Bumps in the Night

by Harry Allard, James Marshall (Illustrator)

Dudley the Stork's new house is haunted!

When the clock strikes twelve there are thumps in the den, creaks on the stairs, and bumps everywhere.

Dudley's friend Trevor Hog says Madam Kreepy will find out what's causing the spooky noises.

And so, just before midnight, Dudley's friends gather with Madam Kreepy.

No one can guess what will happen when the clock strikes twelve.


From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Banned Books, Childrens, Halloween, Fiction, Challenged Books, Chapter Books, Paranormal

48 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1979

About the author

Harry Allard was an American writer of children's books. Many of his books have received awards; a few have also been banned and challenged in the United States.

Reviews

[Evan Williamson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun little chapter book filled with strange animal characters and scary suspense, if you are learning to read.

[Thomas Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard is a book with some scary suspense in it. In the book, when the clock strikes at twelve there are thumps everywhere. The drawings are interesting the author used. There are quick and funny ghost stories written for beginning to read children as a first chapter book. This book contains a lot of surprises and mysterious events. I would give this book a four star rating because I thought it was a good children's book, but I didn't think it was anything amazing.

This book is censored/challenged because of the description of families in a derogatory manner. Allard also used a lot of encouraging disrespectful language and disobedience to parents which is not appropriate for elementary students. I don't think this book had a good message in it. Allard tried to keep the book cute with the illustrations but children don't understand the message behind it. I agree with the book being censored because of these reasons. This book is meant for ages six and older.

My opinion and usage of teaching this in the classroom setting would be the book should be banned because of the language and non-appropriate ideas it teaches to children at a young age. There is too much variety of supernatural issues going on in the book which should not be taught in the classroom. I would not feel ok with teaching a book that is on the top 100 banned children's books in the classroom.

[Erica McDonald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bump in the Night is an interesting story to say the least. It is a book that was written for children five and up, I would guess, and the story being about a little stork whose house is haunted… This was banned, rather it was challenged for various supernatural issues, being anti- family, and having offensive language. This is hard for me because being a believer of strong spirits I do believe that while you may be calling on a certain and special spirit a “séance” can open the door to many evil spirits as well. This book seems to encourage that sort of thing. I can see why it would be banned from the library and I do not think it would be a book that I would read to my class because then questions could come up on if I believe in these things and could get a little dicey about when to talk about spirits and souls especially in today’s society.

[✨Arline✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A strange but cute first chapter Book. May not be some people’s cup-o-tea—includes trances, a seance and ghosts.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I can see why some parents might object to this book. Dudley the Stork thinks his house is haunted when he hears odd noises in the night. His friend Trevor Hog suggests having a seance. During conversations in the text both the terms medium and seance are defined, and what occurs in a seance is described. It also talks about what ghosts are. This is the only book for young children--beginning readers--on this subject that I've ever come across. Its message seems to be that ghosts are not scary and can be friends. This idea goes back to Casper the Friendly Ghost, and I never heard of anyone objecting to him. However, since seances and mediums have at times been associated with evil, I can see why some parents may object to this. Frankly, I found the story amusing mostly for the characters, as James Marshall's illustrations add a touch of humor to it. Allard did try to inject some humor into the story as well. Overall, it was ok, not the best I've ever read, but an OK Halloween read.

[Malia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this as a part of Banned Books week 2018. I recognized the author from Miss Nelson is Missing, and the Illustrator from Space Case, my fave Reading Rainbow book. I was curious why this mildly spooky book ended up on the banned books list, but it became EXTREMELY APPARENT as soon as they planned a seance. Now I'm extra happy I read it because the Satanic Panic era is fascinating to me.

And the book itself is great! Funny, surprising, suspenseful.

[Capn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have so many questions.

1. Why do the sort of Bible-belt, book-banning types read GHOST STORIES in the classroom to begin with?!

2. Why do people who 'believe in strong spirits' and actually believe in the legitimacy of 'seances' (and think them dangerous or evil) celebrate Halloween?

