This is not a fun, spooky, gory, or even necessarily ghostly tale. It is a grim, ghastly and sad story that alludes to mental illness, obsession, deniThis is not a fun, spooky, gory, or even necessarily ghostly tale. It is a grim, ghastly and sad story that alludes to mental illness, obsession, denial, delusion, and broken familial bonds.
Don’t take it for a respectful, miserable exploration of these themes. There are—at least—visions of monsters and apparitions. It is about the horror of ambiguity in a world in which the supernatural is no more widely believed than our own, but which doesn’t dissuade from the potentiality of a twelve-year-old mass-murderer being influenced by something beyond his own or anyone else’s understanding.
Rick, a recently released childhood killer (double meaning there), has not wavered on his story after twenty-five years of incarceration, reaches out to his brother to try and convince him one last time before attempting to rid himself of this nebulous entity for good, but can’t provide any motivation on its behalf.
Does he genuinely believe his admittedly consistent accounting of events? Is it an elaborately constructed excuse; a coping mechanism? Or is there, just maybe, something wreaking havoc on children on Halloween for years, centuries?
It may not be as deep as all that. You may read it, think back to this review (likely not), and think calm down, dude! It’s a lame trope we’ve seen countless times before. Yes, as are most things in all stories. I don’t invest much in the way of murderers crying possession, spirits, extraterrestrial signals, what have you, but in the context of the story, it’s a distressing possibility, however minuscule, to consider....more
Treehouse of Horror is another staple of Halloween tradition, albeit one that has significantly declined in quality over the years and which I have noTreehouse of Horror is another staple of Halloween tradition, albeit one that has significantly declined in quality over the years and which I have not maintained.
I don’t expect any Simpsons output of the last fifteen years to compete with the golden age, let alone a comic book that plays on nothing but the most superficial aspects of iconic characters. I don’t expect anything to stack up to classic entries in the annual Halloween episodes like The Shinning, Nightmare at 5 1/2 Feet, or surprisingly, and more recently, Death Tome, (parodies of Stephen King’s The Shining, The Twilight Zone/Richard Matheson’s Nightmare at 20,000 Feet and Death Note, respectively).
I like that the tradition has been kept alive in other mediums, but it’s a lazy affair. These parodies of Evil Dead/Cabin in the Woods, Rosemary’s Baby, Batman: Arkham Asylum, and nominally, The Bride of Frankenstein were a far cry from what has made the Treehouse of Horror specials so, well, special.
Ending on a lame punchline about Homer’s love of doughnuts and beer just goes to show how little effort was put into this and how little they seemed to care to create something lasting....more
”So many awful things to see. So many terrible beasts to be. You’re not you and I’m not me, tonight.” —Lonesome Wyatt and the Holy Spooks, Halloween is”So many awful things to see. So many terrible beasts to be. You’re not you and I’m not me, tonight.” —Lonesome Wyatt and the Holy Spooks, Halloween is Here
That’s what I’m talking about! A fun-size treat that opens cozily and concludes catastrophically.
I didn’t know what to expect with this short story. I didn’t know if it was extreme horror, or spooky children’s fare. It was that mysterious candy you don’t recognize when sorting out your haul after trick-or-treating. It turned out to occupy a Goldilocks zone. It was a direct, straightforward, easy and pleasurable Halloween story that would have been a great addition to a Halloween horror anthology.
Three brief interwoven perspectives of the same unfolding horror show as the sun sets on Halloween night, and all the trick-or-treaters’ costumes render the pretenders a little more literal. The elements were all just right. I cannot find much fault in its simplicity. The aging couple, the horny teens, and the overworked police officer all got just enough time and development to invest before they are blindsided by barbarity.
I would call it old-school contemporary, authentic Halloween horror in good company with Trick ‘r Treat, or Halloween III: Season of the Witch. No embellishment, subversion, politicking, or posturing; just an out-and-out love for the holiday season and the terror we love to safely feel in its imaginative presence.
