Readers who have been craving a selection of tales reminiscent of Alvin Schwartz’s Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark should look no further than Living Ghosts and Mischievous Monsters: Chilling American Indian Stories, compiled by Ponca storyteller Dan SaSuWeh Jones. Jones is a busy guy: he is a writer, producer, and artist; he’s worked as an Imagineer for Disney and produced for Sesame Street; he is a sculptor, a former Chairman of the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma, and he assembled this creepy collection of legends from storytellers of his own people and other tribal nations he has visited over the years. Some stories are his own and others are recorded from folks he has met on his travels.
The book is divided into several parts: Ghosts, Spirits, Witches, Monsters, and The Supernatural. The stories are a mix of traditional folk legends as well as contemporary accounts of the paranormal within American Indian communities. Some of the stories are comforting, as ghosts themselves aren’t generally considered malevolent in all indigenous cultures. But many are spooky. Some stories will be familiar: La Llarona, La Lechuza, and Skinwalkers are all covered. But other more personal tales are recounted. Most stories have cautionary or dark endings, but some are quite bittersweet, including a story about a cannibal monster who is defeated by friendship. The stories each have stunning black and white illustrations by Weshoyot Alvitre (Tongva), which are equal parts unsettling and beautiful.
If you are interested in learning more about American Indian storytelling, I really liked Jones’s piece for School Library Journal.
