Jacqueline West's Blog, page 8

Scattershot

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

I've been a terrible blogger lately.  In my defense, it's been a crazy month: Four school visits, a week-long writing residency at a magnet school, revision work on two novels, a trip to Seattle, play rehearsals, choir concerts…  (And this journal isn't the only thing that's been neglected.  The dust is so thick, every flat surface in my house appears to have been painted a soft, mousy gray.  There are clothes that I don't even recognize anymore turning up in my slowly emptying laundry hampers.)

But I will be shifting from terrible to slightly-less-terrible in the very near future.  Yes — I shall attempt to post at least once a day for the two months leading up to the release of THE SECOND SPY.  (July 5!)  Until then, however, I'll be revising, traveling, and letting the dust have its mousy way.

On the third day of my residency with the fourth-graders at Glacier Hills Elementary School of Arts and Sciences in Eagan, MN, KARE11 News (the Twin Cities' NBC affiliate) came to film our activities and interview teachers and students.  You can watch the segment here:

These kids were a joy to work with, and I was absolutely blown away by everything that they were able to accomplish.

A new review of THE SHADOWS has appeared on the fantastic YA/MG blog Novel Novice.

And, in a rare bit of poetry news, I was delighted to learn that I've been nominated for the Science Fiction Poetry Association's Rhysling Award, for my piece "Escaping the Dawn," which appeared in Cover of Darkness in May 2011.  Past winners include writers like Jane Yolen, Gene Wolfe, and Catherynne M. Valente, so it's much more than a cliche to say that it's an honor just to be nominated.

 

Hello, Goodbye

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

I almost (ALMOST!) titled this entry "It Was the Best of Times…" but then I sort of wanted to kick myself.

So, the sad news first:

After eight years in business, my town's independent bookshop, Best of Times, has closed its doors for good.  As sad as this makes me (and everyone else in town), it naturally wasn't a shock; we all know how hard it has become for independent, small town stores of all kinds to survive in this age of online mega-retailers and economic insanity.  The few independent brick-and-mortar bookstores that seem to be keeping their heads above water (yes, I know bookstores don't actually have heads, and I know brick buildings very seldom go swimming in the first place, but I'm feeling too sad and lazy to look for another idiom), like Portland's Powell's and Austin's BookPeople, are massive places that can offer everything the big chains provide: cafes, lots of space and seating, fancy websites, and nearly every book you're looking for, right there on the shelves.  But the indies can also provide many things the big chains don't — or can't. And the smaller indie shops — like Best of Times — provide things that even the larger one-of-a-kind shops can't, like knowing the name of practically every customer who walks in, keeping local interest and small press books in stock, and hosting events for newer, lesser-known writers…like me.  Best of Times held the release parties for THE SHADOWS and SPELLBOUND, and they kept a signed stock of copies in the store for in-person and online orders.  A ridiculous, windmill-jousting part of me daydreams about opening a bookstore myself one day (other authors have done it!  Like Louise Erdrich! And Garrison Keillor!  And that's just in the Twin Cities!), but I know that would require a set of skills and an investment of time and energy and love that I don't have…at least, not now.

So I'll just be sad.  And miss them.

I got back to Red Wing just in time to attend the bookstore's goodbye party, after spending two weeks in Plano, Texas, visiting elementary schools.  To all the librarians, parents, teachers, and students who hosted me: THANK YOU.  It was a joy.

And, once I got home, more good news was waiting to spring on me:

First, THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE, VOLUME TWO: SPELLBOUND has been selected as a finalist in the Young People's Category of the Minnesota Book Awards. THE SHADOWS was a finalist last year, which already felt too good to be true, but making the list two years in a row???  I was pretty sure that there had been a mistake, a la CHIME and SHINE at the National Book Awards.  Perhaps there was a Jacquelyn East on the nominees list.   Or maybe someone had written a book called SMELLHOUND.  (Now that I've double-checked the list, and seen the news in the Star Tribune and on the Awards website, I'm starting to believe that they did actually mean me, but it still feels too good to be true — because there is some amazing writing coming out of Minnesota these days, especially in the kids' lit area: Anne Ursu, Pete Hautman, Lynne Jonell, Kelly Barnhill, Sheila O'Connor…  I'm happy just to share general weather patterns with these people.)

Second, THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE, VOLUME ONE: THE SHADOWS has won a place on the master list of the Illinois Bluestem Award.  Like the Texas Bluebonnet and the Louisiana Young Readers' Choice Awards, the award is given based on the votes of young readers (which is already very cool), but the best part is that the book will be promoted in libraries and schools around the state.

