To celebrate World Book Day, St Appollonia's is marking the event by holding a special Victorian day at the school, with all staff and pupils asked to dress up for the occasion. Mr Munro, the new supply teacher, is sent to teach a rather lively class but manages to keep them quiet and sitting still by telling them some sinister supernatural stories.

This is a collection of self-contained short stories framed by a larger narrative involving Mr Munro. Even though the tales aren't quite up to the standard of some of Chris Priestley's other works, e.g. Tales of Terror from the Black Ship in my opinion, they are nevertheless quite creepy, with the author managing to increase the tension and suspense in small degrees, creating a wonderful sense of foreboding and unease. My favourite in this collection was 'Lydia', with a marvellous twist that I didn't see coming. Though the narrative centring on Mr Munro also reveals an unexpected plot development, this is less successful as it doesn't appear to square with earlier passages, but it still manages to send a lovely shiver down your spine at the end of the book. ( )