I wish I had saved this for a little closer to Halloween night, but there exists A Halloween Story 2, so I have another chance....more
None of the names in this collection are familiar to me, so it should be exciting to see what some new talent, presumably, can bring to the party. It’None of the names in this collection are familiar to me, so it should be exciting to see what some new talent, presumably, can bring to the party. It’s easy to get stuck in the tried and true Halloween mainstays; Bradbury, Sarrantonio, Moore, Hautala, etc. I’m hoping to find some fresh unknown (to me) reliable revelers of the season to join the tradition.
I have Halloween anthologies to last me to my grave, but this one stood out to me as something I should add to that vast black and orange bookshelf.
Feel free to use this forum to recommend your favorite Halloween anthologies. Bonus points if I’ve never heard of it....more
-I would prefer The October House, of course, but I’m sure it will be of little concern. There’s nothing wrong with a book designed to be read as a le-I would prefer The October House, of course, but I’m sure it will be of little concern. There’s nothing wrong with a book designed to be read as a lead up to the idyllic month. Even the less attractive cousin needs some love.
-Are there seven gables affixed to the house on Hawthorn(e) street? It doesn’t seem so, if I am to commit the literary sin of judging a book by its cover, but I can’t see the posterior. Perhaps that is not a reference, and merely incidental as well.
-I will be more pleased if this is a classic creepy house trope book than if it tries to impress with subversion, a tiresome trope of its own at this point....more
A Halloween twist on The House that Jack Built . Not the Lars Von Trier film, or the Graham Masterton novel, but the original nursery rhyme, This is tA Halloween twist on The House that Jack Built . Not the Lars Von Trier film, or the Graham Masterton novel, but the original nursery rhyme, This is the House That Jack Built , with which I don’t recall being familiarized as a child, somehow. No matter. Everything can be improved by integrating Halloween themes.
The verse is cute enough, simple, incorporating all the classic Halloween cast of creatures, although not reliably felicitous: (The skeleton was rattled. That checks out, but the werewolf…got upset? What about hair-raised, snarled, moonstruck? Something, anything that ties in with the lore somehow. (Werewolves, notoriously disappointed creatures).
Here I am, griping about lycanthropes and children’s literature again. Somebody stop me. Now to dissect Shakira’s hit song, She Wolf. Awooooo!
But the star of This is the House That Monsters Built is undoubtedly illustrator Jared Lee, most famous, I think, for the (School Authority Figure from the) Black Lagoon series, innocently macabre and memorable books.
The detail in Lee’s signature style shows commitment and personality. This is no exception. Like buzzing childhood nightmares, it is the perfect blend of fun and fright.
Sing this book to your kids, your pets; invent your own spooky melody, imprint the images, and create a cherished Halloween memory....more
A dispiriting and woeful truth about writing is that it’s always been absurdly difficult to get noticed, let alone sustain a career in the field, let A dispiriting and woeful truth about writing is that it’s always been absurdly difficult to get noticed, let alone sustain a career in the field, let alone leave a lasting legacy with one’s output.
It’s an insane path to choose, and yet many of us are doing just that. I’m reminded of one of my favorite exchanges from the movie Orange County, in which a young aspiring writer fights to get into Stanford in order to study with his literary idol. Many of us have had similar experiences in justifying our choices to our families:
Bud: A writer! What do you have to write about? You’re not oppressed! You’re not gay! Shaun: Not all writers are gay. Bud: Yeah, well, they’re all poor. I can tell you that. Shaun: That’s not true. What about Tom Clancy, Stephen King, Anne Rice? Bud: Three people! In the history of literature!
The reason I relay this here is because, despite two of the three writers Shaun cites in the scene above being horror writers, there is a litany of published writers in the genre who have lived and died without ever being able to live off of their craft. If they don’t moonlight as editors, scripts polishers, or teachers, they often need an additional, full-time, menial job to support themselves (and their families), regardless of acclaim (in David Case’s case, earning an introduction from Ramsey Campbell), and yet still remain in relative obscurity for decades, only to be discovered in dusty rare book shops years later by chronic collectors.