And Brom Bones was very happy to have me come home.

 

Year's End

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

This year, rather than a list of resolutions (and believe me, I have many), I thought I would tally the reading/writing things I’ve managed to accomplish.  Some of them represent the fulfillment of last year’s resolutions (Book Three has been revised without undue emotional distress!  The dratted play has been finished, and titled!), some waver in that scribbly gray place between success and failure, and some have nothing to do with resolutions at all.  Here goes.

What I Wrote in 2011:

Short stories: 4  (I am happy with one of these, semi-happy with another, and vaguely dissatisfied with the remainder.)
Poems: 19 (I only like two of them.)
Novels: 3 (One is revised, edited, and FINISHED, one is substantially revised but probably several steps from done, and one is in first draft form.)
Plays: 1 (A surprise, even to myself.)

What I Read in 2011:
(Titles in bold represent a reread; titles with an asterisk were read aloud to Ryan)

THE POISONWOOD BIBLE – Barbara Kingsolver
THE WIND-UP BIRD CHRONICLE – Haruki Murakami
FRAGMENTS – Marilyn Monroe
TALES OF THE CITY (three volumes) , SURE OF YOU, SIGNIFICANT OTHERS, MICHAEL TOLLIVER LIVES, MARY ANN IN AUTUMN
LITTLE DORRITT – Charles Dickens
SHORT STORIES – O. Henry
SKIPPING STONES AT THE CENTER OF THE EARTH – Andy Hueller
SCHULZ AND PEANUTS – David Michelis
SORCERY AND CECELIA, OR THE ENCHANTED CHOCOLATE POT – Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer
UNPACKING THE BOXES – Donald Hall
THE BIG SLEEP – Raymond Chandler
THE WIKKELING – Steven Arntsen
THE BLACK DAHLIA – James Ellroy
BACKLASH – Susan Faludi
SULA – Toni Morrison
MOON OVER MANIFEST – Clare Vanderpool
THE EDIBLE WOMAN – Margaret Atwood
THE PASSAGE* – Justin Cronin
A HOME AT THE END OF THE WORLD – Michael Cunningham
SPLIT – Swati Avasthi
AT HOME* – Bill Bryson
NOW AND FOREVER – Ray Bradbury
GUNN’S GOLDEN RULES – Tim Gunn
THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF ALICE B. TOKLAS – Gertrude Stein
CHARMED LIFE – Dianna Wynne Jones
THE IGGYSSEY – Daniel Pinkwater
THE FINAL SOLUTION* – Michael Chabon
PRINCE OF STORIES: THE MANY WORLDS OF NEIL GAIMAN – Hank Wagner, Christopher Golden, and Stephen R. Bissette
GODLESS – Pete Hautman
FIND THE GIRL – Lightsey Darst
BOOKY WOOK 2 – Russell Brand
THE REPLACEMENT – Brenna Yovanoff
MY NEW ORLEANS – Rosemary James, ed.
ROALD DAHL’S BOOK OF GHOST STORIES – Roald Dahl, ed.
FEET ON THE STREET: RAMBLES AROUND NEW ORLEANS – Roy Blount Jr.
DARK PLACES* – Gillian Flynn (read twice in a row, second time aloud)
THE STRAIN* – Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
THE BORROWERS – Mary Norton
TO CHARLES FORT, WITH LOVE* – Caitlyn R. Kiernan (reread a few months later, aloud)
WHERE ONE VOICE ENDS, ANOTHER BEGINS: 150 YEARS OF MINNESOTA POETRY – Robert Hedin, ed.
GRIMM’S FAIRY TALES
IN THE GARDEN OF BEASTS* – Erik Larson
SELECTED WRITINGS OF GERTRUDE STEIN
SIGHTSEER – Cynthia Marie Hoffman
THE WRITER’S DESK – Jill Krementz
LIFE – Keith Richards
AMERICAN THIGHS – Jill Connor Browne
PORTRAITS AND OBSERVATIONS – Truman Capote
SHARP OBJECTS*  – Gillian Flynn
THE 2011 RHYSLING ANTHOLOGY – David Lunde, ed.
BOSSYPANTS* – Tina Fey
DEATHLESS – Catherynne M. Valente
THE CRYING OF LOT 49 – Thomas Pynchon
A GIRL NAMED ZIPPY* – Haven Kimmel
SMILLA’S SENSE OF SNOW – Peter Hoeg
IODINE – Haven Kimmel
TIMEQUAKE – Kurt Vonnegut
SHE GOT UP OFF THE COUCH* – Haven Kimmel
EVERY LAST ONE – Anna Quindlen
LOVE AND OTHER IMPOSSIBLE PURSUITS – Ayelet Waldman
THE HOUSE NEXT DOOR – Anne Rivers Siddons
LONG QUIET HIGHWAY: WAKING UP IN AMERICA – Natalie Goldberg
THOUGHTS IN SOLITUDE – Thomas Merton
WISHFUL DRINKING – Carrie Fischer
TROLL’S EYE VIEW – Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, eds.
MENNONITE IN A LITTLE BLACK DRESS – Rhoda Janzen
SWEETBLOOD – Pete Hautman
FREETHINKERS* – Susan Jacoby
OTHER VOICES, OTHER ROOMS – Truman Capote
FEVER 1793 – Laurie Halse Anderson
THE THIEF OF ALWAYS* – Clive Barker
GONE WITH A HANDSOMER MAN – Michael Lee West
ANSWERED PRAYERS – Truman Capote
THE GOBLIN WAR – Hilari Bell
AND THEN THINGS FALL APART – Arlaina Tibensky
QUEEN BEES AND WANNABEES – Rosalind Wiseman
THE GOBLIN GATE – Hilari Bell
THE GOBLIN WAR – Hilari Bell
THE TIME WARP TRIO: THE NOT-SO-JOLLY ROGER – John Szieska
THE MOSTLY TRUE STORY OF JACK – Kelly Barnhill
MODEL – Michael Gross
THE WOMAN IN BLACK – Susan Hill
THE HAPPY PRINCE AND OTHER STORIES – Oscar Wilde
THE TIME WARP TRIO: THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE GOOFY – John Szieska
SILK* – Caitlyn R. Kiernan
RAT GIRL – Kristin Hersh
THE BEAUTY MYTH – Naomi Wolf
BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE – Kate DiCamillo
ENCYCLOPEDIA GOTHICA – Liisa Ladouceur
STRANGE CANDY – Laurell K. Hamilton
THE AGE OF AMERICAN UNREASON – Susan Jacoby
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CZECH LANDS TO 2000 – Petr Cornej and Jiri Pokorny
THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH – Norton Juster
THE DAY OF THE PELICAN – Katherine Paterson
DESIDERIA – Nicole Kornher-Stace
BACH, BEETHOVEN, AND THE BOYS: MUSIC HISTORY AS IT OUGHT TO BE TAUGHT – David W. Barber
THE HUNGER GAMES* – Susanne Collins
FINISHING THE HAT – Stephen Sondheim
CATCHING FIRE* – Susanne Collins

