Lafcadio Hearn's fascinating and unsettling ghost stories are a reinterpretation of oriental legends, and folktales. They are a potent blend of weird beauty and horror.

Another deluxe edition of new writing and neglected perspectives. Asian ghosts, from India to China, Japan to Thailand, Korea to the Philippines, can be both terrifying and comforting. Underpinned by strong cultural beliefs in the cycles of life and ancestor worship, the nature of Asian spirits differs from that of their counterparts in other areas of the world. The possibility is more instinctually accepted that ghosts remain with us, as part of the world, whether we can see them or not. In Saigon The Daughter of Hui Bi Hua roams the corridors of the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Art, in Japan the Kappa displays an insatiable appetite for cucumbers, in Indonesia the Kuntilanak is a wicked spirit, feared by all, and in Thailand the Preta is a disgusting, hungry ghost. The Flame Tree Gothic Fantasy, Classic Stories and Epic Tales collections bring together the entire range of myth, folklore and modern short fiction. Highlighting the roots of suspense, supernatural, science fiction and mystery stories, the books in Flame Tree Collections series are beautifully presented, perfect as a gift and offer a lifetime of reading pleasure.

I think that my best apology for the insignificant size of this volume is the very character of the material composing it. In preparing the legends I sought especially for "weird beauty"; and I could not forget this striking observation in Sir Walter Scott's "Essay on Imitations of the Ancient Ballad" "The supernatural, though appealing to certain powerful emotions very widely and deeply sown amongst the human race, is, nevertheless, a "spring which is peculiarly apt to lose its elasticity by being too much pressed upon."" -- Lafcadio Hearn

Chinese Ghost Stories are a selection of the most entertaining Chinese traditional tales of the strange and fantastic. Hearn had a great affinity for the traditional ghost stories of China, and these stories clearly inspired him as he penned subsequent works. Set in richly atmospheric locales, these tales speak of heroic sacrifice, chilling horror, eerie beauty and otherworldly intervention. This completely reset and pinyin-converted edition of Hearn's classic work contains a new foreword by Victoria Cass, which places the stories, their author, and his love for the strange and mysterious into perspective. If you're seeking insights into the traditional Chinese world of ghosts, goblins and demons—or just want to feel a chill run down your spine on a dark and lonely night—then this book is the perfect companion. Ghost stories include: The Soul of the Great Bell The Story of Ming Yi The Legend of Zhi Nu The Return of Yan Zhenjing The Tradition of the Tea Plant The Tale of the Porcelain God

"The one hundred-some stories depict the important role ghosts played in the lives of the Chinese, as well as revealing a great deal about sex, revenge, transvestism, corruption, and other topics banned by Mei's puritanical mid-Qing society". -- Reference & Research Book News.