Halloween Reading List

While we decorate for Halloween, make our costumes, and plan our haunted house-straw maze-candy  devouring festivities, we need some material for ideas and inspiration. Here are some lovely and horrifying books/authors perfect for getting into the Halloween spirit.

Grimm Brothers

I have an old book of Grimm Brother fairy tales that I take everywhere with me. You may think fairy tales are all magic and love stories, but more often than not they involve boiling children alive, chopping off fingers, and turning into ravens. These fun little tidbits of casual grotesqueness are always entertaining.

Goosebumps

I grew up reading these books under the covers with a flashlight late at night like a psycho who was just begging for nightmares. I loved the stories of children turning into monsters, especially the innocent situations that quickly got super creepy. One of my favorites was The Horror at Camp Jellyjam.

Neil Gaiman

One of my all time favorite authors, Gaiman is a master at writing creepy stories. Coraline and The Graveyard Book are both about kids involved in horrifying events, while Stardust and Neverwhere are more of fantastical adult adventures. Good Omens is my favorite of his work, mostly because he and Terry Pratchet write an adorable relationship between an angel and demon that never ceases to make me laugh. He's also got some great short stories, his collection called Trigger Warning is a fantastic series of stories perfect for October.

Harry Potter

This wouldn't be a proper booklist without Harry Potter on it. Witches, wizards, magic toads, and a demonic evil villain are all things that make these books great for Halloween. Plus, who doesn't want to dress up as Harry or Hermione or Luna?

Lois Duncan

I discovered this author while experiencing the horror of middle school. She is probably most famous for I Know What You Did Last Summer, because it became a movie. But I also really enjoyed Lost in Time, which is about the dangers of having an immortal stepfamily. Stranger with my Face was also good, it was about twin sisters who take swapping lives a little far.

Edgar Allan Poe

Finally, the famous author/poet/tortured artist. Poe writes creepy romantic poems such as "Annabel Lee" and delightful short stories like "The Tell-Tale Heart" that just seep terror into your bones. He is a truly genius and disturbed author, and definitely appropriate for Halloween.


My house is covered in pumpkin decorations, my Halloween socks are in the wash, and my reading material is selected.