The two books that made the strongest impact on me–that ended up being the sort of book I wanted to gift wrap and force into the hands of everyone I know–were Gillian Flynn’s DARK PLACES and Susan Jacoby’s FREETHINKERS.  I can’t say enough about DARK PLACES; the voice, the characterization, the atmosphere, and the plotting are all pitch-perfect.  It’s brutally beautiful and beautifully brutal.  FREETHINKERS was fascinating, simultaneously frightening and encouraging, and full of incredibly important things to keep in mind as the U.S. continues to redefine its identity.

There.  That’s what I got done this year.

I wish everyone a 2012 full of adventures and discovery and joy.  And speaking of joy, here is Brom Bones, enjoying his largest Christmas present.

Volume Three has a cover! And a title! And a release date!

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

And here it is:

THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE, VOLUME THREE: THE SECOND SPY.

Gorgeous, isn't it?  Poly Bernatene just keeps making me happier and happier.  Check out the three volumes, all lined up together–

THE SECOND SPY will be released on July 5, 2012.  It's already available for pre-order from Amazon, but I hope you'll buy or pre-order it from your favorite local bookstore.  (BTW, Here's an interesting blog about one of Amazon's latest schemes, written by an independent bookstore owner.)  Of course, you could also order a signed copy through my own local bookshop, Best of Times, once the book is released…

When I visit schools, kids often ask me which of my own books is my favorite, and I always say that it's the one I'm planning to write next, which is still pure dream and excitement and potential, without any flaws in it (yet).  And this is the truth.  But it's also true that I had a ridiculous amount of fun while writing THE SECOND SPY, and I can't wait until it's out there in the world, being read by people I've never met.

