From Stephen King’s It, to R.L Stein’s Goosebumps, kids, teens and adults alike have read horror books for ages. Something about these terrifying page-turners has had most people hooked since they took their first step out of the cradle. And here at GBHS there’s a large variety for these fright-chasers to indulge themselves in. 

Wendy Popp, one of GBHS’ librarians, says, “We have tons of them (horror books). I would say we have the ones I like the most, like your Stephen King, you can never go wrong with Stephen King.” When asked where folks new to horror novels should start their haunting journey, she said, “We have a section reserved for mystery and horror and I would just start there by looking through those and seeing which ones strike your interest.”

Emma Haag, a prominent connoisseur of spooky publications, was kind enough to give a horror recommendation. “It’s called None Shall Sleep,” she said, referring to the volume written by Ellie Marney, published in 2020. It’s a rather new book, and as such, finding a staunch stance on it here at Great Bend has been difficult when most have yet to read it. The point remains, that if a bookworm recommends you a book, no matter how unknown it might be, you check it out. 

And being a proper bookworm myself, I’ve done some research into the best of the best when it comes to frights in literature. According to the publication Esquire, the top five horror novels are as follows, from worst to best, The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters, The Shining by Stephen King, The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski, and last but certainly not least, Stephen King’s It. 

And do you want to know how many of these GBHS has? Two! With the potential of a third and possibly more on the horizon. Both The Shining and The Haunting of Hill House line the shelves on our library, ready for eager and green horror readers to give them a read! So go and pick one up, and look at other haunting tomes that might peak your interest.