Told After Supper

by Jerome K. Jerome

From British humorist and author of "Three Men on a Boat" comes this collection of ghost stories--told around the fire on Christmas Eve, because, according to Jerome, almost all English ghost stories begin on Christmas Eve. He introduces them tongue-in-cheek as "sad but authentic"--delightful and entertaining for any fan of Jerome.

Genres: Short Stories, Classics, Horror, Humor, Fiction, Christmas, Ghosts

ebook

First published January 1, 1891

About the author

Jerome Klapka Jerome was an English writer and humorist, best known for the comic travelogue Three Men in a Boat (1889). Other works include the essay collections Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow (1886) and Second Thoughts of an Idle Fellow; Three Men on the Bummel, a sequel to Three Men in a Boat; and several other novels. Jerome was born in Walsall, England, and, although he was able to attend grammar school, his family suffered from poverty at times, as did he as a young man trying to earn a living in various occupations. In his twenties, he was able to publish some work, and success followed. He married in 1888, and the honeymoon was spent on a boat on the River Thames; he published Three Men in a Boat soon afterwards. He continued to write fiction, non-fiction and plays over the next few decades, though never with the same level of success.

Reviews

[Pramod Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

And not only do the ghosts themselves always walk on Christmas Eve, but live people always sit and talk about them on Christmas Eve. Whenever five or six English-speaking people meet round a fire on Christmas Eve, they start telling each other ghost stories. Nothing satisfies us on Christmas Eve but to hear each other tell authentic anecdotes about spectres. It is a genial, festive season, and we love to muse upon graves, and dead bodies, and murders, and blood.

In the introduction of Told After Supper, originally published in 1891, the English writer and humorist, Jerome K. Jerome, describes the Victorian tradition of telling ghost stories on Christmas Eve, and why he chose it as his setting for narrating a string of lightweight ghost stories. Written with a healthy dosage of humor, these short stories, which are almost like pastiches of the traditional Victorian era tales of supernatural, offer a relaxed reading experience.

Within this anthology, the author employs a frame narrative technique to unfold a series of short funny ghost tales within the setting of events from a Christmas Eve get-together. It is told from the perspective of a narrator, who is visiting his uncle’s family for Christmas. The guests, after having the supper and indulging in large quantity of drinks, engage in sharing ghost stories with each other and each of these stories are described to the reader through the narrator.


’The guests at the Christmas party having a merry time’ illustration by K.M. Skeaping. Taken from the 1891 edition of Told After Supper.

These short funny stories are quiet pleasant to read and can be enjoyed in a single sitting. Jerome K. Jerome’s signature humor and the cheerful approach that he employs while narrating a story can be observed within this funny, not scary anthology of ghost stories.

The forgotten tradition of telling ghost stories on Christmas Eve and Christmas season

In Victorian England - and most probably in the centuries before that – the nights of the season of Christmas was believed to be the most holy as well as the most haunted.

In Christmas in ritual and tradition, Christian and Pagan , published in 1912, author Clement A Miles observes: "No time in all the Twelve Nights and Days is so charged with the supernatural as Christmas Eve... many of the beliefs associated with this night show a large admixture of paganism." He showcases an impressive list of traditions from all corners of Europe connected with the Christmastide within this volume, which has association with ghosts, dead revisiting their folks, supernatural and magic; associations, which in one way or another having paganistic roots.

Telling scary ghost stories was a Victorian Christmas tradition, whenever friends and family gathered together during Christmas season. In Old Christmas: From the Sketch Book, published in 1875, Washington Irving makes the following observation about this tradition while describing the Christmas Dinner.

When I returned to the drawing-room, I found the company seated round the fire, listening to the parson, who … … was dealing forth strange accounts of the popular superstitions and legends of the surrounding country... …He gave us several anecdotes of the fancies of the neighbouring peasantry, concerning the effigy of the crusader which lay on the tomb by the church altar... ...From these and other anecdotes that followed, the crusader appeared to be the favourite hero of ghost stories throughout the vicinity...

An illustration by K.M. Skeaping, taken from the 1891 edition of Told After Supper.

So how did this fascination towards narrating spine chilling tales of evil during the time of Christmas originate? In Christmas And Christmas Lore published in 1923 by T.G. Grippen we can find the following reference to the tradition of reciting ghost stories on the Christmas Eve, in England.