My copies of the Greek and Catalan translations of THE SHADOWS recently arrived — and here they are, atop my Christmassy tablecloth.

(It's a wonderfully odd thing not to be able to read a single word of your own book.)

In other fiction news, I've just sold a short story, "The Emperor's Nightingale" (a sort of dystopian/environmental retelling of  Anderson's fairy tale) to Aoife's Kiss, and am looking forward to seeing it published next summer.

Tomorrow is the Anderson Center's Holiday Celebration of the Arts.   I'll be there from noon to five, signing and selling copies of THE SHADOWS, SPELLBOUND, and CHERMA.  If you're in the Red Wing area and are looking for unique Christmas gifts, come and visit; the beauty of the Anderson Center itself makes it worth the trip.

 

 

Simpsonian Ramblings

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

I meant to post this a week ago, but between revising, pie-baking, family reunion-ing, and Christmas play and concert rehearsing, there has been no time left for blogging. So here it is, pathetically late…

I am a Simpsons fanatic. I can quote seasons 1 – 8 practically verbatim, and countless Simpsons references have become part of my personal vocabulary. ("Unpossible"; "Boo-urns"; "[Person X] cares not for beans!"  "Cranberry sauce a la Bart"… The list goes on.  And on.  And on.  I also once named a pet snail "Bort.")  However, I haven't watched the show for the last twelve seasons.  However, however, I did watch Episode #492 (Good lord, can there really be that many?), "The Book Job," because if The Simpsons is going to base an episode around trends in young adult writing and have Neil Gaiman as a guest star, I am going to watch it.

There are plenty of quirks in YA/kids lit that the show could have targeted.  As it turned out, they focused on a fairly esoteric one: group ghostwriting, or book packaging, in which a team uses market research to write and sell a trendy book, with a semi-imaginary "author" to be the face or figurehead of the whole business — a sort of book world Betty Crocker.   Frankly, other than those long-running series like Nancy Drew and Sweet Valley Technical School or whatever it's called now, and the novels "written" by teenaged TV/pop music stars, and whatever it is exactly that James Patterson does, this formula doesn't seem to be all that prevalent (at least, not yet).  And it wasn't the idea of book packaging as presented by "The Book Job" that interested me, anyway.  It was the idea of the author as Betty Crocker figurehead/mascot/advertising character, and the differences between writers as authors and writers as human beings.

When I visit schools, I talk about why I didn't believe I could be a writer when I grew up.  I was an imaginative, book-obsessed child, and yet I never planned to be an author myself.  I believed in stories so entirely, I never really bought the idea that ordinary human beings could have simply made them up and written them down.  Those names on the covers of the books I loved were just names, without real people behind them — or, if they were people, they were magical, otherworldly, romantic versions of people, hardly human at all.  (Even now, I expect writers to have a spellbinding, larger-than-life presence… Ridiculous, I know, especially when I spend so much of my own time in too-large socks and slightly smudged glasses, microwaving a third cup of coffee and feeling so much smaller than life.  But it's true.)

And perhaps an author should disappear into his or her work that way.

The episode's idea that a hot "tween" book needs a giant author photo on the back cover, complete with an intriguing biography for marketing purposes, doesn't quite hold water.  Everybody has heard J.K. Rowling's amazing tale — the penniless single mother suddenly struck with inspiration, scribbling away in Edinburgh coffee shops — but her books would be just as popular without that background.  And there aren't many other author biographies that have become common knowledge in that way.   Perhaps that's because the backstory of many–if not most–authors is so much duller.   It seems to go something like this: "I sat down at a desk.  I wrote.  Then I wrote some more."

It's work, not romance, that creates a book.  The story you write is the story.

As a child, I didn't care who A. A. Milne was; if he was a man or a woman, old or young.  Ditto Roald Dahl.  (In my mind, he was sort of a living, ever-changing Quentin Blake sketch.)  I still remember my surprise when I saw a photograph of L.M. Montgomery for the first time and realized that she didn't look exactly like Anne Shirley.  I vaguely assumed that Stan and Jan Berenstain were bears.  I was shocked to learn that John Bellairs had died before my sixth grade class could send him our fan letters, because in my mind, he wasn't mortal in the first place.  And maybe that's the highest sort of praise a reader can give: To believe in a writer's work so completely that they forget the writer exists at all.

BTW, the whole "Book Job" episode can now be found here.

Oh, and Lisa's writing routine?  –That part rang 100% true.

