As any children’s librarian will confirm, kids love spooky stuff. While responding to the Common Core standards by including glossaries, indexes, further-reading suggestions, and website lists, these series will amaze, scare, and essentially freak out elementary and middle school students. Along with the chilling information, readers will also learn about astronomy, history, mythology, and science. The audience for these offerings will be reeled in by the subject matter and enticed to learn more.

Preschool-Grade 4

HALL, Brianna. Hair-Raising Monster Stories. ISBN 978-1-4296-9982-2.

JONES, Jen. Bone-Chilling Ghost Stories. ISBN 978-1-4296-9981-5.

KOLPIN, Molly. Eerie Haunted Places. ISBN 978-1-4296-9980-8.

PETERSON, Megan Cooley. Haunting Urban Legends. ISBN 978-1-4296-9983-9.

ea vol: 32p. (Snap Books: Scared! Series). further reading. illus. photos. reprods. websites. Capstone. 2013. lib. ed. $27.32.

Gr 3-6–Kids won’t be able to resist these exciting collections of ghostly tales–even if they do have to sleep with the lights on. After all, what child doesn’t want to read about paranormal prisons or the Mongolian Death Worm? The color palette is appropriately dark and the font choice is reminiscent of typewriter text, which adult readers may find distracting but is unlikely to bother children. The content is introductory and not exactly curriculum-based, but the further reading suggestions and topical websites provided through a publisher’s link will help students who want to learn more. Overall, worthwhile additions that will deliver on both the joy of reading and the fright factor.

NAGELHOUT, Ryan. Haunted! Alcatraz. ISBN 978-1-4339-9243-8; ISBN 978-1-4339-9246-9.

––––. Haunted! Edinburgh Castle. ISBN 978-1-4339-9253-7; ISBN 978-1-4339-9256-8.

NELSON, Drew. Haunted! The Tower of London. ISBN 978-1-4339-9263-6; ISBN 978-1-4339-9266-7.

RAJCZAK, Michael. Haunted! Gettysburg. ISBN 978-1-4339-9248-3; ISBN 978-1-4339-9251-3.

––––. Haunted! The White House. ISBN 978-1-4339-9268-1; ISBN 978-1-4339-9271-1.

SHEA, Therese. Haunted! The Queen Mary. ISBN 978-1-4339-9258-2; ISBN 978-1-4339-9261-2.

ea vol: 32p. (History’s Most Haunted Series). further reading. glossary. illus. index. map. photos. reprods. websites. Gareth Stevens. 2013. lib. ed. $26.60; ebk. $26.60.

Gr 3-5–The drab color scheme, no-nonsense font, and concrete block textural design of “History’s Most Haunted” gives an ominous first impression This set presents many diverse historical facts about some of the Western world’s most notorious locations, from the White House to the Tower of London. Text boxes deliver additional tidbits, such as why the number 13 is considered unlucky and what field hospital conditions were like during the Civil War. The glossaries include words such as “execute,” “suicide,” “behead,” and “tortured.” Though readers might have a hard time separating speculation from information (e.g., Gettysburg says, “So many people died there during the Civil War, it’s no wonder some of their spirits stayed behind”), there are no shelf-sitters in the bunch.

OWINGS, Lisa. The Constellation Cassiopeia: The Story of the Queen. ISBN 978-1-62323-484-3.

––––. The Constellation Ursa Major: The Story of the Big Bear. ISBN 978-1-62323-489-8.

––––. The Constellation Ursa Minor: The Story of the Little Bear. ISBN 978-1-62323-490-4.

RINGSTAD, Arnold. The Constellation Orion: The Story of the Hunter. ISBN 978-1-62323-487-4.

––––. The Constellation Scorpius: The Story of the Scorpion. ISBN 978-1-62323-488-1.

––––. The Constellation Taurus: The Story of the Bull. ISBN 978-1-62323-483-6.

VAN ZEE, Amy. The Constellation Draco: The Story of the Dragon. ISBN 978-1-62323-485-0.

YORK, M. J. The Constellation Hercules: The Story of the Hero. ISBN 978-1-62323-486-7.

ea vol: illus. by JT Morrow. 32p. (Constellations Series). diag. further reading. glossary. index. photos. reprods. websites. The Child’s World. 2013. lib. ed. $29.93.