"Notwithstanding these imaginary terrors, Christmas has long been accounted, in England at least, the most fitting season for ghost stories."

Grippen analyzes the proverb “Talk of the Devil and he’ll appear” and points that the root of this tradition lies in the folk belief that, speaking about the evil beings gives them power to perform mischief. He observes that despite this fear of the ‘devil appearing’, there is a strong urge in human beings to talk about or listen to tales related to “ the night side of the nature”. The sacredness associated with the Christmastide - and especially the Christmas Eve – gave them a safe time-frame to indulge in having conversations about ghosts and spirits, without fear.

"... we understand somewhat of the fitness of Christmas-tide for conversation about the shadowy side of the Universe of being. At other times there might be danger in talking too familiarly of 'fiends, ghosts and spirits that haunt the nights'; but at Christmas the power of malignant spirits was so neutralized by the mystical presence of the Christ-Child that curiosity respecting them might be safely indulged."

From the mid-1800s various publishers in England also contributed to the popularity of this tradition, as they started to publish special Christmas issues of magazines and serials containing ghost stories. The Old Nurse's Story by Elizabeth Gaskell, A Christmas Carol and The Signal-Man by Charles Dickens and The Body Snatcher by Robert Louis Stevenson are some of the famous Christmas time ghost stories, which made their first appearances in Christmas issue magazines.

Kenneth Mathieson Skeaping

The 1891 Leadenhall Press edition of Told After Supper is lavishly illustrated, and has about a hundred beautifully done illustrations by the Victorian era painter and illustrator Kenneth Mathieson Skeaping. There are numerous pen and pencil drawings, chapter heading decorations, drop caps and full page illustrations within this edition and they contribute nicely to enrich the overall mood of the narrative.

He explained that the ghost of all the tobacco that a man smoked in life belonged to him when he became dead. He said he himself had smoked a good deal of cut cavendish when he was alive, so that he was well supplied with the ghost of it now.

I observed that it was a useful thing to know that, and I made up my mind to smoke as much tobacco as ever I could before I died. I thought I might as well start at once, so I said I would join him in a pipe, and he said, ' Do, old man '; and I reached over and got out the necessary paraphernalia from my coat pocket and lit up.

’The narrator of the stories and the Ghost having a smoke’ as illustrated by K.M. Skeaping. Taken from the 1891 edition of Told After Supper.

Born in Liverpool, England, UK in 1957, Kenneth M. Skeaping also illustrated Jerome K. Jerome's The Devil’s Acres and On the stage - and off: the brief career of a would-be actor.


An illustration by K.M. Skeaping for the Jerome K. Jerome's 1891, richly illustrated edition of On the stage - and off: the brief career of a would-be actor, a comic memoir of the author's experiences with an acting troupe.

Told After Supper, is a recommended reading for all fans of Jerome K. Jerome and for those who love light entertaining tales from the Victorian Era.

[Jess the Shelf-Declared Bibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. It unexpectedly veered from creepy ghost stories to political satires on socialism, which I didn't mind, it was just a bit random. All were well written and humorous while provoking thought and contemplation.

[Alwynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like Halloween, for many years Christmas Eve was a traditional time to tell or, more likely read, ghost stories. Jerome K. Jerome’s after-supper collection, first published in 1891, took full advantage of this custom. His brief run of stories, just over forty pages here, are structured using the standard framing device of people gathered in one place who spend the final hours of Christmas Eve exchanging spooky tales in front of a roaring fire. But Jerome’s primarily known for comedy, especially his hilarious later novel Three Men on a Boat - an old favourite of mine – so true to form his spectres are closer to bumbling, comical figures than terrifying apparitions. I wasn’t entirely won over by his approach but even so his droll style was sometimes hard to resist, and there are some memorable lines and passages. It’s the kind of humour that works best for people who’ve enjoyed his novel or similar stories and books like The Canterville Ghost or The Diary of a Nobody. Jerome’s essentially making fun of the recurring themes found in many of the hundreds of ghost stories circulating in Victorian magazines and papers of his time, and he’s relying on readers to understand what he’s doing, it’s a crucial part of the entertainment, so this is far more effective if you’ve read a few of those in the past. My edition's published by Alma Classics and includes a run of additional short, filler pieces which I found slightly peculiar in flavour, odd mixtures of rant and narrative bringing in bulldogs, rural life and a very mean dig at Victorian socialists and what their visions might bring about in an imagined future.

