Nightmareland by James Preller

Just in time for the spooky Halloween season, we have this new book, Nightmareland, by James Preller.

Part of the Scary Tales series, Nightmareland is a spine-tingling book that describes the night a nine-year-old boy really gets into his new videogame.  Once Aaron starts playing the game, he quickly finds himself in a land inhabited by creatures from his own nightmares -- wolves and evil snowmen.  He uses his own knowledge of video games to help himself survive, but is eventually overwhelmed.  It takes the help of his sister and the pizza-delivery guy, who luckily knows quite a bit about video games himself, to help Aaron escape from the nightmare castle.

This is a good book for children looking for a scary, but not too terrifying, book.  It is good at describing atmospheric scenes, but stays away from anything likely to cause too many real nightmares.  Good for anyone who enjoys Goosebumps or other scary stories for younger readers.  At 85 pages, it is a quick read, and good for anyone looking for a shivery tale just right for chilly nights when the darkness falls early.
2014
M. Adams