"The Boys' Toilets" by Robert Westall

“The Boys’ Toilets”
By Robert Westall
From Ghost Stories (1988)
Chosen by Robert Westall

Tagline: A haunting collection of supernatural tales.

This is a story about Rebeccah who attends an all-girl school.  When the heat breaks down in the school, Rebeccah and her friends must travel across town to the empty Harvest School across town. The Harvest School used to be a boys school and it is old and super creepy.

The girls are prepared to deal with this inconvenience until, one by one, the girls learn the bathroom is haunted. Rebeccah is the daughter of a minister and has some ideas about how to sort out this ghost.  She confronts it in the stall after it has turned itself into a toilet paper mummy!

Favorite Line

                “Some boys aren’t bad,” said Liza, ”if you can get them away from their friends.”             

                “Why bother,” said Vicki.  “I’ll settle for my poster of Duran Duran.”

The Spoiler Bits

(Highlight the paragraph below get the spoiler.)

While she has good intentions and tries to settle the ghost’s unresolved issues, he totally plays her. Rebeccah helps him get justice by finding his killer but she isn’t ready for the full cost of this endeavor. 

GOMS Classification

Level 10 Manifestation employing fantastic powers.

This ghost begins slowly, causing toilets to flush, but then becomes a full, figure incarnation using toilet paper.  He has a message to send and he is capable of putting a plan into action.

Scared Beyond the Books?  Yes!

Once I was in a public bathroom and two little girls opened the door to my stall and just stared at me.  Their mom was nearby but didn't notice.  I yelled at them to close the door and they stared at me blankly a little longer before finally closing the door.  If the same thing happened but the door was opened by a ghost... I don't need that kind of harassment, living or dead. 


Out of the Books

*When I read the title of this story I thought this was about a Japanese bathroom ghost. Why not? There are at least even types!!!!!!!  But then I found out this story takes place in England.  It wasn’t about Moaning Myrtle either.

*Ghost flushing is a real thing. Your toilet can flush on its own if it has a bad flapper.

Homeguides.sfgate.com

Plumbingandair

*Coke-heaps.  I had to look this up. I was sure they didn’t mean there were mounds of cocaine behind the school so I googled it. Now I know for sure they didn’t mean that.