Rating: 2.5/3

[Mita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ho un nipotino, 7 anni, che adora le storie di fantasmi. Ogni volta che resta di sera a casa mia, vuole che accenda il fuoco, poi spenge tutte le luci, dispone plaid e cuscini per terra tra tavolini e poltrone a formare una nicchia. Crea l'atmosfera insomma! E a questo punto vuole che mi metta a sedere per terra accanto a lui e che gli racconti una storia di fantasmi, che deve far paura e ridere nello stesso tempo, naturalmente!
Sono andata avanti fino ad ora un po' inventando e un po' rielaborando vecchie storie, da Canterville a Scrooge, ma alla fine avevo finito le risorse e sono andata a cercare in giro per internet.
Mi è capitato questo libriccino di Jerome. Memore del divertimento di "Tre uomini in barca" l'ho scaricato e stampato e l'ultima volta che ha dormito qui da me, dopo cena, acceso il fuoco e spente un po' di luci ho cominciato a leggere...
Ero perplessa, perchè non sapevo fino a che punto un bambino, oggi, abituato all'umorismo "caciarone" propinato dalla televisione potesse cogliere quest'humor inglese di fine ottocento, ma questo avevo e questo gli ho dato!
Non ho mai visto mio nipote ridere così di gusto! Nemmeno la prima volta che a tre anni ha guardato Paperino alle prese con Cip e Ciop!
Durante il giorno l'ho rivisto più volte sul divano del salotto con il libriccino in mano che leggeva e ridacchiava tra sè e sè, e quando è andato via se l'è portato: "Così stasera me lo legge papà".
Altro che Playstation e Wii!
Ma non vi è mai venuto il sospetto che i bambini avrebbero solo bisogno di una nonna a tempo pieno come avevamo noi da piccoli?

[Albus Eugene Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore · Rating 4 out of 5]

«Era la vigilia di Natale.... Il fantasma inglese medio adora profetizzare le sventure.»

England, one thousand eight hundred and ninety-one... maybe...

(1)

È la vigilia di Natale. Il narratore si trova a casa di suo zio John, al 47 di Laburnham Grove, a Tooting.
Nel salotto debolmente illuminato... quattro pensionati mezzo avvelenati al tavolino... no, no, sei amabili gentlemen, dopo un’ottima cena, sono seduti in circolo a fumare , conversare e... stratracannare del punch al whisky. Il vecchio dottor Scrubbles, il Curato del posto, Mr. Coombes, Teddy Biffles, il narratore e suo zio John fanno onore al punch e, alquanto allegri, iniziano a raccontare storie di fantasmi...
«”Senta un po’, lei sa di che cosa sta parlando?” domandammo ad un certo punto. – “No.” ammise. Ma sapeva che era una storia vera, parola per parola, perché sua zia aveva visto tutto con i suoi stessi occhi. Allora lo coprimmo con la tovaglia, e lui si addormentò.».
Una piccola antologia di brevi storie di fantasmi, raccontate da JKJ nel pieno rispetto dello.... British humour.
Very funny!

(1) Taken from: Told After Supper by Jerome K. Jerome, with 96 or 97 Illustrations by Kenneth M. Skeaping (The Leadenhall Press E. C., London, 1891)

[Antonella Imperiali · Rating 3 out of 5]

È sempre la Vigilia di Natale, nelle storie di fantasmi. [...] Oh, che notte eccitante, la notte del ventiquattro dicembre, nel Paese dei fantasmi!

Un libretto piccino picciò che vedrei bene tra le mani di un bambino, per quanto i racconti sono leggeri, ironici e divertenti. Certo, a me adulta hanno fatto appena sorridere, ma penso che i più piccoli apprezzerebbero, perché di spaventoso non c’è assolutamente nulla e, anzi, i fantasmi protagonisti risultano addirittura commoventi e simpatici. 👻

Le tre stelline rispecchiano, quindi, questa mia considerazione.

Lo humor inglese - ineccepibile in Jerome - ha colpito ancora!


HI - Horror 💀 Challenge 2019 -> task 20
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RC - Esimio sconosciuto
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📚 Biblioteca (2)

[Andrew “The Weirdling” Glos · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. I was fishing around and looking for something like a traditional English Christmas Eve ghost story. And that’s how I came across this book.

