Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

How it reads

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark is horror (folkloric horror anthology, specifically), and its dominant mood is eerie. It's atmospheric and uncanny, with a sense that something is wrong. It moves fast: plot-driven and hard to put down, the kind of book that carries you along even when you're tired.

It's set in several locations, in no single period, told through letters, documents or mixed forms. Its central concerns are survival, nature and secrets. In weight it's light and escapist — easy to fall into.

It stands alone, so there's nothing else you need to read first or after. The ending is dark — no rescue, no neat bow. At 111 pages it's a single-sitting book. It's a mega-bestseller — the book everyone seems to have read.