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If you're nearing 40, as I am, then more than likely, you grew up reading the Goosebumps books written by R.L. Stine (author of the popular teen Fear Street series). Just in case you don't know what I'm talking about, let me give you a history listen. Goosebumps was a hugely popular children's book series throughout the 1990s. From 1992 to the end of 1997, R.L. Stine published 62 Twilight Zone-like stories that gave every young reader nightmares. Goosebumps quickly became a brand name, starting with the Fox Kids television series that ran for 74 episodes. Spinoff books soon followed, such as Give Yourself Goosebumps, Tales To Give You Goosebumps, and Goosebumps 2000, and a slew of merchandise (bookmarks, games, toys, etc.). As fans became older, they moved on to other things, which resulted in the downfall of the franchise. After a hiatus, R.L. Stine returned to the world of Goosebumps with the spinoff series Horrorland in 2009, followed by two other spinoffs, Most Wanted and SlappyWorld, and two film adaptations, Goosebumps and Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween.

New in bookstores this week from Jimmy Patterson Books (Little, Brown, and Company) is Middle School: Field Trip Fiasco by James Patterson and Martin Chatterton. It's the 13th installment in Mr. Patterson's popular Middle School series for middle graders.

The Middle School series centers on Rafe Khatchadorian, a kid with a wild imagination. In this installment, the Advancement of Writers and Contemporary American Artists (IAWCAA) has picked Rafe to attend an educational art trip with other students from around the country. It's a week-long "Camp Culture" in California, and at the end of this event is an art exhibit. Sounds exciting, right?

Everyone's favorite ventriloquist's dummy is back in Goosebumps Slappyworld: My Friend Slappy by R.L. Stine. To be more precise, Scholastic released the book on October 6th, 2020, and due to unfortunate events, I am just now getting around to read to review it.

My Friend Slappy is the 12th installment of the newest incarnation of the Goosebumps franchise. Goosebumps SlappyWorld debuted in 2017 with Slappy as the narrator, and occasionally he plays the villain within whatever story he's telling. The main character in this tale is 6th grader Barton "Sluggs" Suggs. When he's not being bullied by his classmates Kelly and Travis, he's hanging out his only real friend, Lizzie Hellman. Well, that's until his father gives him a special present - a ventriloquist's dummy named Slappy!

Barton quickly learns that Slappy isn't your typical dummy, as he can walk and talk just like a human being, but there's a twist - Slappy is pure evil. Yep, that's right! At first, all Slappy wants to do is terrorize Barton, but he changes his mind once he learns the boy needs a best friend to show him how to get back at Kelly and Travis.

In the world of Goosebumps, the saying "Best Friend Forever" isn't a good thing, and poor Barton's new pal becomes a living nightmare for him.

Final Thoughts

I don't know about other Goosebumps readers, but I was starting to get a Slappy fatigue. Don't get me wrong, I love the character, but each new story involving a ventriloquist's dummy feels the same. A 12-year-old protagonist would either receive Slappy as a gift or somehow stumble upon Slappy by themself. Then Slappy comes to life and turns the kid's life upside down.  

My Friend Slappy starts with the exact formula, but thanks to a few interesting twists, the story has a different outcome. Barton is the protagonist in this tale, and he's more fleshed out than typical your typical Goosebumps character would be. The poor kid has to deal with bullies and Slappy at the same time.

Overall, I enjoyed reading Goosebumps SlappyWorld: My Friend Slappy. It's one of the better entries in the Slappyworld series, but the "shocking" ending could have been better.

“Tales of Wordishure” has seven cute stories that children and adults will enjoy reading. In the first story, “The Skipping Stone of Wordishure,” Edward goes to collect squishberries for his grandma. He puts his basket down for a few seconds so he can skip a stone across the water. His basket of squishberries disappears.

Philip’s sister is missing in “Three Princesses of Wordishure.” He gets Princess Irelynd, Princess Tara and Princess Ashtyn to help him find her.

Micah discovers a well worn book in his attic in the story “The Treasure Map of Wordishure.” He takes the book with him to the Oldwood Creek, where he runs into his best friend, Jonah. Inside the book is a map with some Xs on a hill. They follow the creek in search of treasure.

While playing the game ‘Seek the Lost’ in “Bigby The Giant of Wordishure,” Bigby must help the Humblebees find their missing hive.

In “The Tree Fort of Wordishure,” Gideon and his friends build a tree fort in the willow tree named Fordywinx. When the kids learn that today is Fordywinx’s birthday, they go in search for the prefect gift.

One day the wind blows away Melody’s music lyrics in “The Silent of Song of Wordishure.” With the help of Preston the gopher, Melody hunts down her lost pages.

All the characters from the previous stories join forces to help fix the cracked bell in “The Church Mice of Wordishure.”

I enjoyed reading the “Tales of Wordishure.” These are wonderful stories, filled with beautiful illustrations. You’ll enjoy exploring the world of Wordishure with your children.