Tell Me a Scary Story...But Not Too Scary! - Softcover

Reiner, Carl

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0316002607 ISBN 13: 9780316002608

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2007

Synopsis

Everyone loves scary stories and award-winning comedy writer/director Carl Reiner invites readers to huddle close as he tells a young boy's tale of the mysterious house next door.

Something with red beams of light shooting from its eyes was coming down the basement stairs. It came closer and closer... the hair on the back of my neck was sticking straight out. I finally saw it- and it was alive!

As the story becomes spookier and spookier, Reiner pauses to ask "Shall we turn the page- or is it too scary?" That's for you to decide!

Parents and children can read along together as they listen to spooky sound effects and Carl Reiner's hilarious performance of Tell Me a Scary Story... on the accompanying CD.

About this title

Review

For all those kids who love to be scared on Halloween--but not too scared, award-winning director and comedy writer Carl Reiner produces a real spine chiller. He also offers plenty of outs for the faint of heart: "Is it getting too scary for you? Should I keep going? Okay, if you say so." No red-blooded young reader will be able to resist this tantalizing tale of monsters and mystery. The narrator (depicted by Jerry Seinfeld's Halloween illustrator, James Bennett, to look exactly like Carl Reiner) cozies up with his granddaughter to tell her all about the man he met when he was a child: Mr. Neewollah. Mr. Neewollah has a crooked smile (we have several creepy child's-eye views) and some very strange hobbies. Young Carl is lured into his basement workshop only to be scared out of his wits by fake eyeballs, creaking doors, and creepy things covered with cloth--not to mention hideous monsters. But is Mr. Neewollah truly as sinister as he seems?

In his first book for children, Reiner gets that kids love to be spooked--and to know that all is well, too. Bennett's exaggerated illustrations, featuring weird angles and vivid, in-your-face close-ups, are a good match for Reiner’s Halloween tale. Too busy in your own evil workshop to read aloud to the kids? Fear not! The book includes a CD featuring Reiner reading the story accompanied by eerie sound effects. (Ages 6 to 9) --Emilie Coulter

About the Author

Carl Reiner is a twelve-time Emmy-award winning writer, producer, director, and comedian who co-starred in the legendary television program "Your Show of Shows" and created and co-starred in "The Dick Van Dyke Show". He also made comedy history as the co-creator of "The 2,000 Year-Old Man" and has directed many hit feature films including "Oh, God!", "The Jerk", and "All of Me". Mr. Reiner lives with his wife in Beverly Hills, California. Inspired by his grandson, Tell Me a Scary Story... But Not Too Scary! was his first book for children.

James Bennett is the illustrator of the New York Times bestselling Halloween by Jerry Seinfeld. A Hamilton King Award-winning artist from the Society of Illustrators, he has also illustrated for many major publications including Time, Sports Illustrated, and Mad. He lives in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, with his family.

About this edition

• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0316002607
• ISBN 13: 9780316002608
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Bennett James