Spooky Books for Halloween

My go-to scary book is Wait Til Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn. It is basically a children's book, but my sister and I read it in our pre-teen years and it scared the shit out of us. I'm also a big fan of The Turn of the Screw, which my husband and I read aloud one Christmas (because Christmas is scary too. Recall Scrooge McDuck's adaptation of A Christmas Carol), although I must admit we had to read a lot of cliff notes to figure out what was going on in that book. The answer is that no one actually knows.

Anyway, if you'd prefer some more sophisticated recommendations for scary books to enjoy this Halloween, look no further than Flavorwire and their 50 Scariest Books of All Time.

#ReadWomen2014 Non-Fiction: 'The Penguin Book of Witches'by Katherine Howe

I came across this book on a recent trip to Quebec but couldn't justify paying the marked-up/exchange rated/credit card fee-inducing price, so now that I'm stateside again I can't wait to get my hands on it, and just in time for Halloween, too. Katherine Howe is a descent of no fewer than three accused Salem witches, in addition to being a talented and prolific author who has already published a popular YA book (an adaptation of The Crucible set in a Massachusetts private school) and several novels. This anthology includes a variety of primary source writing on witches and witchcraft and functions as a historical treasury for those interested in the history of witchcraft (or I should say, the accusations of witchcraft; this book doesn't explain how to do spells and whatnot). Follow it up by watching 'Hocus Pocus' and 'The Craft' and celebrate a Feminist Halloween this year.