Are Goosebumps Books Scary?

Only one book has ever brought me close to being scared, and it was not even what most would describe as a fully-fledged horror novel! You can see what I mean in my review of MINE by Robert McCammon. But on this reflection, along with being a massive Goosebumps fan, got me thinking… are Goosebumps books scary?

Despite the many joke blog posts or sarcastic articles on the net, you will very likely not find them scary as an adult. Goosebumps still has the quality of re-readability for adult Goosebumps fans who grew up with the books, even if they don’t find them scary now. Kids who read books nowadays may still find them scary, however, there is debate amongst parents as to whether they are too scary.

Are the Goosebumps books too scary for kids?

Whilst most kids know (or should know) that monsters are not real, these stories mirror the realities of young readers’ lives. For example, visiting relatives, experiencing bullying at school, feeling misunderstood, and sibling rivalry. To a child, these scenarios can be emotionally charged. Because of the realism of these situations to the experience of a typical kid, sensitive readers may take the supernatural elements more to heart.

Goosebumps books have been faced with hostility by parents who claimed that the series had satanic undercurrents, and therefore are not suitable for children.

Between 1990 and 1999, books in the Goosebumps children’s series made the top twenty list of most-challenged books; between 2000 and 2009 they made the top hundred. The objections came from parents who felt the books were too frightening for kids and/or contained satanic and occult themes. Both charges seem rather ridiculous with titles like Go Eat Worms!, The Cuckoo Clock of Doom, and It Came from Beneath the Sink.

Alissa Nutting, pen.org (2013)

Such claims seem ridiculous, even hysterical – and I have a strong suspicion that such concerns came from the over-zealous, religious right. Especially after reading many of these books, and not getting the slightest whiff of brimstone, I can dismiss such claims as unfounded.

However, that is not to say that there is a very rare occasion in which Goosebumps may be too scary for kids. Welcome to Camp Nightmare (1993) contains a scene where (SPOILER ALERT) the campers (who are children) are handed guns and expected to hunt down another camper who has escaped. When I was a kid I did not find this scary. However, I live in a country where guns are illegal and of no concern to me. So I can understand some parents’ concerns about such a scene, especially in the U.S.

Goosebumps books are generally targeted at kids aged 8 to 12. Despite the hysterics, and the rare scene that may be genuinely frightening to children, generally Goosebumps can be enjoyed by a younger audience. The main reasons that this age group can enjoy age-appropriate horror is for the following reasons:

• Nobody dies in a Goosebumps book: Characters in the books may suffer unfortunate feats. Such as getting stuck in a parallel universe, or being turned into a frog. The only example I can think of where someone actually dies is the family dog in Welcome to Dead House (1992).
  
• No strong violence, blood or gore: The threats of the stories mostly consist of the aforementioned feats. However, occasionally there are more realistic threats of violence, from bullies. In these scenes, the odd punch is thrown.
  
• Humour is used to lighten the tone: An element of humour is a staple of most horror nowadays. Goosebumps uses its unique blend of kooky, age-appropriate humour to lower the tone.

To summarise, Goosebumps novels are geared at a younger audience. This is owing to the overall lack of death and violence, as well as the inclusion of wacky, age-appropriate humour to lighten the tone. Whilst there has been concern over occult themes in the books, these are largely unfounded.

Did R. L. Stine write any horror stories for adults?

Yes, R. L. Stine has written books for an adult audience. Superstitious, Stine’s first novel aimed towards adults, was released in 1995. Since then, he has released three more adult-oriented novels: The Sitter (2004), Eye Candy (2004), and Red Rain (2012).

Can I really still read Goosebumps books as an adult?

But c’mon though. Should you not feel a flicker of embarrassment for reading kids’ books? You’re around 30 years old and you are still reading books that were written for 8 to 12 year-olds. Isn’t that a little sad? Just go and donate all your old Goosebumps books to a charity shop, and go buy the adult titles above! Hold on… don’t pack your treasured books in a box just yet!

Remember during the Harry Potter boom, and they released ‘adult’ covers for the books? People were actually buying the same books twice! They could get the ‘adult’ cover and not be judged for reading them in public. I honestly would say that is more sad that people feel limited in how they can spend their lives, based on how they feel people will judge them.

Obviously, some societal cohesion benefits us all. But we are talking about choosing to read a book that is quite tame in the horror department for the average adult. People will judge you for anything, and everything – and everybody judges someone for something. They may say something to your face, but they most likely will not.

So can you read Goosebumps books as an adult? You absolutely can! Just remember not to sweat the small stuff. So what if people judge you by your reading habits? They’d be judging you for something else regardless, so you may as well have a great time being judged.

Whether these books are a nostalgic time machine back into your childhood or not, you only live once. Whilst YOLO only motivates me to be more risk-averse, I would say that reading what you really want to is a safe bet.

An additional point, Stine is still very aware of his adult following (people in their 20’s and 30’s). He was aware of this back in 2012. This is why he still uses Twitter (now X) to communicate with his older fan base. Even the king of YA frights himself advocates his legions of adult fans!