Horowitz Horror

October 1, 2006
Gr 7-10-Bathtubs dripping with blood, a monkeys ear instead of a monkeys paw, a cannibalistic chef looking for new ingredients, and a camera that kills the subject of its photographs are some of the elements in these selections. While the stories probably wont make most readers want to sleep with the lights on, they have their own brand of creepiness. As with most short-story collections, this one is uneven, and the book will appeal mainly because of the author. However, it lacks the sophistication of truly horrifying horror."Lynn Evarts, Sauk Prairie High School, Prairie du Sac, WI"

Copyright 2006 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2006
In this collection of nine macabre tales, Horowitz proves himself as adept at spooky psychological horror as he is at creating breakneck adventure-suspense. Although he consistently draws on familiar themes (bad kids get their due; nice ones are caught up in something out of their control), he always manages to stretch them into his own peculiar version of reality gone mad, which will make readers feel they're simply one step away from horrible chaos themselves. Isabel, 12, doesn't like the new antique bathtub her parents bought, and when bath time approaches, her fears are more than justified; Matthew's birthday gift to his father, an old camera, has a devastating quirk; and city-boy bully Gary finds out everything is different in the country, just as his mother says. Other stories are equally suspenseful; horror fans will like them all.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2007
In these nine amusing (if not that scary) tales written by the author of the Alex Rider books, wicked children are punished and good children are (generally) let be. Supernatural elements include a cursed camera and a haunted computer. The translations from British English into American are inconsistent and can be confusing.

(Copyright 2007 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)