Instead, this book is a parody of that whole tradition. It is extremely funny as a lampoon of that tradition. The story telling is weak, most likely because that’s not the point of this work at all. The ending is also a little abrupt, as if the author didn’t quite know how to wrap it up. I was left with the feeling that this is was because, once the parody part was done, he didn’t see much point in working the rest of it through to its full conclusion.

Either way, it’s short and funny and enjoyable.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jerome K. Jermome is probably best known for "Three Men in A Boat".

In the first part of this book of short stories he tackles the popular Victorian genre of the ghost story. And completely extracts the urine from it.

A charming read in small doses. The best word to describe the book is whimsical. Only problem for me is that it doesn't take much whimsey for me to come over all unnecessary.

[Maja · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pročitala dva puta, i oba puta otplakala od smeha.

[Herb · Rating 4 out of 5]

As it is said : Ghosts come out on Christmas eve, it is the proper thing to do. Everybody in ghostland who is anybody - or rather, speaking of ghosts, one should say, I suppose, every nobody who is any nobody - comes out to show himself. For that reason, I have read this book and written this review on Christmas eve. (No need to check the date)

A truly profound sh*tpost of a book and the pinnacle of comedy. Some stories were very relatable, I too am surprised by how utterly destitute of dead Emilys some neighborhoods can be, and I too would like to punch Shakespeare at this point.

[Terris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ghost stories told on Christmas Eve. Very funny, just what you'd expect from Jerome K. Jerome! :)

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very funny and very weird!

[Jasmin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the cover for the Alma Classics edition of After Supper Ghost Stories enticing. With its off-white swirls and flourishes upon a simple black background, it screamed “Intense, melodramatic, Gothic Victorian literature”, something akin to Bram Stoker’s Dracula or Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights.

Well, After Supper Ghost Stories – which is an anthology that takes its title from the longest story among its pages – is melodramatic and it’s certainly Victorian, having first been published in 1891, but it’s a far cry from the Gothic style so popular during the 19th century.

Jerome (whose first name was apparently also his surname. Weird, right?) strikes me as something of a forward thinker. When we think of British Victorian gentlemen, we think of cigars and a stiff upper lip and all that jazz, but Jerome’s written style is quite informal. While reading stories such as Evergreens, Clocks and Tea Kettles, it put me in mind of a stand up comedian. I could just picture Jerome stood upon a stage, a glass of port in one hand, a pipe in the other, bantering with an ever-chuckling audience, his wit and sarcasm shining through his words.

Each of his stories is quite satirical in nature. After Supper Ghost Stories, for example, is a parody of the traditional ghost story, with all the stereotyped characters you find in any spooky tale, modern or classic. There’s the ‘skeptic’, the one who doesn’t believe in the haunting and tries to disprove their peers’ claims by sleeping in the haunted bedroom. There’s the ‘plucky’ character, the one who decides to investigate the ghostly happenings alone and so on and so on. The satirical nature of the stories made for an amusing read, but that was about it.

The anthology as a whole was mildly amusing and there were some interesting ideas. For example, I found The New Utopia to be a fascinating exploration into how easily a utopia can morph into a dystopia and how a true utopia would be impossible to achieve. One of my favourite instances of Jerome’s dry-humoured observations on the hypocrisy of Victorian society occurred within this story. There’s a scene where a group of would-be philosophers are talking about how class divides should be abolished, rendering everyone equal, and one of the philosophers, in the same breath, orders for their waiter to bring “green chartreuse and more cigars”. This single line, though simple, is a scathing criticism on the hypocrisy of upper class Victorian citizens who, for want of a better phrase, were all bark but no bite, who had all these idealistic notions but were reluctant to implement them.

However, this collection of stories failed to keep my overall interest. Aside from the titular story and The New Utopia, I found the stories were not so much stories, but more ramblings that would go off on confusing, seemingly unrelated tangents. I can appreciate how Jerome’s work has stood the test of time – he was definitely a talented writer – but his work just isn’t for me, I’m afraid.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hilarious! Oh my god, I should have expected it to be funny, but I wasn't quite expecting this. The gentleman who befriends the murderous ghost and then walks out without his trousers was fabulous.

It was Christmas Eve.

