Mouse's Corner: The Too Scary Story by Bethanie Deeney Murguia

The Too-Scary Story by Bethanie Deeney Murguia

Arthur A. Levine Books, 2017

Fiction (Children's); 40 pgs

Source: Purchased at school book fair.

One of Mouse's favorite books is Princess! Fairy! Ballerina! and so when I mentioned the author had written The Too Scary Story, she said she wanted to give it a try. Mouse was a little concerned The Too-Scary Story might be too scary for her at first. The artwork in the opening pages is quite dark and a bit creepy.

In the book, a father asks his two children if they want to hear a bedtime story. His two children, an older sister Grace and her younger brother Walter both have very different ideas of the kind of story they want. The father has a job of it, finding a balance between their two desires--extra scary for his daughter and not too scary for his son. Mouse and I enjoyed guessing with each page what would come next as the story progressed--the story within the story about two children home at night through the forest. The suspense builds as the story goes and even Grace finds herself too afraid in the end. Although I doubt she'd admit it. 

The artwork is cleverly done throughout the novel to match the story itself. Mouse could identify with both Walter and Grace, at varying points in the story, and she was anxious to find out how the story would end. Both Mouse and I had fun with The Too-Scary Story, finding it not so scary in the end. In fact, the final page brought memories back of our trip to Pennsylvania this summer and seeing the fireflies waking up as darkness feel in the woods.

You can learn more about Bethanie Deeney Murguia and her books on the author's website. You can also find her on Twitter.

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