Just in time for spooky season, let’s celebrate R.L. Stine’s 80th birthday and all things scary! Who doesn’t recall diving into the creepy world of Goosebumps in middle school? Stine's masterful way of having the right amount of scare mixed with humor has made this series a hit for over 30 years. It's no surprise that his books have inspired TV shows and movie spinoffs over the years, including the newest Goosebumps series remake.
In celebration of all the shivers he’s given us over the years, here are some Stine-tingling inspired reads for children of all ages.
Fiction for Older Readers
Night of the Living Dummy introduced us to one of the most popular characters to come out of Goosebumps - Slappy, the creepy wooden dummy.
After spending most of my childhood scared of La Llorona, an old Mexican folk legend, I couldn’t wait to read Paola Santiago and the River of Tears! Science-loving Paola’s nightmares and her mother’s superstitions and folklore become a reality when her friend goes missing from the river. Will she be able to embrace the folklore and magic needed to solve the mystery?
Ollie never imagined what she unleashed when she took the book from the woman by the river and finds herself obsessed with the story inside. Will Ollie take the strange women’s advice and keep to Small Spaces even when her class is stranded in the middle of the cornfields surrounded by creepy scarecrows?
Fiction for Younger Readers
In the beginner chapter book Beneath the Bed and Other Scary Stories, you will enjoy five spooky stories. Find out what is beneath the bed, what happens when toys are left outside, is that scratching noise outside the window just wind and more!
A forest in the night, an abandoned house and a skull are just a part of what Otilla encounters the night she runs away. Author Jon Klassen gives a traditional Tyrolean folktale a spooky spin in The Skull.
Picture Books
House worries that her squeaks and creaks will make people think she’s haunted. Read Hardly Haunted to see if House ever finds a family to go from a haunted house to a haunted home.
You’ll love the small inquisitive scientist, Victoria Franken, and sidekick, Igor, in Frankenslime and the slime recipes included at the end to enjoy with your own scientist. Just make sure it doesn’t come alive like Victoria’s!
What is your favorite R.L. Stine book for kids, or a recent spooky tale you've enjoyed?
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