Austin, brief updates, and the end of the Accidental Pumpkins

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

I am running behind in all things, blogging included, but I'm managing to gather together a few links and photos and newsy bits to assemble something that's not-quite-an-actual-blog.  But it's close.  Close-ish.

I spent November 7 – 11 in Austin, Texas, visiting several elementary schools in the Round Rock school district and having a marvelous time.  Thank you again to all the students, librarians, teachers, and parents who made the trip so special.  Now I'm home in snowy Minnesota (we had the first big storm of the season last night), frantically catching up with correspondence, typing the last pages of the still semi-secret YA project–more detailed news about that soon, I hope–rehearsing for Phoenix Theatre's Christmas production of "Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus," and making up for lost time with Brom Bones, who was very, very glad that we came back.

(Walking in Austin at night, and working on the Secret Project at Spider House Cafe.)

Two new reviews of The Shadows have turned up: A splendid one from National Geographic Kids here, and a mostly very positive one from the blog Muggle-Born here.

Other good news on the poetry front: One of my superstition pieces will be included in Issue #4 (out in December) of the journal Fantastique Unfettered, amid some awfully shiny company: http://www.fantastique-unfettered.com/2011/11/issue-four-aka-ralewing-table-of.html

And, before Halloween becomes any more embarrassingly distant, here is a photo depicting the fate of our Accidental Pavement Pumpkins.

 

 

All Hallows Read, Part Three

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

Thanks, all, for the many marvelous All Hallows Read recommendations!  Several of you mentioned books that I've loved, too–books that helped me learn to read (The Berenstain Bears), a book I smuggled off of my grandma's shelves and devoured while hiding behind an armchair (Flowers in the Attic), a book I pored over again and again during high school and college (Frankenstein–Drat that eighteen-year-old prodigy Mary Shelley!), a book I loved so much I named my dog after it (The Legend of Sleepy Hollow; Brom Bones heartily endorses this particular choice), and books I read while wedged into a corner so that nothing could sneak up behind me (basically anything by Stephen King).

Without further ado, the randomly selected winners of the giveaway are:

1. Andrea Polk

2. Brenda Tjaden

Winners, please send me your postal addresses (via jacqueline@jacquelinewest.com) so that I can put your books in the mail ASAP.   (Or perhaps that should be ITTBRUTCWAFOHN — In Time To Be Read Under The Covers With A Flashlight On Halloween Night.)

All Hallows Read, Part Two

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

It's time to try something I haven't tried before: A giveaway.

Yes, in the spirit of All Hallows Read (http://jacquelinewest.com/blog/www.allhallowsread.com), I am offering two gift packages full of Halloween-y literature.

The first package will include a signed hardcover copy of The Books of Elsewhere, Volume One: The Shadows, a signed ARC (Advance Reading Copy: a paperback version of a book that is issued before the book's official release, so that reviewers, booksellers, and other literary people can get an early look) of The Books of Elsewhere, Volume Two: Spellbound, and a brand-new softcover copy of one of my childhood favorites: Bunnicula, by James Howe.

The second package will include a signed hardcover copy of The Books of Elsewhere, Volume Two: Spellbound, and a fresh-from-the-bookshop paperback of Avi's The Seer of Shadows, a ghost story rich with art and atmosphere.

What do you have to do to win?  Just leave a comment on this blog–at WordPress, at LiveJournal, or via Goodreads–with the title of your own favorite frightening read (and, of course, your name) by Tuesday, October 25th, one week from today.  I'll pick winners at random, post the names/contact the recipients, and put the books in the mail as soon as the winners email me with postal addresses.  Ideally they will arrive in time for Halloween, when you can give them to other readers you love, or keep them for yourself.

And speaking of The Shadows, here's a lovely new review: http://jeanlittlelibrary.blogspot.com/2011/10/read-scary-books-of-elsewhere-shadows.html.

And, AND, speaking of Halloween and books and other fun things, if you are within driving distance of River Falls, Wisconsin, don't forget to stop by Karma Gifts from 1:00 – 3:00 on Saturday, October 29th for the Books of Elsewhere signing, reading, an art contest, and autumn treats!

 

All Hallow's Read

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

A year ago, Neil Gaiman blogged about the lack of traditions involving books and proposed starting a brand-new one: Giving each other scary books for Halloween.   Other bloggers replied (some of them recommending my book, which in turn was tangentially mentioned on Mr. Gaiman's blog, making me squeal with delirious delight), the idea spread, reading lists were generated, and websites were born.  Behold: www.allhallowsread.com. Without further ado, here is my completely unsolicited list of 2011 All Hallow's Read recommendations for young readers.

