Choice Words: Give Yourself Goosebumps #05: Night in Werewolf Woods

Werewolves. Stine loves him some werewolves. That and maybe zombies. We really don't get many vampires. But werewolves are a monster that Stine has come back to over and over again. Granted, Stine really hasn't done a bad werewolf story, especially in Goosebumps. So it should come as no surprise that he wouldn't take too long to bring werewolves into Give Yourself Goosebumps. Does this book howl or is it just hell? Let's see the twists and turns at play as we spend a Night in Werewolf Woods.

I love the atmosphere of this cover with the giant full moon with the wolf underneath it. The other wolves however range from creepy to kind of goofy looking. It falls into the same issue the cover of The Barking Ghost has with making the cover dog look more silly than full on creepy. I also recently watched a video that made an argument that we should have a more anthro werewolf on these covers over plain looking wolves. I think it can work, but I also like the idea of having a wolf on the cover to add to the mystery. I think a full-on wolfman on the cover only works in certain situations, like The Werewolf in the Living Room for example. And here, I think going for a pack of ravenous wolves over just a wolfman still does the trick in selling the book's concept, so chalk this up as another Mark Nagata win.

Retromorphs: Animorphs #16: The Warning

You ever watch something from the mid-90s many many years later? Something that represents the early era of the internet in particular? You know, days of AOL and IRC chat rooms? The wild west of the internet pre-social media, pre-YouTube boom, pre-Dot Com bubble burst? The dawn of the series of tubes? I know I'm pretty much just describing The Net, but still. Because that's what we're in for in this edition of Retromorphs. It's the Animorphs and the 90s Internet. Not to mention a Jake-focused book. Does it make for a good book, or should it have been crtl alt deleted from existence? Let's find out with The Warning.

Club-Read: The Baby-Sitters Club #11: Kristy and the Snobs

The first ten books are now behind us. The initial plan of a ten-book series clearly didn't stick as the books were doing far better than expected. So it's time to continue our adventures in Stoneybrook. And this time we have class struggles and your reminder that the rich kind of suck. What goes down when Kristy has to deal with said classism? Let's see as we deal with Kristy and the Snobs.

This cover is fine. Not the most dynamic, but sets the story up quite well. Kristy having to deal with Shannon Kilbourne, who yeah, that's as 80s snob as you can get. Sweater vested as hell over here. All they're missing is a sweater around their neck and you know they've gotten away with slurs. We also get Louie, Kristy's dog on the cover and, well, I hope you don't get too attached to old Louie is all I'm saying...

The Stinal Countdown: Fear Street: Haunted

Time for another trip to Shadyside. An earlier book in the series, actually. Back when Stine had a glimmer in his eye and, I dunno, TRIED most of the time? And we have ghosts this time around. Or what appears to be a ghost. This IS Fear Street after all and I have a feeling we're seeing our old pal hypnosis again. Could I be wrong? Does this book stand a ghost of a chance? Let's get Haunted to find out.

This is a solid cover. Or maybe the better word is transparent? I like the ghostly effects of our ghostly character here. Although, it does come off more as someone just lowering his opacity the further down you get. Honestly does a better job in selling invisibility than Let's Get Invisible! did. So in terms of being a ghost, it works great. Decent shocked reaction from our female protagonist and just enough of a cover to not so much be scary, but intriguing at the very least. Very safe Fear Street cover that works, as they often do. Though, if I like the cover, oh no...

The Stoney So Far...: The Baby-Sitters Club #1-10

In September of 2021 I had an idea. A great idea? That I'm not so sure about. But an idea? Oh for sure it was that. Having already finished a year plus of book blogs based around kids horror from the 80s and 90s, I felt the interest to detour. To cover something that is so far removed from the norm that it was honestly a risk. I decided to start covering The Baby-Sitters Club. My reasoning was straightforward. I had covered two of the most successful Scholastic book series of the era. Goosebumps would be the main central focus given the nature of the blogs being more horror focused. Animorphs, while is stagnated way too much, still was a topic I felt the need to cover given the books were a part of my childhood. The BSC however, this was new territory for me. No horror, no real action. Just straightforward stories about a group of girls who baby-sit. I honestly thought when I was about to cover the first book, Kristy's Great Idea, that this was going to be a disaster waiting to happen and that at the most, it would be a one and done. My interest in this would wane immediately.

I'm sort of happy to report that wasn't what happened. I liked the first book, its characters, how it presents plots that work for kids and how they humanize these characters. How each of the girls felt relatable to people in one way. The tomboy, the shy wallflower, the creative girl who is bad at school, the one with diabetes. The first book, while bogged down with the task of building the world of Stoneybrook, Connecticut, still does a good job at selling the books. So I finished the first book, satisfied with what I read and covered the second, which I also enjoyed. And then I took a break. And another. Aaaand another. Aaaaaaaaand another. Because, even though I liked what I read, the books were never a priority blog for me. Until July of this year as I finally finished the eighth, ninth and tenth book in the series, rounding us up to ten. Now suddenly the series has gotten more priority from me. At least to do this recap of the series so far. Hey, I do it for Goosebumps, and I do intend to do it for Animorphs, so let's do a stop-off point blog to talk about what works about the first ten Baby-Sitters Club books, while also doing a ranking. So let's see what there is to talk about with the Stoney So Far...

The Stinal Countdown: Goosebumps House of Shivers #05: The Last Sleepover

It is book five time for House of Shivers. And after the last book was a mess, one can only hope that Stine has a great idea in mind for this one. We have a haunted house situation with a ghost girl and a haunted security system. I mean, after the last book even if this winds up being mediocre it's still a step in the right direction. Let's experience The Last Sleepover.

I really like this cover. Probably the best of the House of Shivers covers so far. And it mainly comes from the use of color. The blues in particular which range from bright to dark, giving off this cold, otherworldly feel. Add in the glowing pink and red from the doors which pop thanks to the color. And then we have our ghost girl of the story, Emma-Lee, pointing at someone. So we know this ghost is not polite. The shadowy face and glowing red eyes feel actually creepy and intense, which is something Goosebumps really hasn't conveyed in a cover for a while now, so it's all great stuff. Please don't be another "Great cover, awful story" situation, I'm begging you.

Club-Read: The Baby-Sitters Club #10: Logan Likes Mary Anne!

Of the central cast of the Baby-Sitters Club, I think Mary Anne is the most interesting. Or at least the one with the most development overall so far. Starting the series meek, concerned about not getting in trouble, the most reserved of the group. After her first book, Mary Anne Saves the Day, her character has shifted. Going from meek to outgoing, being proven to be more responsible, while at times still letting her immaturity show from time to time. So I was definitely interested to see what her next book would entail. And it seems we have love on the horizon. Or at least very very G-rated, kid friendly love. Does it make for a good book? Let's find out with Logan Likes Mary Anne!

Not too much to say with this cover other than I guess it gets its point across. You have Logan, Mary Anne, both looking at each other with affection. So much so that you might not even notice the kid with his hand stuck in the jar. It does enough to sell the plot being about Logan as a baby-sitter and the romantic intrigue. Other than that, not really much to say.