I begin this way because it is the proper, orthodox, respectable way to begin, and I have been brought up in a proper, orthodox, respectable way, and taught to always do the proper, orthodox, respectable thing; and the habit clings to me.

Of course, as a mere matter of information it is quite unnecessary to mention the date at all. The experienced reader knows it was Christmas Eve, without my telling him. It always is Christmas Eve, in a ghost story,

Christmas Eve is the ghosts' great gala night. On Christmas Eve they hold their annual fete. On Christmas Eve everybody in Ghostland who IS anybody—or rather, speaking of ghosts, one should say, I suppose, every nobody who IS any nobody—comes out to show himself or herself, to see and to be seen, to promenade about and display their winding-sheets and grave-clothes to each other, to criticise one another's style, and sneer at one another's complexion.

[Lisa Cotton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I seem to be becoming something of a Jerome K Jerome fan girl. It's impossible to read him without giggling, even in public. Such warm and uncomplicated joy & mirth! The way he digresses so wildly and unapologetically tickles me every time. 

[Whitney · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick read and a lot of fun. Jerome's trademark wit in the service of parodying typical English Christmas ghost stories. And a great choice to read aloud for those who have that holiday tradition.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.61⭐

Introductory 4⭐
How the Stories Came to be Told 3.5⭐
Johnson and Emily; or, the Faithful Ghost • (variant of The Faithful Ghost) 3.75⭐
Interlude—The Doctor's Story 3⭐
The Haunted Mill; or, The Ruined Home (variant of The Haunted Mill) 3.5⭐
Interlude 3⭐
The Ghost of the Blue Chamber 4.25⭐
A Personal Explanation 3.5⭐
My Own Story 4⭐

[clara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I tried to kick him under the table. I do not mean, of course, that I tried to kick him there altogether; though I am not at all sure whether, under the circumstances, I should not have been justified in going even to that length. What I mean is that the attempt to kick him took place under the table.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Um conjunto de mini contos sobre fantasmas na véspera de natal ambientados na era vitoriana trazem humor e conforto. Parece perfeito para ler para crianças futuramente ksksksksks

[Gina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jerome Klapka Jerome (1859~1927), author of the comic masterpiece Three Men in a Boat, needs no introduction. But many who admire his humorous classic are unaware that he wrote a number of ghost stories.

Told After Supper was Jerome's only volume comprised solely of ghost stories. It was published in 1891 by The Leadenhall Press and contains linked tales, interspersed with more than ninety wonderful illustrations by Kenneth M. Skeaping, one of which you can see below, all printed on thick pale blue paper. It really is a lovely book, and a very funny one; these tales are intended to make you chuckle in amusement, not scream in terror.

The narrator tells us that it is Christmas Eve at his Uncle John's, at no. 47 Laburnum Grove, Tooting. Christmas eve... the only night in the year on which it is considered correct, within the regulations of English society, to tell ghost stories. Indeed, the only night on which most ghosts think it fit that they should appear. Generally speaking, we are told, ghosts do not go frightening people on Christmas Day, mainly because they have worn themselves out haunting people the night before.

'Christmas Eve is the ghosts' great gala night. On Christmas Eve they hold their annual fête. On Christmas Eve everybody in Ghostland who is anybody - or rather, speaking of ghosts, one should say, I suppose, every nobody who is any nobody - comes out to show himself or herself, to see and to be seen, to promenade about and display their winding-sheets and grave-clothes to each other, to criticise one another's style, and sneer at one another's complexion.'

The party consists of the narrator, old Dr Scrubbles, the local curate, Mr Samuel Coombes, Teddy Biffles and Uncle John, all of whom have been at the punch and are much the merrier for it. Somehow or other, they find themselves telling ghost stories.

Click here to read the rest of the review...

[Sian Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Plot: A group of guests come together one Christmas Eve, to tell ghost stories as is the custom on this night. The stories range from sad and melancholic to bizarre and strange.
This book also incorporated a selection of other stories by Jerome K. Jerome.

