poetry

Time for a Poem: Windy Nights

Happy Hallowe’en — here’s a poem to spook your friends!

Windy Nights by Robert Louis Stevenson

 
Whenever the moon and stars are set,
Whenever the wind is high,
All night long in the dark and wet,
A man goes riding by.
Late in the night when the fires are out,
Why does he gallop and gallop about?
Whenever the trees are crying aloud,
And ships are tossed at sea,
By, on the highway, low and loud,
By at the gallop goes he.
By at the gallop he goes, and then
By he comes back at the gallop again.
Do you know any other scary or spooky poems good for sharing at Hallowe’en? Tell us your favourites in the comments below!
teachers' resources

Haunts and Taunts: a book for Hallowe’en and all the nights of the year!

Haunts and Taunts cover

Boggles and ghaisties,

And four-legged beasties,

And things that go bump

In the night.

This book is another old favourite of mine. It’s out of print, but (like Pancakes and Painted Eggs) is still available at some libraries. Or you could keep an eye out at second hand book shops!

Haunts and Taunts has the subtitle: A book for Hallowe’en and all the nights of the year. It’s full of spooky stories, poems, songs (with sheet music, arranged by Margaret Moore), explanations of customs from a variety of cultures, recipes, craft activities, and scary illustrations by Deborah Niland.

When Hallowe’en is over, you can dip into this book for stories and songs to use around a campfire (or around a candle at the kitchen table when the power is out!), or anytime if you love reading about boggarts, giants, enchantments, fairies and ghosts!

Ask your favourite librarian if they have it at your library.

This book was selected for review from the Editor’s own collection. Her tattered copy is a paperback and the ISBN is 034033452 5.