The Monkey's Paw: Short Story

As the old adage goes: Be careful what you wish for.Mr. White and his son Herbert White are playing chess, Mrs. White knitting by the fireplace, as they await an old friend's arrival, Sergeant-Major Morris. Morris is quite the raconteur, telling stories from his trips to India where he came across a monkey's paw. He tells of a holy man, a fakir, that placed a spell on the paw that granted three wishes to three men. The first man to wish upon the talisman has died, Morris explains, and he himself has used up his three wishes. The White family begin asking questions about the paw, and Morris subsequently throws the paw into the fire. Mr. White quickly removes the paw, and Morris warns him of the consequences if he follows through with it. Mr. White does not heed his warning and makes his three wishes.Wow! I absolutely loved this short story, and it is indeed short. I don't know for sure how many words but it feels well under a thousand. The late W.W. Jacobs does a wonderful job of making every word count, though. This story reminds me of Richard Matheson's short story BUTTON, BUTTON that was originally published in Playboy magazine in 1970 and the catalyst for the 2009 movie THE BOX. It's a great movie, by the way. I have not seen any movies based on THE MONKEY'S PAW, but as well known as this story is, I'm sure there are several out there.***SPOILER WARNING***I was also reminded of Stephen King's novel PET SEMATARY where Louis Creed's grief is so strong that he takes his dead son Gage to the Indian burial ground for resurrection. In my opinion, the one line that evokes the purest emotion is where Jud, Louis's neighbor, tells Louis, "Sometimes, dead is better."

I read this a long time ago. Its power faded with my memory. Now it is refreshed. A quick read. When I had finished, I read it again. Worth my time.

Shorter than I expected, but very spooky and entertaining. The ending was a bit too abrupt. Worth reading at least once.

I read this many years ago and always remembered it. It was fun to read it again.

Short and bitter. Will stay with you after the sun comes up. You can tell it influenced a lot of writers.

I thought the ending was too predictable.

I seen many references to this story. I finally got to read the story, and im satisfied. Be Careful what you wish for.

Great short story. Came across it reading the Dead Zone by Stephen King!

Fantastic old horror story, try it - if you dare!!! Only short and to the point give it a go!

Easy to read short story. The last part keeps you on yours toes. A little warm up for halloween! Only 28 pages so won't take long to read.

Disturbing story which has clearly proved the inspiration for many other writers (Stephen King - Pet Sematary I suspect was inspired by this). If you like stories with shocking twists then you will enjoy

I would recommend 6.5. Stayed with me for days!😄Splendid. Beautifully written 😇simply wonderful yet petrified at its tale which without doubt amazing

I remember reading this as a child in some horror anthology of my mum's. I must have read hundreds of scary tales, but this is one of the few which stayed in my head. So simple, and yet so terrifying. We fear what we see with our mind's eye so much more than what we see with our physical eye.

Looking forward to reading this classic story.

An Excellent read. Lots of twists and turns and the suspense is maintained throughout. I'm using it for GCSE teaching.

Really good, traditional spooky story. Great value too!

Ok

Brilliant book only a short story but really good ....it keeps you on the edge you want to know more ......what would you do with 3 wishes

I enjoyed it. It's an oldie but a goodie. I twill take about 20 minutes to read, but it's actually quite thought provoking.

This is only a very short read, but nonetheless enjoyable. If you have a spare 15 to 20 minutes on a cold winters night I thoroughly recommend it.

A short read but very exciting! Keeps you gripped to the end. Definitely one to share and discuss with friends.

Interesting

A lovely creepy ghost story! A timely warning to be careful what you wish for!