3. More of a statement - you could just, you know, forgo all spooky/supernatural/ghostly content altogether and read another free book like Mr. Hermit Miser and the Neighborly Pumpkin at Halloween (SHOULD you be celebrating a pagan festival if you're prone to Satanic Panic?! The answer is 'probably not'.. It isn't a Biblical Feast, folks. Purim has costumes and candy, too, btw, and is something Jesus would have likely celebrated - John 5 is your ref., there)

I should like to take this opportunity to point out that this author wrote The Stupids series (The Stupids Step Out, The Stupids Have a Ball, The Stupids Die, The Stupids Take Off).

He didn't write "The Stupids Ban Books", but perhaps he should have. Fan-fic, anyone?

Bumps in the Night is a free read on OpenLibrary. It's nothing special, anyway you slice it.

(No, but seriously - why celebrate Halloween at all?! I don't get it! There's no obligation, surely!)

EDIT: Look, I feel bad criticizing, so here are some seasonal books available for free from OpenLibrary which have nothing to do with the supernatural, ghosts, or the paranormal. These would be a better choice for the sort of people who would object to 'Bumps in the Night':
The Biggest Pumpkin Ever
Autumn Story
Mr. Hermit Miser and the Neighborly Pumpkin - as mentioned previously
Rainflowers
Autumn Harvest
...just a few, off the top of my head. Anything about spiders or apples or falling leaves, really. Or the Jewish High Holidays - they're Biblical and in the autumn! Here's a list of books for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and Sukkot, etc. (it would be great fun to build a shelter for Sukkot, and educational, too!): https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

[Shan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really fun and perfectly spooky book! I will say, I definitely did not expect that ending, but I won't spoil it here! I think that other readers should have the joy of experiencing all that this book has to offer for themselves, just because it is such a joy to read. It's rare that you see a kids' book with so many paranormal elements to it, and I think that that could be what book banners are going after. And, honestly? Get over it, it's just a story anyways and it's simply for entertainment purposes. I genuinely think that many kids will have as much fun reading this book as I did, whether it's spooky season or not. Lastly, the illustrations were awesome! I loved how the illustrator worked with a limited color palette but still managed to breathe so much life into this book. Bravo!!

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This chapter book, in the form of a picture book, was wonderful. It is about a stork who thinks their house is haunted. They call up their friend Pig who says hire a medium and have a seance to figure out who the ghost is and what they want. Hilarity ensues. This book was just cute. It was a bit tongue in cheek with an older style comedy, that all worked well together. In the past this book was banned for occult teaching, and disobedience to parents. I see none of that here. Okay, the occult yes, but not in a bad way. In a real way, in a fun way. What I do see if a little issue with consent that I would address if this book were in my collection, but overall, this is a wonderful story I would love to have in my collection.

[TurningPages · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute, spooky fun. Loved the story and the adorable illustrations. Shocked that this book is frequently challenged/banned, but I guess the type of people who ban books are the same type of people who are beyond extra about anything vaguely "occult" or "queer." (The ghost - a male horse - gives the main character - a male stork - a kiss.) Anyway, I really enjoyed reading this silly little ghost story.

[Derek Kaellner · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun chapter book about Dudley the Stork and his night of insomnia and ghostly encounters. It's understandable why some schools placed this on the banned book list because of its seance scene and spooky atmosphere, but children with nighttime fears should read this book because it shows not all mysterious things are harmful.

[Amanda Hegel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book can be great for beginning readers because it is repetitive and has simple language. However, I can see how this book is on the challenged list because if taken the wrong way some of the wording and phrases can be taken in a different context and that would be inappropriate for young readers.

[Rick Weil · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clever book. People have fears often starting in childhood. With the story and illustrations the story is funny and supportive. Along with the fun is information new to children and then a medium with two ham sandwiches, gumdrops, yo-yo and a Special Hat!

