Every day until Christmas Eve, a member of Suffolk Libraries staff will reveal a book, CD or DVD they will be giving as a Christmas present, and why. Today, deputy head of IT Leon Paternoster recommends Tales of Horror and the Supernatural, by Arthur Machen.
The tradition of telling ghost and horror stories on Christmas Eve predates the Victorians, but it was Charles Dickens who made the pastime particularly popular with stories like A Christmas Carol. To this day we love watching an MR James adaptation during the long, cold nights over the Christmas holidays, or even Sherlock on New Year’s day.
This collection of short stories from one of the masters of horror is guaranteed to terrify you, with its weird mixture of the occult, science fiction and ghosts. Just make sure you’re not alone in the house when you read them.