By Bonnie Mason
I love Hallowe’en! October is my favorite month – I have a self-proclaimed Holiday during October. Many years ago I designated October 4th to be my own personal holiday and have celebrated that day ever since! My family and close friends even give me gifts… I loved Hallowe’en before it became such a retail extravaganza and for years baked twenty five or thirty loaves of pumpkin bread to deliver on H allowe’en night to people I absolutely enjoyed in life, but rarely got to see.
One of my favorite events at Barnes & Noble is “Howloween” held on the Saturday before Hallowe’en every year. PAWS to Read therapy dogs fill the Children’s Department: the dogs all come in costumes, their owners come in costumes, and kids come in costumes! It is so much fun and at the end of the event they all parade through the store!
I have three great books for you so perfect for this Season and all written by local authors. Sylvia Shults has written Fractured Spirits, Hauntings at the Peoria State Hospital, a collection of experiences at the mental health hospital from ghost hunting groups, former nurses, sensitives, and ordinary people along with a history of the hospital and Dr. George Zeller’s innovative treatment of the patients. Ms. Shults “brings a passion for paranormal investigation to her adventures at this haunted hotspot”, tauted as a “ghost story a hundred years in the making”. Sylvia’s next book, Rhoda Derry, a fascinating history of one of the patients at the Peoria State Hospital will be released on October 15th.
Next, Stephanie McCarthy ‘s book Peoria’s Haunted Memories is a must this season! A compilation of ghost stories and legends, a collection of haunted sites in and around Peoria to drive by or visit during the Halloween season… “Peoria’s Haunted Memories serves as a unique guide for the intrepid supernatural sleuth seeking confirmation that the dead do not always rest in peace”. Visit these sites housing the supernatural at dusk and add a welcome eeriness to October!
Lastly, Joe Chianakas is writing a series that falls under the genre of horror beginning with The Rabbit in Red, Joe’s first book, and Burn the Rabbit, book two released on the 15th of this month! Rabbit in Red involves 19 horror-loving teens who enter a movie studio competition that promises rewards including a career making the movies they love, but things aren’t always as they seem and soon life starts to imitate art. Lots of horror film references for the horror film devotee!
All of these books are available in paper back for prices from $15.99 to $24.98 and will add just the right touch to this delightful fall season when the days rapidly grow shorter and there is a definite chill in the air! So put on a sweater or comfy jacket, grab a quilt and curl up on that wicker porch furniture with all of these books for the last of the outdoor reading weather.
Support our local authors (a great diversion from the ever pervasive Presidential campaign) and enjoy – Happy Halloween everyone!