My thoughts: I picked this up not knowing anything about Jerome K. Jerome. The cover looked pretty modern, so I assumed it was going to be a collection of short ghost stories – the kinds I used to buy in visitor centres on family holidays, such as “Ghost Stories of New England” – oh yes, my sister and I really bought ALL of those!
In fact, Jerome K. Jerome died in 1927, so it’s not exactly modern! Nevertheless, I like old books, so I read on. The story was interesting and entertaining, as the guests get more and more drunk, but it really wasn’t what I was expecting. It was filled with wit and I get the feeling this is supposed to be more humour than actual ghost story, so it was a little bit disappointing. And on top of that, it was short – very short! I thought I was just about to get some proper ghosts when all of a sudden, it ended.
The other stories were similar – I actually really enjoyed a couple, but the style of this author appears to be rambling off topic before coming back to the story at hand, and that just didn’t quite sit with me for the most part.

[Paulo Vinicius Figueiredo dos Santos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Estamos em uma época natalina. Alegria, árvores de Natal, presépios, famílias se unindo para estarem juntas. Que época perfeita para contar histórias de fantasmas depois da ceia, não acham? Por incrível que pareça essa era uma diversão bastante comum na Era Vitoriana e as histórias brincavam com os medos mais primitivos da burguesia inglesa como não ser capaz de encontrar uma herança, ser acusado de alguma infâmia ou quem sabe ter um segredo revelado. Sejam bem-vindos às histórias de fantasmas escritas por Jerome K. Jerome, um autor cuja fama se deu ao escrever histórias satíricas e bem humoradas. Então não se preocupem porque vocês não se depararão com os fantasmas de dias atuais, mas os de outrora. Mesmo assim fica o alerta porque dependendo do fantasma, sua vida pode realmente estar em risco.

"O fantasma aparece de novo e, desta vez, o corajoso sai da cama, se veste, penteia os cabelos e o segue; e descobre uma passagem secreta que leva do quarto até a adega de cerveja - uma passagem que, sem dúvida, não foi pouco usada nos tempos de outrora."

Preciso elogiar e muito a edição da Wish, feita no formato de mini-tesouro, uma iniciativa voltada para publicar histórias curtas ou coletâneas de lendas em um formato menor, de bolso, mantendo a qualidade e o cuidado das obras maiores. A edição é bastante luxuosa, com capa dura e papel pólen. As letras estão em um bom espaçamento, então mesmo que você abra bem o livro, não vai precisar se esforçar para realizar a leitura. Uma das maiores preocupações da editora é manter a sensação original, então é possível perceber todos os elementos vintage de uma edição de época com a preocupação gráfica contemporânea. Foram incorporadas todas as ilustrações de Kenneth M. Speaking, responsável por todas as imagens originais. É preciso lembrar que era bastante comum os livros vitorianos terem várias ilustrações. Esse é um daqueles materiais deliciosos para o leitor se entreter em poucas sentadas.



A escrita de Jerome é aquela típica do século XIX, então ela pode parecer meio pomposa para os dias de hoje. Mas, é um fenômeno típico de quando lemos uma obra muito afastada do período em que vivemos. As expressões parecem fora de lugar ou sem sentido. Porém, a tradução da Karine Ribeiro ficou excelente e ajudou muito a superar essa barreira temporal. Ela conseguiu manter o estilo do autor e ao mesmo tempo deixar uma leitura simples e saborosa para o leitor contemporâneo. Não senti nenhuma dificuldade nos capítulos, que fluíam relativamente bem. Ajuda também o fato de Jerome ser um autor que manteve os pés no chão no que diz respeito à sua apresentação. Como se tratava de uma obra de cunho popular, não adiantava muito ele ficar escrevendo algo que não seria compreendido pelos camponeses. Isso o deixaria sem público. Ao final do livro temos duas biografias, sendo uma do autor e outra do ilustrador falando sobre suas trajetórias.

Essa é uma história típica de fantasmas, mas que o autor subverteu para transformar em algo mais satírico e divertido. Há até algumas boas críticas sociais presentes, mas nada muito agressivo. Nos deparamos com um grupo de burgueses que está passando a véspera de Natal na casa do tio do protagonista. Lá eles começam a contar histórias de casas assombradas ou de espíritos zombeteiros que pregam peças neles. Vale destacar o quanto os fantasmas da obra são diferentes do que estamos acostumados nos dias de hoje. Eles são mais como personagens malandros e que gostam de pregar peças nos vivos. Claro que isso não impede de que alguns casos sejam fatais, mas depende bastante daquilo que o fantasma deixou por realizar em vida. Temos desde os fantasmas que tiram uma com aqueles que lhe fizeram mal em vida, a espíritos que sussurram segredos ou até outros que apenas estão ali para pregar peças infantis. Ao todo Jerome, conta quatro histórias, e mais uma que nunca é dita por completa do vigário.



