CCBC-Net Archives
Re: CCBC-Net in October: Finding the Scary
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From: Emily Townsend <etownsend_at_wisc.edu>
Date: Wed, 08 Oct 2014 11:11:38 -0500
Rob, I'm still haunted by Margo Lanagan's The Brides of Rollrock Island and a few of her stories in Yellowcake. These have powerful narratives and beautiful writing. Lanagan sets such a strong mood through the setting and characters. I'm transported to the eerie, impossible and melancholy, island in the instant I think of The Brides of Rollrock Island. I can still feel the tension, confusion and anger of the main character in the story “Catastrophic Destruction of the Head” in Yellowcake.
Another frightening or upsetting read for me was the beginning of Patrick Ness's More Than This. Ness struck on a truly frightening scenario for me -- waking up alone in a world devoid of people and resources. I actually had to stop reading for a while.
I think I was surprised by the impact of both of these books on me. I've learned to like some of horror because of the easily recognizable tropes of the genre. Knowing what to expect but not knowing when, I can enjoy the roller coaster ride instead of the fear. Lanagan and Ness, definitely not writing in the traditional horror genre, were able to strike on the fear element for me.
I've worked with kids who enjoy both the thrill-ride roller coaster and the fear aspect. I feel as though I've seen new interest in horror style reads -- fiction and non-fiction -- with tween readers in the past few years. I personally connect this interest to a number of movies or TV shows based on books. Pretty Little Liars, a TV series that uses every horror trope repeatedly, is popular with a number of tweens and teens. Also, Hunger Games, Divergent and the Maze Runner all have frightening scenes. I'm wondering if others have seen this connection? Or, is it this middle school age? Are tweens more likely to embrace horror regardless of pop culture trends or news of the day?
Emily Townsend, Librarian Cooperative Children's Book Center School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Room 401 Teacher Education 225 N. Mills Street Madison, WI 53706
608-890-0258 etownsend_at_wisc.edu
On 10/7/2014 12:55 PM, Reid, Robert A. wrote:
> I've read a lot of horror fiction in my life and enjoy a lot of it. I've read most of Stephen King and Anne Rice. For young readers, I've booktalked Alvin Schwartz, Joseph Bruchac, Neil Gaiman, Betty Ren Wright, and Mary Downing Hahn's works. I debate with my college students if Harry Potter can be classified as horror.
>
> Therefore, I was surprised about how bothered I was by the YA book Scowler by Daniel Kraus. There was something about the mattress scene that just "ruined" the peaceful, happy mindset I had going into the book. Daniel Kraus, if you're on this listserv, score! Our local YA book club is discussing it this Halloween-y month.
>
> Another horror piece that impresses me, and I don't think a lot of folks would consider it classic horror, is the short story "Singing Down My Sister" by Margo Lanagan from her collection Black Juice. It reminds me a lot of Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery," a story that could have come straight out of any Twilight Zone show.
>
> Rob Reid
> UW-Eau Claire
>
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password: Look4Posts Received on Wed 08 Oct 2014 11:12:00 AM CDT
Date: Wed, 08 Oct 2014 11:11:38 -0500
Rob, I'm still haunted by Margo Lanagan's The Brides of Rollrock Island and a few of her stories in Yellowcake. These have powerful narratives and beautiful writing. Lanagan sets such a strong mood through the setting and characters. I'm transported to the eerie, impossible and melancholy, island in the instant I think of The Brides of Rollrock Island. I can still feel the tension, confusion and anger of the main character in the story “Catastrophic Destruction of the Head” in Yellowcake.
Another frightening or upsetting read for me was the beginning of Patrick Ness's More Than This. Ness struck on a truly frightening scenario for me -- waking up alone in a world devoid of people and resources. I actually had to stop reading for a while.
I think I was surprised by the impact of both of these books on me. I've learned to like some of horror because of the easily recognizable tropes of the genre. Knowing what to expect but not knowing when, I can enjoy the roller coaster ride instead of the fear. Lanagan and Ness, definitely not writing in the traditional horror genre, were able to strike on the fear element for me.
I've worked with kids who enjoy both the thrill-ride roller coaster and the fear aspect. I feel as though I've seen new interest in horror style reads -- fiction and non-fiction -- with tween readers in the past few years. I personally connect this interest to a number of movies or TV shows based on books. Pretty Little Liars, a TV series that uses every horror trope repeatedly, is popular with a number of tweens and teens. Also, Hunger Games, Divergent and the Maze Runner all have frightening scenes. I'm wondering if others have seen this connection? Or, is it this middle school age? Are tweens more likely to embrace horror regardless of pop culture trends or news of the day?
Emily Townsend, Librarian Cooperative Children's Book Center School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Room 401 Teacher Education 225 N. Mills Street Madison, WI 53706
608-890-0258 etownsend_at_wisc.edu
On 10/7/2014 12:55 PM, Reid, Robert A. wrote:
> I've read a lot of horror fiction in my life and enjoy a lot of it. I've read most of Stephen King and Anne Rice. For young readers, I've booktalked Alvin Schwartz, Joseph Bruchac, Neil Gaiman, Betty Ren Wright, and Mary Downing Hahn's works. I debate with my college students if Harry Potter can be classified as horror.
>
> Therefore, I was surprised about how bothered I was by the YA book Scowler by Daniel Kraus. There was something about the mattress scene that just "ruined" the peaceful, happy mindset I had going into the book. Daniel Kraus, if you're on this listserv, score! Our local YA book club is discussing it this Halloween-y month.
>
> Another horror piece that impresses me, and I don't think a lot of folks would consider it classic horror, is the short story "Singing Down My Sister" by Margo Lanagan from her collection Black Juice. It reminds me a lot of Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery," a story that could have come straight out of any Twilight Zone show.
>
> Rob Reid
> UW-Eau Claire
>
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password: Look4Posts Received on Wed 08 Oct 2014 11:12:00 AM CDT