[Marie Duke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is another of my banned reads which is absolutely ridiculous that it's banned. This book is silly. It's also a sweet way to show kids that what goes bump in the night isn't always scary.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

When all those strange bumps cause Dudley to lose sleep, his
friend Trevor Hog suggests he try a medium, an alligator named
Madam Kreepy. Madam Kreepy holds a seance with Dudley and his
friends to see who is causing the bumps. The ghost turns out to be
Donald the horse, who once lived in Dudley's house. All that
Donald wanted was a friend, and he and Dudley hit it off right
away.

The plot, as described above, is rather corny.
Characterization, considering that this is a beginning chapter
book, is minimal. Nonetheless it does display a sense of humor
through the text and pictures that kids will love. This will fill
a need for very beginning chapter books and with the well-known
author and illustrator, should go out well.

[Karissa Urdahl · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really thought this book was interesting and did not at all mind reading this book, I think it would be a great story to read during Halloween or any other time, especially in the fall.

I completely understand why this book would be banned, there are mentions of seances and other forms of spirit and ghost activity that are in some ways could be frightening to children. I would not recommend reading this story to young children (under seven) because it often references ghosts and other actions that I believe could frighten children.

Over all I believe this book is interesting to read and can supply insight into things that I had not heard a lot about previously. I would not exactly recommend this book to every person because at some times it is a little frightening and might be difficult for young children to read.

[Julie Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
This audio book is about Dudley who tried many different ways to get to sleep to no avail.
He heard a lot of different noises and then heard a sound that was not at all like anything he had heard before. The sound turned the tv on and then off.
bumping up the stairs, smack, it touched his beak and then ran back into bed. He saw the white thing going back down the hall.
The other chapters are when he goes to his friends and ask their opinions about what it could be... One tells him to talk to a median who will talk to the ghost to find out what they want...
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).

[Dione Basseri · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, to start, this is on the ALA's most frequently banned books list. Why? Because the whimsical cartoon animals hold a seance. So I guess if you're opposed to kids learning about supernatural rituals, be warned.

But this isn't a horror story. It's really quite cute. The scariness of the haunting is resolved in a standard children's book manner, so this shouldn't alarm your little ones too much.

I wound up giving this three stars because, while the writing and art is passable, it doesn't wow me. It's the kind of book I'd say to put in a public library collection if the budget allows, but don't worry about it ina private home or when things run tight.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dudley the stork employs a medium to hold a seance in his house which he is convinced is haunted. At the seance the ghost is revealed and it turns out that he was just lonely and is actually very friendly. The story ends happily as Dudley and his friends spend their nights enjoying the company of the ghost.

A suitable chapter book for newly independent readers with black and white illustrations by Marshall. Some parents may object to the occult subject matter in this book (ghosts, a medium, the seance).

[Iroquois · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book was the first time i ever heard the word Seance, and the concept of a medium! i'd forgotten all about this book till it was rtned at our circ desk, and i recognized the front cover; turns out this was one of the first books ever read to me when i was like 2 or 3yrs old! how wierd is it that my parents read to me a story about the paranormal as normal at such a young age? and how much wierder is it that there was even a book abou tit back then?! its copyright is 1979, lol :D

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

We enjoyed this book of slightly scary frights and creepiness. The story explains about seances and has a supernatural twist. Our girls enjoyed it and the next morning, our youngest mentioned that she dreamt about a horse ghost named Donald, so the narrative must have stuck with her. As we approach Fall and Halloween, we will certainly look for more books like this...slightly scary, but not too scary.

[Sunny]

Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
2/10
An annoying little children's book, poorly illustrated, not terribly amusing.
Why challenged? My guess? Included in the plot is a seance and a medium, who contact a friendly ghost.

Research Says: Mysticism

[Maura · Rating 3 out of 5]

An appropriate book for young kids...the book attempts spooky, but never really approaches scary. It does mention witchcraft and the characters hold a seance, but it's light hearted and the ghost turns out to be very friendly. I liked it just fine.

[Robin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Part of my banned book list reading

[Cws]

H-H-All

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beginning fun book which "de-horrifies" ghosts. I assume it has been banned because of the seance scene.

[Montana-IFC · Rating 5 out of 5]

School challenge. Retained, 1994.