Our middle grade book spotlight this week is on books that are filled with spooks and scares!! Just in time to get you ready for Halloween, these books are filled with ghosts, spirits, creepy dolls that have come to life, unexplained happenings, and other spooky creatures that may have you reading with the lights turned on (I dare you to read with the lights turned off and just a flashlight). These books and more can be found by searching the catalog using the search tag #youthscary as well as on Libby and Hoopla. Check back next week for a new middle grade book spotlight and if you have any book suggestions, please let us know!!
Don’t Turn Out the Lights by Jonathan Maberry--Presents a collection of thirty-five short horror stories written in tribute to Alvin Schwartz and his "Scary stories to tell in the dark" series.
Gloom Town by Roland L. Smith--Twelve-year-old Rory and his friend Izzy try to foil the plans of Lord Foxglove, for whom Rory works as a valet, and his inhuman accomplices, who intend to take over the world.
The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier--At the worst point of the Irish Potato Famine, orphans Molly and Kip travel to England hoping to find employment. Using her wit and skill with words, Molly secures servant positions for them in the Windsor manor, where things are not quite right. The locals whisper of the gnarled tree behind the house, and of the oddness of the Windsor family. At night Molly and Kip hear footsteps, and in the morning tracks of dirt run through the house to each of the Windsors' bedrooms. Who is the Night Gardener and what does he want? Molly and Kip discover the secret of the darkly magical tree and how the Night Gardener waters it, and know they must find a way to break the curse on the Windsors.
Spirit Hunters by Ellen Oh--Twelve-year-old Harper Raine has heard the whispers about her new home in Washington, D.C.—it is rumored to be haunted. Harper's not sure she believes in such things until her four-year-old brother, Michael, starts acting strangely. Now Harper wonders if his new imaginary friend, Bill, is something more. And while she struggles to unravel the mysterious and dark history of the home, she also tries to tap into memories she's repressed about an accident that left her badly injured.
Small Spaces by Katherine Arden--Eleven-year-old Ollie comes across a weeping woman next to a river, holding a book and threatening to throw it into the water. Ollie is impulsive, so she plucks the book from the woman's hand and runs off with it. The book is "Small Spaces," and tells a haunting story of a girl, two boys in love with her, and a farm from hundreds of years ago, and a deal with the sinister specter called the Smiling Man, who grants wishes for the ultimate price. Now, Ollie finds herself on a school trip to a local farm with a haunted history.
Nightbooks by J.A. White--Presents a modern twist on “One Thousand and One Nights.” Alex loves horror stories and has notebooks full of his own compositions. One day he and some other occupants are trapped in their apartment by a witch and the only way to keep her happy is to tell her one of his stories each night. Soon though, he begins reaching the last pages so he begins making up stories with the help of the other prisoners.