I couldn’t recall having heard of Case hitherto this discovery, and none of his books here on Goodreads have broken two-hundred ratings (with this collection clocking in at three). Not that that summarizes his work, his impact, or his accomplishments, but it drives the point home that being the next Stephen King is not a realistic goal. That can’t be why it’s done.
The good news is that horror has experienced a kind of renaissance and those who value it won’t let it die like the publishers in the late ‘80’s did, and it’s up to those who love it to support it and one another in pursuing our respective contributions. There are plenty of duds, but always more to discover and excite. The good and the bad. The old and the new. Keep reading horror....more
I’ve really intentioned myself into a corner with my hunt for the best werewolf novel ever written without any prejudiceDo I even dare at this point?
I’ve really intentioned myself into a corner with my hunt for the best werewolf novel ever written without any prejudiced exclusion, not only because it will necessitate potentially reading swathes of axiomatic dreck of various interminable sub-sub-sub-genres, but because what is to be done with series in which the werewolf’s role in earlier volumes is still pending (of which The Twilight Saga is a prime example)?
I have seen about one and one half of the movie adaptations and I know enough through commentary and parody that I not only can’t stand the werewolf character,(I’m not so much Team Edward as I am Team Robert Pattinson, who has long since outshined his role in this series with his roles in some of my favorite movies like Good Time and The Lighthouse ), but that he is my namesake! That’s just rubbing silver in the wound.
Anyway, should I include this series in my literary lycanthropic quest? Sure, some day, why not?...more
“That country whose people are autumn people, thinking only autumn thoughts. Whose people passing at night on the empty walks sound like rain.” —Ray Br“That country whose people are autumn people, thinking only autumn thoughts. Whose people passing at night on the empty walks sound like rain.” —Ray Bradbury, The October Country
Getting ready for Halloween is a year-long affair for us autumnal fiends. I can’t profess that I am always in the Halloween spirit, but I am always in anticipation, homesick for sensations constrained by time as I toil through the torrid torture of summer. A bit maudlin, I know, but there is nothing sweeter than when the cool wind begins blowing fallen leaves through the air, the iconography of hallowed tradition, and the excuse to delve unabashedly in all things paradoxically cozy and eerie.
As I commence this year’s All Hallows’ Read, I am exhilarated to return to form, as a jaded, overworked, fed up, formerly forlorn grown man grasping at guileless wonder once again. For reasons best kept to myself, the last few years have been lacking on this front for me, but I invite you to join me, if you share these seasonal feelings.
As for this children’s book, the description on the back cover serves its purpose better than the Microsoft Paint quality art and, curiously, papyrus text rhymes inside:
”During this season, the players awake, the preparations are being made. Get ready for spooky holiday fun as October merriment they make. The sights, sounds, colors, and smells of autumn fill the air. This is a beautiful time of year. For some, this represents a special time in which seasonal memories are made.”
I’d say I couldn’t have said it better myself, but maybe I kind of did? In any case I’m obliged to concur, and I’m still happy to use it as my inaugural seasonal kickoff....more
The final, fantastical, Rufioliscious selection of the epic nostalgic ‘90’s Robin Williams Junior Novelization Triple Feature Spectacular ExtravaganzaThe final, fantastical, Rufioliscious selection of the epic nostalgic ‘90’s Robin Williams Junior Novelization Triple Feature Spectacular Extravaganza is the original Peter Pan fanfic.
Before the dark romantic Peter Pan P**n, or PPP, Tinkerbell became life-sized and seduced a middle-aged Pan in a kid’s movie!
The themes and sets were terrific, the acting was stellar, and it…has a 29% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes? Fuck critics! (Present company excluded).
