I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK:

[READ: December 13, 2024] “The Crown Derby Plate”

This year my wife ordered me The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This is my seventh time reading the Calendar–it’s a holiday tradition!  Here’s what H&O says about the calendar this year.

Ten years of stories! Yikes, where does the time go?
When the first Short Story Advent Calendar launched, in 2015, we frankly had no clue we’d still be sitting here today, continuing to offer up batches of tasty stories fresh from the oven. To celebrate this milestone, we’ve packed the 10th SSAC with a mix of new and familiar names—ideal company for those chilly winter nights ahead.

The author of this story was Marjorie Bowen.  Each day has an online component with the author with a brief interview.  Although today doesn’t have an interview just this blurb:

It’s December 13. Marjorie Bowen, a prolific British author who wrote more than 150 historical romances, popular history, and supernatural and horror stories, died in 1952 and did not respond to requests for comment.

I was recently saying that it’s interesting how ghost stories seem to be a part of Christmas tradition (more so in England it seems) that has gone by the wayside (A Christmas Carol notwithstanding).

But here’s a good old-fashioned ghost story from 1931.

And like a good British story from the 1930s, there’s great character names: Martha, Mabel and Clara Pym.

The story surrounds a set of china that Martha bought in an estate sale.  She was missing one piece which has always bothered her.

She had purchased the china from the Hartley house which is now believed to be haunted.  There’s an eccentric old woman living there now.  When they say that she collects china, Martha plans to talk to her about china and hopes that maybe that missing piece has turned up.

The conversation between Martha and the eccentric old woman is a masterful back and forth of Martha talking about reality and the old woman talking about something other than the real world, but which Martha doesn’t quite catch.  (I wonder if audiences in the 1930s would have caught on to that or if a hundred years of ghost stories have made it more obvious now).

Nothing overly dramatic happens, but it is meant to give you the willies, which is fun.