Horror for Newbies
Poojitha asked this question about The Stranger Beside Me: Ted Bundy: The Shocking Inside Story:
Is this book appropriate for a 12 year old with a high threshold for scary stories? Is there anything inappropriate in this book?
Steven It doesn't make sense to lump in books about brutal rapists, torturers and killers with "scary stories" for younger children.

Ask yourself if you woul…moreIt doesn't make sense to lump in books about brutal rapists, torturers and killers with "scary stories" for younger children.

Ask yourself if you would feel comfortable with your 12-year-old watching a graphic movie about Ted Bundy - a movie that depicted the rapes, tortures and killings, including the repeated rapes of the dead corpses. If it's not appropriate for young kids to watch movies like that, why would it be appropriate for them to read books like that?

In an interview, J.K. Rowling said that Voldemort was "a raging psychopath, devoid of the normal human responses to other people's suffering," modeled after real-life monsters like Hitler and Stalin. And yet, if Voldemort did what Ted Bundy did, do you think Harry Potter would be popular with children, and would parents encourage their kids to read it? Of course, some parents think Harry Potter is too dark and scary for 12-year-olds. (less)
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The Stranger Beside Me
by Ann Rule
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