I have been woefully behind in scary books for kids as my son has gotten a bit older. However, that’s a huge mistake as so many good books have come out since then. Here’s a quick list of some that look very interesting, even to me. – GracieKat
5 Books That Look Creepily Interesting
A Guide to the Other Side
A boy and his ghostly twin sister work together to pass messages from the beyond in this funny paranormal debut.
There are a few things you should know about Baylor Bosco: He’s thirteen-years-old, he has a twin sister, and he really does NOT like ghosts…which is problematic because he’s a medium and sees ghosts everywhere.
Oh, and his twin sister, Kristina? She’s a ghost too.
They’ve been working as a pair for years, expertly relaying messages from ghosts to their still-living loved ones. Baylor’s even managed to come up with an introductory phrase—one that he has to use far too often.
But when a strange ghost shows up close to Halloween, a grown man, covered in a sheet, with only his black leather shoes showing from the bottom, Baylor starts to wonder if something else has taken notice of him. And when his sister goes missing, somehow ghost-napped, he’s forced to figure out the truth about the Sheet Man and his sister’s disappearance, all without his usual ghostly ambassador.
Always October
From Bruce Coville, the master of tween comic suspense, comes a tale of monsters, the bond between brothers, and saving the world.
Jake’s baby brother, LD, may be a monster (complete with fangs and fur!), but together with his best friend, Lily, Jake isn’t going to let anything happen to that baby. Even if it turns out LD may be the key to saving the world—or destroying it. Soon Jake and Lily are on a perilous quest through Always October, a land populated with monsters.
Perfect for fans of Bruce Coville’s beloved books, such as Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher, the Unicorn Chronicles series, and My Teacher Is an Alien series
Dr. Fell and the Playground of Doom
When the mysterious Dr. Fell moves into the abandoned house that had once been the neighborhood kids’ hangout, he immediately builds a playground to win them over. But as the ever-changing play space becomes bigger and more elaborate, the children and their parents fall deeper under the doctor’s spell.
Only Jerry, Nancy, and Gail are immune to the lure of his extravagant wonderland. And they alone notice that when the injuries begin to pile up on the jungle gym, somehow Dr. Fell is able to heal each one with miraculous speed. Now the three children must find a way to uncover the doctor’s secret power without being captivated by his trickery.
Fearsome Creatures of the Lumberwoods: Twenty Chilling Tales from the Wilderness
Just for kids, twenty bone-chilling tales about the most dangerous fantastical beasts in American folklore. Meet the Snoligoster, who feeds on the shadows of its victims. The Hodag, like a spiny-backed bull-horned rhinoceros. The Hoop Snake, which can chase prey at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour and then, with one sting of its tail, cause it to turn purple, swell up, and die.
Illustrated throughout, including eight drawings printed with glow-in-the-dark ink, Fearsome Creatures of the Lumberwoods is for every young reader who loves a good scare. The book was originally published in 1910 by William Thomas Cox and is now inspiringly retold by Hal Johnson, author of Immortal Lycanthropes. The creatures are all scales and claws, razor-sharp teeth and stealth, camouflage and single-minded nastiness. Straight out of the era of Paul Bunyan, they speak to an earlier time in American history, when the woods were indeed dark and deep and filled with mystery. The tone is smart and quirky. The illustrations have a sinewy, retro field-guide look. Read them around a campfire, if you dare.
Ghosts and Goblins: Scary Stories from Around the World
How do you make friends with a hungry troll? Can one boy scare away the ghost in the library? This collection of traditional tales goes spooky with scary stories from cultures around the world.
Have you guys read any of them? I will confess that even though my son has outgrown most of these, I haven’t. Let us know which ones look interesting to you!
Another one I picked up at my favorite used book store is Splat The Cat What Was That by Rob Scotton. It’s a creepy fun story and it’s a lift the flap book. Lots of cute pictures underneath the flaps.
I haven’t read any of these…yet. LOL Thanks for sharing them. I just finished a fun one called Monster Manor by Anita Valle. Got it free on Amazon. I think you’d like it. Might still be free too.
Thanks! I’ll check it out! If you can find the Nina Tanleven series by Bruce Coville I highly recommend it. It’s cute and creepy and I love ‘Nine’ and her best friend. The first book in the series is called ‘The Ghost in the Third Row’.
The ‘Dr. Fell’ book looks interesting, but I would be more likely to read the anthologies of old stories. 🙂
I actually read some of the Dr. Fell book (If not all off it, it’s been a while) and liked what I read. It had good atmosphere.