A etiqueta social é muito verificada entre os quatro cavalheiros. Desde a própria noção da hospitalidade até alguns hábitos mais corriqueiros e típicos da Inglaterra como a do convidado ir passar a noite no quarto mais assombrado da casa. Mesmo as pequenas transgressões cometidas por eles possuem um elevado grau de observação das normas de conduta, então há sempre uma malandragem em dobrar tais normas. Aquele que não as obedece, perde o seu status social dentro daquele grupo específico. Claro que Jerome não perde a oportunidade para fazer a sua pequena crítica, na figura do vigário. Ele é o único que não sabemos a história porque o vigário não consegue contar a história de uma forma adequada a seu público. Conta narrativas irrelevantes, usando palavras que ninguém consegue compreender e frequentemente se perde em suas descrições, além de inserir dezenas de personagens sem grande utilidade para a história. Podemos interpretar essa descrição do vigário de duas formas: ou o vigário fala com tamanha erudição que as classes populares a quem o público do livro se destina não entenderiam ou o vigário se trata de um mero tolo e fanfarrão, ao qual os personagens apenas dirigem uma simples deferência por conta de seu cargo.

Terror depois da Ceia é um livro muito agradável de se ler, embora a história não seja sensacional. É uma daquelas leituras descompromissadas que eu recomendo mesmo ser lida nesse período natalino, até porque combina mais com ela. O trabalho editorial da Wish está sensacional e só melhora a cada ano que passa. Recomendo aos leitores terem em sua estante ou darem de presente a uma pessoa querida.

"Jovens rapazes e moças que recitavam poemas longos e enfadonhos em festas noturnas, e jovens imaturos que vagavam pelas ruas tarde da noite, tocando concertinas, ele costumava juntar e envenenar em grupos de dez, para economizar; e oradores de parques e palestrantes austeros ele costumava trancar seis em uma sala pequena com um copo de água e uma caixa de coleta para cada um, deixando-os conversarem uns com os outros até a morte."

[Alex Sarll]

"It was Christmas Eve! Christmas Eve at my Uncle John's; Christmas Eve (There is too much 'Christmas Eve' about this book. I can see that myself. It is beginning to get monotonous even to me. But I don't see how to avoid it now.) at No. 47 Laburnham Grove, Tooting!" An uproarious burlesque of festive ghost story cliches which even finds room for the Box of Delights' card trick. The curate's offering in particular had me laughing to the point of physical discomfort. A shame that Jerome is now only really known for the one book; I sometimes think he's the closest thing we had to a fully human Wodehouse.

[Carol Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

The narrator tells us that it is Christmas Eve at his Uncle John's house. Gathered together are of the narrator, old Dr Scrubbles, the local curate, Mr Samuel Coombes, Teddy Biffles and Uncle John. At the party goes on and they more of the punch is drunk, the merrier they become. It's really a short, laugh out loud book. I may actually pull it out again on Christmas Eve. Don't let the fact that it's ghost stories confuse you - it's funny, not scary.

[Hal Brodsky · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a relatively short parody of Ghost Story books, especially those in the style of Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins. Written in Jerome's usual easy to read style, it is worth a chuckle or too and is available free for download or as part of the Delphi Classics Download. Unfortunately, the illustrations are not available in the downloaded versions I found.

[Cristiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was not expecting something so beautifully written. The ghost stories are not at all scary, but very entertaining and rich in sarcasm. The short stories of the second part of the book came completely unexpected to me, but were eventually the most interesting part. Half stories, half essays, they make this book a little gem.

I highly recommend it

[J. Elliott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was expecting a typical Victorian collection of ghost stories.

What a delightful surprise! If Bertie Wooster fell into a house party and after the punch bowl was refilled for the third time, they began sharing ghost stories, well this is it.

Funny, unexpected, light-hearted. At sixty-five pages in huge print, this is the perfect nightcap.

[Maja Lange · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't much care for the frame story (especially the ending), but the rest was rather funny.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very short, funny book. Written very much in the same style as Three Men in a Boat. He has a very dry humor that reminds me of Mark Twain. I laughed until I cried.

[Stoic_quin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not his best work. But witty enough