Ghost: Thirteen Haunting Tales to Tell

The footprints of an inkily indistinct figure trail across the cover of this chilling story collection by design collective Illustrátus. Inside, the 13 tense tales, some told in verse, skew toward horrors that may not be suitable for readers at the younger end of the stated age range. In “The Old Pond,” a guilt-ridden child is dragged to his death by the spirit of his dead sister. In “Point Whitney,” a boy trips and falls—“he spit, seeing his two front teeth and blood spatter in the snow”—then watches helplessly as his friend drowns, trapped under ice. Framed by a stereotypically creepy storyteller (with a “flesh-colored prosthetic arm and hook”) as the only “true ghost stories,” the well-told tales deal in themes of transformation and entrapment. Still, some readers may scratch their heads at the fact that boys seem to take center stage. Grainy, muted illustrations deftly combine texture and shape to conjure truly nightmarish moments. Ages 8–12. (Aug.)