Gr 1-5–These volumes provide both astronomy and mythology lessons in one very attractive package and are sure to be popular with young stargazers. Each of the books discusses a major constellation’s origin and mythology story, compares its presence in other cultures around the world, and explains how to locate it in the night sky. Sidebars provided additional facts (e.g., “The largest star that astronomers know of is VY Can Majoris”). Using crisp images and a pleasing combination of accent colors, this set is sure to attract student researchers as well as educators and parents looking for engaging read-aloud nonfiction. This series gets a gold star.

PERISH, Patrick. Are Aliens Real? ISBN 978-1-60753-383-2. LC 2012036391.

––––. Are Ghosts Real? ISBN 978-1-60753-384-9. LC 2012036392.

––––. Are Haunted Houses Real? ISBN 978-1-60753-385-6. LC 2012047566.

––––. Are UFOs Real? ISBN 978-1-60753-386-3. LC 2012045079.

––––. Is Bigfoot Real? ISBN 978-1-60753-387-0. LC 2012048054.

––––. Is ESP Real? ISBN 978-1-60753-388-7. LC 2012047614.

ea vol: 32p. (Unexplained: What’s the Evidence? Series). further reading. glossary. illus. index. photos. reprods. websites. Amicus. 2013. lib. ed. $28.50.

Gr 2-4–Geared toward beginning readers, these attractive volumes raise more questions than they answer, but they are a delight to peruse. Featuring an array of boldly colored graphics, this set will encourage readers to turn the pages. The large-font text includes examples of each phenomenon. For example, ESP covers Wolf Messing and his telepathic bank-robbing experiment. Illustrative Q & A panels appear along the bottom of about a quarter of the pages in every title. Readers are encouraged to arrive at their own conclusions regarding each topic’s existence after considering the presented facts and history. These books will spark classroom debate.

Grades 5 & Up

HINDS, Kathryn. Dragons. ISBN 978-0-7614-4920-1; ISBN 978-1-60870-680-8. LC 2010023597.

––––. Griffins and Phoenixes. ISBN 978-0-7614-4923-2; ISBN 978-1-60870-681-5. LC 2012000518.

––––. Mermaids. ISBN 978-0-7614-4924-9; ISBN 978-1-60870-682-2. LC 2011045435.

––––. Sphinxes and Centaurs. ISBN 978-0-7614-4927-0; ISBN 978-1-60870-683-9. LC 2012000517.

––––. Unicorns. ISBN 978-0-7614-4928-7; ISBN 978-1-60870-684-6. LC 2011046274.

––––. Water Monsters. ISBN 978-0-7614-4926-3; ISBN 978-1-60870-685-3. LC 2010023598.

ea vol: 64p. (Creatures of Fantasy Series). bibliog. further reading. glossary. illus. index. notes. photos. reprods. websites. Cavendish Square. 2013. lib. ed. $34.21; ebk. $34.21.

Gr 5-8–This is a well-referenced and ambitious collection that delivers. The books breathe new life into mythology while offering historical perspective for the fantastical stories kids know and love, such as J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” (Scholastic), Rick Riordan’s “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” (Disney-Hyperion), and Christopher Paolini’s “The Inheritance Cycle” (Knopf). Although the writing is simple enough for younger middle-school students, the detailed content also makes the set appropriate for older kids. Beautifully designed in colors and fonts reminiscent of Medieval and Renaissance art, these titles include just enough reproductions and photos to keep readers interested without feeling overwhelmed by text. Entertaining and informative, this is a smart series.

These books engage imaginations by conveying information about entertaining subjects. Beginning with Amicus’s “Unexplained: What’s the Evidence” and ending with Cavendish Square’s “Creatures of Fantasy,” there is something here for both emerging readers and those who are ready to progress to more advanced reference material. Because of its exhaustive notes and bibliography and its delightful presentation, “Creatures of Fantasy” is the standout of the bunch. The Child’s World’s “Constellations” is a winner as well–and the only set that can be considered scientific in any regard. Of the two ghost- and monster-centered collections, Gareth Stevens’s “History’s Most Haunted” edges out Capstone’s “Snap Books: Scared!” only because the locations it describes are real and ones with which it is easy to become fascinated. That’s one way to transform students into lifelong learners.