Scary School has given me a lot of food for thought. As a reading mom, I was reminded once again that I'm not very good at judging how my kids will respond to some titles. My eight-year-old absolutely loved Scary School, even though I'd have given it a lukewarm review. After we finished reading it together, he gave it that great compliment: "Can we read it again?" Well, I said no. (I'll never win mother of the year!) So... he read it himself. But first, he insisted on taking the online quiz to access the hidden chapter. You're getting the idea, right? Scary School is not only capable of captivating kids with a story perhaps best described as slapstick comedy a la Scooby-Doo and the Vampires meets The Munsters, it also spurs them to read independently, above grade level. I should mention that the book's packed with characters, too - keeping track of all of them helps improve memory skills. (Did I mention I'm not up for mother of the year? Look, I wanted to read something else, ok?!)
As a writer and reviewer, I learned something about book marketing and took in one more lesson about perseverance. Read the guest blog entry from author Derek Kent - aka Derek the Ghost - to find out what it took to bring Scary School to life.
The bottom line: I highly recommend Scary School, particularly for boys. Got a middle grade reluctant reader? This would probably make an excellent choice for him - or her.
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