Mary Shelley, the author of the classic novel Frankenstein, was born on August 30, 1797. Each year, she and her famous monster are celebrated on this day. Have you ever worn a Frankenstein costume for Halloween? That’s a celebration, too. If you’d like to learn more about the author who created this iconic monster, click here to read/listen to a brief biography or here to read about the original story.
Today’s post offers stories of all monster types. Ghosts, zombies, Sasquatch, mummies, myterious beings, a Frankensteinian dog, and something called a Grabber. Enjoy!
The Bellwoods Game by Celia Krampien. 320 ps.
Everyone knows Fall Hollow is haunted. It has been ever since Abigail Snook went into the woods many years ago, never to be seen again. Since then, it’s traditional for the sixth graders at Beckett Elementary to play the Bellwoods Game on Halloween night. Three kids are chosen to go into the woods. Whoever rings the bell in the woods first wins the game and saves the town for another year, but if Abigail’s ghost captures the players first, the spirit is let loose to wreak havoc on Fall Hollow … or so the story goes.
Now that it’s Bailee’s year to play, she can finally find out what really happens. Legend has it the game’s winner gets a wish. Maybe, just maybe, if Bailee wins, she can go back to the way things were before her grandma got sick and everyone at school started hating her. But when the night begins, everything the kids thought they knew about the game—and each other—is challenged. One thing’s for sure: something sinister is at play, waiting for them in the woods.
Black Sand Beach: Are You Afraid of the Light? by Richard Fairgray. 192 ps. GN 
Twelve-year-old Dash and his best friend Lily are spending the summer at Black Sand Beach, where Dash’s family has a house. Lily can’t understand why Dash isn’t more excited. Three months of surf, sun, and sand. It should be a dream!
But Black Sand Beach is not that sort of vacation spot. The house is a shack, and all of Dash’s weird relatives are there. More alarming is the zombie ram that crashes through the front yard and the eerie voices calling out to Dash from the lighthouse … a lighthouse that hasn’t been operational in a hundred years.
Now, Dash has a new plan for his summer vacation … survival.
The Cursed Moon by Angela Cervantes. 224 ps.
Rafael Fuentes does not scare easily. He loves writing ghost stories, reading scary books, and entertaining his friends with terrifying tales he creates on the spot. Rafa has come up against enough real-life scary situations that fictional hauntings seem like no big deal. His incarcerated mom is being released from jail soon, and will be coming to live with him, his sister, and their grandparents. For the first time in a while, Rafa feels a pit of fear growing in his stomach.
To take his mind off his mom’s return, Rafa spends an evening crafting the scariest ghost story he’s ever told. As an eerie blood moon hangs in the sky, Rafa tells a group of friends about The Caretaker, an evil ghost who lures unsuspecting kids into the neighborhood pond never to return. Rafa is proud of his latest creation, until strange things start happening around him. With a sinking feeling, Rafa realizes the Caretaker is real. Rafa brought the ghost to life―and only he can stop him.
Frankenstein’s Dog by R. L. Stine. 160 ps. 
Kat is reluctant to visit her uncle Vic Frankenstein because of all the rumors about him. However, she’s relieved to find that even though he lives in a dark, old castle-like mansion, Uncle Vic is a quiet, gentle man. A scientist interested in building robots with artificial intelligence. Plus, Kat loves Poochie, Vic’s small, adorable, fluffy white dog. Unfortuantely, an accident occurs in her uncle’s lab causing strange things to happen. Has Kat created a monster? Or is something else responsible for the unleashed horror?
The Ghosts of Nameless Island by Carly Anne West. 304 ps.
After his dad goes missing and his mom gets a job restoring an old building called Rotham Manor, twelve-year-old Gus Greenburg and his mom move to a quaint, secluded island called Nameless. Although Gus was hoping for a new start on the island (despite throwing up twice on the boat ride there), a mysterious ghost has another idea.
Throw in a mean kid who hides rats in the manor, two new friends, an eclectic island chef who’s competing to be on a reality TV show, and Gus’s power to talk to the dead . . . yikes, that’s a lot of chaos for one kid!
Gus needs to find out the identity of the mysterious ghost – and fast – or else he might be doomed to the same lethal fate. That is, if the island’s signature “Heavenly Hash” dish doesn’t get to him first.
