neighborhood library as a child and the last time I tried to get it for my grand kids I was informed it was long out of print. It's a book of good old scary stories that are decent and wholesome from a long gone generation of good clean fun."

Meanwhile, illustrator Doremus had a long and varied career. According to his Legacy.com obituary, he shifted his focus to children's books after serving in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. It states: "His credits include a great number of children's readers and histories, textbooks, posters, film strips, coloring books, activity books, and career education packages for elementary schools. People across America growing up in the 50s, 60s, and 70s may remember him for his work in text books or the more than 100 children's books as well as activity books based on their favorite television shows such as 'Get Smart,' 'Convoy,' and 'Bonanza.' His most memorable and favorite commercial work was the picture book based on the Walt Disney movie 'Old Yeller.' The subject matter has ranged from scientific material to a whimsical cement mixer named 'Little Max;' from the life of Harry S. Truman, to 'Star Trek' and Dr. Spock."

Here are some illustrations from Spooks and Spirits and Shadowy Shapes. While the second and third ones might have been fine for kids in the 1940s and 1950s, they're a big NOPE today. Happy Spooktober!