For younger readers:

Bunnicula, by James Howe.  Its sequels, Howliday Inn, The Celery Stalks at Midnight, and Nighty Nightmare (honestly, the titles alone should tell you how awesome they are) are also fabulous, funny and scary — my favorite combination.  As kids, my brothers and I read the covers off of these books.

The Witches.  This may be my favorite book by Road Dahl, which is sort of like saying "This is my favorite cup of coffee" when there's a whole pot of the delicious stuff sitting right beside you, but this is Dahl at his darkest, twisted-est best.

The House with a Clock in its Walls, by John Bellairs.  Mysterious old houses.  Unexpected magic.  Edward Gorey illustrations.  Enough said.

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, retold by Alvin Schwartz and illustrated by Steven Gammell.  My fourth grade friends and I pored over these books.  We read them aloud at slumber parties; we shuddered over Gammell's artwork — to this day, I don't think I've seen a still image that has frightened me more.  This book and its two sequels left a serious scar on my already overactive imagination.  ("The Wendigo"?  I can't even type that title without looking over my shoulder.)

Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury.  This feels to me like the dark counterpart to Dandelion Wine: gorgeous, eerie, and wonderful. (Or, of course, you could get my books.) And speaking of All Hallow's Read: Karma Gifts, a great indie shop in downtown River Falls, Wisconsin (about 40 minutes drive from the Twin Cities, for you urban folk) will be hosting me for a special Halloween event on Saturday, October 29, at 1:00 p.m.  The Shadows and Spellbound will be available (though it wouldn't hurt to pre-purchase or reserve your copy), and I'll be signing books, reading aloud, chatting, and answering questions.  See http://jacquelinewest.com/blog/www.karmagifts.co or http://www.facebook.com/pages/Karma-Gifts/124160727248 for more information.  Fall treats!  Art projects!  Local business!  Come on down!

All Hallow’s Read

Originally published at Jacqueline West. You can comment here or there.

A year ago, Neil Gaiman blogged about the lack of traditions involving books and proposed starting a brand-new one: Giving each other scary books for Halloween.   Other bloggers replied (some of them recommending The Shadows, which in turn was tangentially mentioned on Mr. Gaiman’s blog, making me squeal with delirious delight), the idea spread, reading lists were generated, and websites were born.  Behold: www.allhallowsread.com.

I will jump all over this bandwagon.

And so, without further ado, here is my completely unsolicited list of 2011 All Hallow’s Read recommendations for young readers.

 

Bunnicula, by James Howe.  Its sequels, Howliday Inn, The Celery Stalks at Midnight, and Nighty Nightmare (the titles alone should tell you how awesome they are) are also fabulous, funny and scary — my favorite combination.  As kids, my brothers and I read the covers off of these books.

The Witches.  This may be my favorite book by Road Dahl, which is sort of like saying “This is my favorite cup of coffee” when there’s a whole pot of the delicious stuff sitting right beside you.  But this is Dahl at his darkest, twisted-est best.

The House with a Clock in its Walls, by John Bellairs.  Mysterious old houses.  Unexpected magic.  Edward Gorey illustrations.  Enough said.

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, retold by Alvin Schwartz and illustrated by Steven Gammell.  My fourth grade friends and I pored over these books.  We read them aloud at slumber parties; we shuddered over Gammell’s artwork — to this day, I don’t think I’ve seen a still image that has frightened me more.  This book and its two sequels left a serious scar on my already overactive imagination.  (“The Wendigo”?  I can’t even type that title without looking over my shoulder.)

Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury.  This feels to me like the dark counterpart to Dandelion Wine: gorgeous, eerie, and wonderful.

(Or, of course, you could get my books.)

And speaking of All Hallow’s Read: Karma Gifts, a great indie shop in downtown River Falls, Wisconsin (about 40 minutes drive from the Twin Cities, for you urban folk) will be hosting me for a special Halloween event on Saturday, October 29, at 1:00 p.m.  The Shadows and Spellbound will be available (though it wouldn’t hurt to pre-purchase or reserve your copy), and I’ll be signing books, reading aloud, chatting, and answering questions.  See http://jacquelinewest.com/blog/www.karmagifts.co or http://www.facebook.com/pages/Karma-Gifts/124160727248 for more information.  Fall treats!  Art projects!  Local business!  Come on down!