The Girl and the Ghost by Hanna Alkaf. 288 ps. 
I am a dark spirit, the ghost announced grandly. I am your inheritance, your grandmother’s legacy. I am yours to command.
Suraya’s witchy grandmother gifts her a pelesit. Delighted, she names her ghostly companion Pink, and the two quickly become inseparable.
Unfortunately, Suraya doesn’t know that pelesits have a dark side—and when Pink’s shadows threaten to consume them both, they must find enough light to survive before being lost to the darkness.
The Lonely Lake Monster by Suzanne Selfors. 240 ps.
Pearl Petal and Ben Silverstein can’t wait for their first official day as apprentices to Dr. Woo, veterinarian for imaginary creatures. That is until they have to clip Sasquatch’s toenails. Gross!
Soon after, Pearl spots a monster in the lake behind the hospital. Even though the instructions were to not leave the building for any reason, Pearl sets off for a closer look, with Ben trailing cautiously behind.
The outing goes awry when the creature captures Ben and holds him hostage on an island in the middle of the lake. It’s up to Pearl to hatch a rescue mission. Will she save the day or cement her reputation as the town troublemaker? And will the hospital’s secret patient be able to help?
The Monstrous Adventures of Mummy Man and Waffles by Steve Behling. 288 ps. 
Eleven-year-old Wen Wyler (aka Waffles) is forced to spend the summer in Maine with his grandpa, a former Hollywood makeup and special effects artist for classic horror films. Ever seen The Beast with a Thousand Toes, Glaarg!? Or its sequel, Glaarg! Again!? If so, then you might be familiar with his work.
Wen, a horror movie enthusiast, decides to go when he finds out that for part of the summer he’ll be helping his grandpa sort and organize his basement filled with props. Grandpa’s young neighbor, Tanya, will be helping, too. Together the two dig in until Wen accidentally brings one of the props to life.
Mummy Man is a good guy. Not so the other creatures. It’s up to Wen, Tanya, and Mummy Man (and his pet turtle, Frank) to stop the creatures from turning the town into the headquarters for an all-out monster invasion.
No Place for Monsters by Kory Merritt. 384 ps.
Levi and Kat are about to discover a very dark side to their neighborhood.
Nothing ever seems out of place in the safe, suburban town of Cowslip Grove. Neatly mowed lawns, tidy sidewalks, and ice cream truck music in the air. Nonetheless, kids have been going missing … except no one even realizes it, because no one remembers them.
Not their friends. Not their teachers. Not even their families.
But Levi and Kat do remember, and suddenly only they can see why everyone is in terrible danger when the night air rolls in. Now it’s up to Levi and Kat to fight it and save the missing kids before it swallows the whole town.
The Old Willis Place by Mary Downing Hahn. 160 ps. GN
Diana and her little brother, Georgie, know every inch of the land around the old Willis place, a crumbling mansion that some say is haunted. They climb the trees and swim in the pond. And they can do whatever they want, even stay up all night. They don’t have to change their clothes, brush their hair, or go to school. They have total freedom–as long as they don’t leave the grounds.
When Lissa arrives with her father, the new caretaker of the estate, Diana is overjoyed. She’s been wishing for a friend she can show her favorite spots to and share her favorite books. Maybe Lissa can even help her uncover the ghastly secret of the creepy old Willis house.
However, rules must be followed in order to keep the peace. Making friends is forbidden. If Diana makes contact with Lissa, she could unleash evil forces beyond her control . . . and then they’ll all be sorry.
Scary Stories for Young Foxes by Christian McKay Heidicker. 336 ps.
The haunting season has arrived in the Antler Wood. No fox kit is safe.
When Mia and Uly become separated from their litters, they discover a dangerous world full of monsters. In order to find a den to call home, they must venture through field and forest, facing unspeakable things that dwell in the darkness: a zombie who hungers for their flesh, a witch who tries to steal their skins, a ghost who hunts them through the snow . . . and other things too scary to mention.
Featuring eight interconnected stories and sixteen hauntingly beautiful illustrations, Scary Stories for Young Foxes contains the kind of adventures and thrills you love to listen to beside a campfire in the dark of night. Fans of Neil Gaiman, Jonathan Auxier, and R. L. Stine have found their next favorite book.
