Things That Go Bump in the Night by Patrick CarmanMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Things That Go Bump in the Night is advertised as stories that one can listen, read, or watch in 15 minutes or less. As a follow-up to the success of Skeleton Creek and the other books in the series, Patrick Carman uses video to supplement the stories. Each short story begins with an audio introduction of about a minute, then the short story in print, and concludes with a video ending. The audios and videos are accessible via a web page with a password printed in the book. The web page indicated that they are also available via an app that I didn't try.
While reading, I was reminded of the type of spooky stories told around the campfire. The urban legend type of story of which you've heard hundreds of different variations. The stories aren't gory per se, but the implication of gore is there. Some will find the videos frightening while others will view them as stupid or silly.
As with any short story collection, some are more successful than others. Some were just plain dumb, some were creepy, and some downright scary. I'm sure it'd depend on one's phobias as to which story was the favorite. I enjoyed "Mr. Mason's Jars." In that story, Mr. Mason is an 8th-grade science teacher that no one likes. He's weird, very strict in class, and has extremely bad breath. When a new student starts acting up in class, Mr. Mason invites him to come by after school and see what is in his collection of mason jars. Everyone knows that any student that goes to see Mr. Mason after school leaves with a completely different personality. In the story/video, we find out exactly what is IN those jars and what happens to the students.
Overall, it's a decent read. At first, the concept of listening to an introduction, reading the story, and watching a video is cool, but after a while, it got old. I hated having to put the book down, go to the computer to watch/listen, and then go back to the book. I wish there were a better way?? C rating.
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