Spooky S.E. Schlosser

Among the stack of books my librarians have given me were several by folklorist S.E. Schlosser.  For this blog post, I selected just a handful of them:

• Spooky New England
• Spooky Michigan
• Spooky Great Lakes

and decided to have a bit of fun.  The collections were pretty solid-- scary stories retold in a more conversational style that draws them out and makes them feel more like short stories than folktales.  While I generally prefer my folklore to sound like someone's reciting it aloud, I liked Schlosser's writing style and found the stories to be both chilling and engaging.  There were a few overlapping tales between the three collections, with Spooky Great Lakes having stories that I had read in one or the other of the collections on this list, but I didn't feel that it ruined my reading experience in any way.

As an added bonus, with just three books, we were able to visit 14 states!  We're well on our way to completing the map!

There are more in the series (lots more) and I can see myself jumping back into these chilling tales later in the summer if time allows.  For now, though, I want to direct y'all to the author's website, in case you wanted to learn more.

States Visited: Michigan, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania

Bird Box (Josh Malerman)

There is something out there.  If you see it, you go insane, kill everyone around you, and then kill yourself.  No one knows what it is, or how it can be stopped.  All they know is that you cannot look at it or you'll die.

I had heard about this book a few years ago, and meant to read it.  I actually started it a few times, but never finished.  I guess it just wasn't the right time.  But with my "Monster Mash" summer reading theme, I thought I had finally found the perfect excuse to read it.

And oh, boy!  This does not disappoint!  Right from the start, this book grabs you by the throat and drags you into a claustrophobic nightmare, where you can't even trust your own eyes.  Malorie is living alone in a house in Michigan with her two children, Boy and Girl.  Desperate to get away from the house for the first time in years, she gathers the children, and together the three of them take a boat down the river--completely blindfolded--in hopes of finding freedom.  The story alternates between these moments in the present, and Malorie's experiences from four years ago, when reports first started cropping up of something driving people to unspeakable violence.

This method of alternating chapters works wonders, as we start to see the stories converge.  You know how the original story ends--Malorie is now all alone, except for her two children.  But, we don't know how she gets to that ending, and that is what will keep you on the edge of your seat.  That, and the fact that we don't really know what is the cause of the madness.  What is out there?  Can it hurt you?  Can it be avoided?  And is there any way you can actually look at it without completely losing your mind?

If you're looking for something atmospheric and creepy, I would recommend giving Bird Box a try.  It's a quick and fascinating read.  

31 Days of Halloween #6

 

I love short stories.  They're bite-sized pieces of literature, just right for a busy schedule.  This was just a little something that I had stumbled upon online.  Nothing special at first, but very creepy as you continue reading.  While I wouldn't say it was the best thing that I've read, I will say that it was a chilling and certainly original, which is more than can be said of a lot of pieces of writing nowadays.

So, if you're ready for a chilling short story about a man and a watch and a horrifying creature from the depths of a depraved imagination, then I present to you:

If You Ever Hear Someone Talk About The ‘Tick Tock Man’ — Stay Far, Far Away

31 Days of Halloween #4

So, I participate in a librarian group on Facebook.  And the best part about being a librarian group on Facebook is the book recommendations.  Everyone always has some cool suggestion for your next read, and it can be a lot of fun finding other readers who also happen to work in libraries.  Lately, the big post is regarding scary stuff.  Namely, what's the scariest book you ever read?

So, I thought for today, I would share a list of the scariest books that my fellow librarians have read.  And as you can imagine, these are pretty well-read folks, so I'm sure you'll find something to make your blood run cold.

• NOS4A2 (Joe Hill)
•  House of Leaves (Mark Z. Danielewski)
• It (Stephen King)
•  Dracula (Bram Stoker)
• Koko (Peter Straub)
• I Remember You (Yrsa Sigurðardóttir)
• Fangland (John Marks)
• Salem's Lot (Stephen King)
• Amityville Horror (Jay Anson)
• Sybil (Flora Rheta Schreiber)
• Uzumaki (Junji Ito)
• Ghost Story (Peter Straub)
• The Shining (Stephen King)
•  Three (Sarah Lotz)
• The Offering (S.J. Hill)
• Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)
• Silence of the Lambs (Thomas Harris)
• Communion (Whitley Strieber)
• Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark series (Alvin Schwartz)*
•  Haunting of Hill House (Shirley Jackson)
• Through the Woods (Emily Carroll)

*I would like to add for this one, the scariness comes not just from the stories, which are creepy on their own, but from the nightmarish illustrations that accompany each tale.  Newer editions of the book have "sanitized" illustrations that do nothing to set the mood.  Either read them as Schwartz intended or don't read them at all!

31 Days of Halloween #18

Halloween is fast approaching, my friends, and I am getting more and more excited!  Soon, it will be time for costumes, creatures, and tons and tons of candy!  (The candy is always my favorite part).

But, what do you do while you're snarfing down all that sugary goodness?  How about watch a movie?

Day 18: Horror Films

I have a few links for you today.  The first is a collection of horror films you can watch right on YouTube!  Don't want to buy the film, or feel like going to the library?  Don't have Netflix?  Well, just load up your ad-blocker and check out some of these classics online.  I'll be completely honest and say that I've not heard of most of these titles, so you might be in for what I like to call something of a schlockfest, but all the same, you mind find that hidden gem you can tell all your friends about.

If you're looking for something a bit more scary, then head over to Cracked.com for a list of scary classics.  These aren't your garden variety titles, like Dracula and Frankenstein, but these chillers are certain to leave you all freaked out.

If you're still looking for more, then perhaps this is for you.  WatchMojo created a series of videos detailing the best horror films from each decade.  The list goes all the way through the '80s, but my favorites were all in the first collection (I'm such a traditionalist!) so here are some of the best horror films from the 1920s through the 1950s!

