Read the simplified summary of “Dey Ain’t No Ghosts” by Ellis Parker Butler — a humorous and spooky story of little Mose, a scared boy living near graveyards. Discover how he faces his fear of ghosts on Halloween night. Perfect for literature lovers, students, and ghost story fans searching for short ghost stories in English.
Once upon a time, there was a little Black boy named Mose. When he got old enough to reach the knees of a mule, he started getting really scared of ghosts. That’s because he lived in a place that felt spooky—there was a graveyard in the valley, a burial ground on the hill, and a cemetery in between. The whole area was full of trees, except for a clearing near his little house and down in the hollow where the pumpkin patch was.
At night, the place got very quiet. The only sounds were the rain doves calling out, “Oo-oo-o-o-o!” in a soft, spooky way… the owls saying, “Who-whoo-o-o-o!” even scarier… and the wind whispering, “You-you-o-o-o!” which was the scariest of all. It was a really creepy place for a little boy like Mose.
Mose was so dark-skinned that no one could see him at night, except for the whites of his eyes. That’s why, when he went outside after dark, he never closed his eyes—if he did, no one could see him at all. He’d be completely invisible! And what if a big ghost bumped into him just because it couldn’t see him? That would terrify little Mose, because everyone knows ghosts are cold and damp and really scary.
So whenever Mose had to go outside at night, he kept his eyes wide open. During the day, his eyes were as big as butter pats. At sunset, they got as big as saucers. But at night, they were the size of a big white china plate on the mantel! And it’s really hard to keep eyes that big from blinking.
So, when Halloween came, Mose decided he wasn’t going outside at all. He planned to stay safely inside the house with his mom and dad. The doves were already warning that ghosts were roaming around, crying “Oo-oo-o-o-o!” and the owls went “Who-whoo-o-o-o!” and the wind moaned “You-you-o-o-o!” Mose’s eyes were as big as the white plate on the mantel, and the sun was just setting…