Small Spaces by Katherine Arden. 256 ps. 
After suffering a tragic loss, eleven-year-old Ollie, who only finds solace in books, discovers a chilling ghost story about a girl named Beth, the two brothers who loved her, and a peculiar deal made with “the smiling man”—a sinister specter who grants your most tightly held wish, but only for the ultimate price.
Captivated by the tale, Ollie begins to wonder if the smiling man might be real when, during a school trip, she stumbles upon the graves of the very people she’s been reading about. Later, when her school bus breaks down on the ride home, the strange bus driver tells Ollie and her classmates: “Best get moving. At nightfall they’ll come for the rest of you.” Nightfall descends quickly when Ollie’s previously broken digital wristwatch begins a startling countdown and delivers a terrifying message: RUN.
Only Ollie and two of her classmates heed these warnings. When the trio head out into the woods—bordered by a field of scarecrows that seem to be watching them—the bus driver has just one final piece of advice for Ollie and her friends: “Avoid large places. Keep to small.”
Where the Woods End by Charlotte Salter. 304 ps.
Kestrel, a young huntress, lives in a seemingly endless forest crawling with dangerous beasts. But the most dangerous beasts of all are the Grabbers, beings born at the same time you are. They stalk you throughout your life, waiting for the perfect moment to snatch and eat you. No one has ever defeated their Grabber once attacked, and those that die from accidents or other creatures are considered “lucky.”
Kestrel’s mother, a powerful and controlling spell-caster, instructs her to hunt down the Grabbers in an effort to protect their village in the forest. Accompanied by Pippit, a hilariously bloodthirsty weasel, Kestrel hones her skills as she searches for a way out of the forest and away from the judgmental villagers who despise her. But her own Grabber is creeping ever closer, and nothing in this forest is what it seems … including her mother’s true motivations.
Wretched Waterpark by Kiersten White. 256 ps. 
Meet the Sinister-Winterbottoms: brave Theo, her timid twin Alexander, and their older sister Wil. This summer, they’re under Aunt Saffronia’s care and she knows nothing about how often children eat or how to use a smartphone. And her feet never quite touch the floor when she glides—er—walks.
When Aunt Saffronia suggests a week pass to the Fathoms of Fun Waterpark, they quickly agree, but the park is even stranger than Aunt Saffronia. The waterslides look like gray gargoyle tongues. The employees wear creepy black dresses and deliver ominous messages. An impossible figure is at the top of the slide tower, people are disappearing, and suspicious goo seeps into the wave pool.
Something mysterious is happening at Fathoms of Fun. It’s up to the twins to get to the bottom of it. The mystery, that is. NOT the wave pool. Definitely NOT the wave pool. But are Theo and Alexander out of their depth?
Are you feeling the vibes of Frankenstein yet? If you’d like more monstrous stories, take a look at this post.
Lori: My first nonfiction editor, Ann Rider, now retired, taught me that quotes from historical figures “bring the text to life.” They were sprinkled throughout our books together: 
Lori: I currently live in a desert not far from the Mojave—the Sonoran desert in Arizona. Much as Joshua trees represent the Mojave, the Sonoran desert is known for its towering saguaro cacti. Saguaros can grow to 50 feet tall and live more than 150 years. They are a slow growing cacti, with only a few inches of growth during their first ten years. It can take more than 60 years for a saguaro to grow its first arm. While many people here in Tucson would love to have one of these stately, iconic cacti in their front yard, it is illegal to poach them from the desert floor. Luckily, state-wide laws protect saguaro from theft, vandalism, and unnecessary destruction. If a saguaro interferes with new construction projects, permits are required to move and replant the specimen. Because of such laws, saguaros are highly safeguarded and not currently listed as threatened or endangered, although they may soon face other challenges due to climate change.
In addition to picture books, LORI ALEXANDER writes chapter books about the fascinating history of science and medicine. She won a Sibert Honor Award for All in a Drop: How Antony van Leeuwenhoek Discovered an Invisible World, and A Sporting Chance: How Ludwig Guttmann Created the Paralympic Games was named a Kirkus Reviews Best Book. Her recent release, What’s a Germ, Joseph Lister?: The Medical Mystery That Forever Changed the Way We Heal, is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection. Lori resides in Tucson, Arizona, with her scientist husband and two book-loving teens. 