Still looking for more?  WatchMojo also did a video about the best movie monsters.  You can check that one out here:

 Stay tuned for more holiday goodness!  And stay scary, my friends :)

31 Days of Halloween #11

I'm not a fan of scary games.  Scary movies I can handle because there is a certain element of detachment.  I'm just a viewer.  I'm not in the story.  But, when you play a scary game, you ARE in the story.  You are the one trying to escape the zombie hordes, or the one dodging the stuff of nightmares.

And then we have Five Nights at Freddy's.  I've never played the game myself (I'm too high-strung for that!) but I have fond holiday memories of my younger cousin showing us old-timers how to play it, while we all simultaneously performed the sitting high-jump.

Day 11: Five Nights at Freddy's

I'm sure many of you have already played Five Nights at Freddy's, but for those who haven't, you can read about the game here.  But, the short description is this:  You've been hired to be the night security guard at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza--think a Chuck E. Cheese style place.  All you have to do is hang out at night while the restaurant all night...and make sure the animatronics don't kill you!  While possibly cute during the day (although I doubt it!), at night, Freddy Fazbear and his pals Chica the Chicken, Bonnie the Bunny, and Foxy the...well the Fox wander around the restaurant while you track them on the security cameras.  If they come too close, you can keep them away by closing the doors and turning on the lights.  But, be careful, as this consumes power.  And if the batteries are drained before the night is out, you could find yourself the victim of a grisly murder, just like your predecessor.

The game is full of jump-scares and leaves you feeling on-edge and nervous, since you never know when Freddy or his pals will end up at your door.  There are a series of sequels, too, but I've only ever watched the first one.  Each new game introduces more animatronics for you to hide from, and new perils, as well.  Do you have what it takes to survive Five Nights at Freddy's?

So, in the spirit of the game, I'm including a few related videos, including one of my favorite Rhett and Link music videos.

And while we're at it, here's an animated version of that song.  The main difference here, besides the fact that the one is animated, is that the first features an interview with Markiplier, who does the voice of the man on the phone in the song.  I suggest starting with the first one, and if you liked it, then try the second.

Markiplier is known as "The King of Five Nights at Freddy's...probably for his reaction videos.  Check out this animated video compilation to get a sample.  If you like what you see/hear, check out some of his other videos!

31 Days of Halloween #7

When I was a kid, my friends used to love telling me scary stories because my overactive imagination would keep me up all night thinking about them.  We had your classics like Bloody Mary (say her name three times in the dark and she will cut your face), but there were also a few other chillers, such as the monstrous tree people (they tap on your window at night and when you go to look, they snatch you from your room and presumably eat you), and perhaps the scariest to me, the red eyes of Dawn (a young girl is brutally beaten and locked in a closet by bullies, she eventually dies of starvation, and her ghost haunts bedrooms.  In the dark, if you look up and see her red eyes glowing in the darkness, you know she is coming to kill you).

We didn't really have a name for these tales.  Scary stories?  Sure.  Urban legends?  Maybe.  But, now, it seems that everyone just calls them Creepypasta.

These are the stories that bring us haunting figures such as Slenderman, Jeff the Killer, and the Rake.  And of course, in my favorite creepypasta, we get tales of haunted videogames, such as Pokemon Cursed Black.

Day 7: Creepypasta

 

Now, I don't know about you, but the above story really gave me chills!  If you're looking for something a little less scary, but want to get the creepypasta experience, try this video below.  It's more of a parody of the classic Pokemon creepypasta, and is one of my personal favorites :)

If you're looking for something a bit scarier, I recommend just checking out YouTube or Google.  I'll be honest, I tried to do some searching myself, but as I said before, I have a super-active imagination and I'm getting myself all freaked out looking at pictures of Jeff the Killer.  So, with that in mind, this is where my searching ends.  I hope you find some good stuff, and feel free to share what you find the comments.  I might add it into another blog post!

31 Days of Halloween #1

Happy October, everyone!  Welcome to 2015's first of 31 Days of Halloween!

When I was a kid, I always wanted to prove that I was brave...by reading scary books.  I wasn't brave enough to sleep without a night light, or to kill a spider by myself (I still can't do that), but I really wanted to show that I could read scary things and not get all worked up about it.  Goosebumps?  Sure!  I could do that (they were pretty unsettling, and gave me some freaky dreams, but I wouldn't say the ones I read were scary per se).

Reading scary things meant that one time, I tried to read Poe's The Black Cat.  It scared the crap out of me!  And even now, I hate reading that story.  This post isn't about The Black Cat, though.  It's about another Poe story that is near and dear to my heart (Oh my!  Was that a pun?)  You guessed it, folks!  The Tell Tale Heart!

Day 1: The Tell-Tale Heart

This is what I like to describe as your classic chiller.  A man goes mad over the image of his elderly roommate's hideous eye.  What happens next (for those of you who haven't seen it) is a tale of psychological terrors.

First, the story itself.  I'm including two video versions here, and have linked the full text under "Day 1".  First is an animated version, and one of my personal favorites.  It is perfectly creepy and unsettling, but with some moments of humor (but not too much!).

Now, we've heard versions of classic Poe tales told by Vincent Price and Christopher Lee, but this was the first time I found one by Bela Lugosi.  So, the second version I have (included below) is his reading of it (and it is actually quite good, although I'm not sure why I expected anything else!)

Now, this final video is from Thug Notes.  This is a great series on YouTube that provides summaries for classic stories and novels (in the vein of SparkNotes and CliffNotes), but with a "thug" twist.  To see what I mean, take a look :)

What is your favorite Poe story?  Is there anything else you would like featured during this series?  Let me know in the comments :)