Oh dear. There’s an adult novelization adapted by Terry Brooks? That’s probably better and completely ruins my Junior Novelization element of this Spectacular Extravaganza.
That’s right! The much anticipated second selection of my nostalgic ‘90’s Robin Williams Junior Novelization Triple Feature Spectacular Extravaganza iThat’s right! The much anticipated second selection of my nostalgic ‘90’s Robin Williams Junior Novelization Triple Feature Spectacular Extravaganza is Disney’s classic, Disney’s Aladdin (which is apparently spelled with only one ‘L’ and two ‘Ds.’ I have a Mandela Effect memory of it being the other way around, making it difficult to search for this book).
I thought it it would be funny if they just took an abridged version of the original story from One Thousand and One Nights, slapped the cartoon cover on it and called it a day. I doubt that’s the case, but stand by for confirmation....more
Jumanji is horror. The quotidian promotional movie photo used for the cover of this novelization does not negate that. (I mean, c’mon. It looks like aJumanji is horror. The quotidian promotional movie photo used for the cover of this novelization does not negate that. (I mean, c’mon. It looks like a self-distributed Board Games and Your kids: Is it Safe? release during the VHS boom).
I don’t have time to start a new novel before All Hallows’ Read 2024 is in full swing, so I’m opting for a nostalgic ‘90’s Robin Williams Junior Novelization Triple Feature Spectacular Extravaganza! What are the other two? You’ll just have to wait and see!
The latest exceptionally brief limited horror chapbook I read is a poetry collection of what I have deemed ‘Domestic Cannibalism,’ to be distinguishedThe latest exceptionally brief limited horror chapbook I read is a poetry collection of what I have deemed ‘Domestic Cannibalism,’ to be distinguished from ‘Lost Amazonian Tribe Cannibalism’ popularized by Italian exploitation movies like Cannibal Holocaust, or ‘Backwoods/Inbred/Crazed Redneck Cannibalism’: The Hills Have Eyes, Wrong Turn, Bone Tomahawk (one of my absolute favorites).
The most recognizable figure in ‘Domestic Cannibalism,’ as I would define it, would of course be Hannibal Lecter (though we may have to distinguish that further: ‘Sophisticated Cannibalism?’) Other examples I would include would be Jack Ketchum’s The Box, Raw, Parents, and Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving. It’s pretty self-explanatory, but it is an added element of distress to imagine your neighbor’s pristine suburban kitchen serving up human flesh.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre played on this with its utterly psychotic Norman Rockwell inversion of a family dinner (God, what a masterpiece)!
So I will bring it all home (for dinner) to Dying, a Martha Stewart hospitality parody (pre-Snoop Dogg collaboration and felony conviction), which became obvious when the phrase, ‘it’s a good thing’ was included. I’ve never watched Martha Stewart, but it was instantly recognizable due to its cultural ubiquity—the same reason I know all the Kardashian names—and for its time, this little romp served as a clever stirring, flipping, and searing of all that was wholesome, kitschy, and domestically delicious. And to bring it all full circle, Martha Stewart and Sir Anthony Hopkins once dated, but Stewart has said, or quipped, I don’t know, that she broke it off with him because she couldn’t get over his portrayal of Hannibal Lecter. This is true. Look it up. We are in a simulation.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this excuse of mine to discuss some forms of culinary taboo in media. Bon Appétit!...more
Another pet project of mine is to find the most obscure movie novelizations ever published.
I think Shangai Knights is a strong contender for ‘most oAnother pet project of mine is to find the most obscure movie novelizations ever published.
I think Shangai Knights is a strong contender for ‘most obscure’ I have thus far acquired. It is a sequel to Shanghai Noon, a Jackie Chan/Owen Wilson buddy action movie from 2000, for which I can find no evidence that a novelization exists.
I happened upon this at a consignment sale. Unfortunately, I did not find a novelization of Rush Hour 2 along with it....more
