The door slowly creaks open. In the dim light, we see walls covered with cobwebs and bookshelves. It’s clear no one has ventured over the threshold since last year.
We take a deep breath to gather our courage and enter the room.
We are more than ready to pull the dusty tomes from the shelves and revisit some of our favorite mid-grade Halloween reads.
The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass (Ages 8-12)
A boy, a cat, and a ghostly librarian have a story to tell. Come closer and hear their tale about the power of a good book.
When a mysterious little free library (guarded by a large orange cat) appears overnight in the small town of Martinville, eleven-year-old Evan plucks two weathered books from its shelves, never suspecting that his life is about to change. Evan and his best friend Rafe quickly discover a link between one of the old books and a long-ago event that none of the grown-ups want to talk about. The two boys start asking questions whose answers will transform their futures and the town itself.
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (Ages 10-12)
From one of the master storytellers of our generation, the Graveyard Book is a modern classic. This creepy book begins with a graphic murder scene that parents may want to preview. Some may consider it too dark for middle-grade readers.
Nobody Owens, known as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn’t live in a graveyard, being raised by ghosts, with a guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor the dead. There are adventures in the graveyard for a boy—an ancient Indigo Man, a gateway to the abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible Sleer. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, he will be in danger from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod’s family.
The House at the Edge of Magic by Amy Sparkes (Ages 8-11)
“Sometimes you are a whisper away from magic without even realizing it.”
Nine is an orphan pickpocket determined to escape her life in the Nest of a Thousand Treasures. When she steals a house-shaped ornament from a mysterious woman’s purse, she knocks on its tiny door and watches it grow into a huge, higgledy-piggeldy house. Inside she finds a host of magical and brilliantly funny characters, including Flabberghast—a young wizard who’s particularly competitive at hopscotch—and a hideous troll housekeeper who’s emotionally attached to his feather duster. They have been placed under an extraordinary spell, which they are desperate for Nine to break—and if she can, maybe they can offer her a new life in return.
What are you reading this Halloween? Share your recommendations in the comments.