Terrifying books to check out this Halloween

» Scary stories for seasonal selection

Cazzy Lewchuk
Staff Writer

Wee horror has become
increasingly popular in
movies, TV shows, and even
video games, it often remains
underground in book form.
While many novels exist in
the genre, they often remain
undetected by the mainstream
since horror has elements
that may not appeal to casual
readers. Nevertheless, with
Halloween upon us, there’s

a new reason to get scared

by what we read. Here are
my suggestions for fiction

to get you in the spirit.

Stephen King: An
exception to the lack of
mainstream horror success,
King’s prolific career has made
him one of the most successful
writers of all time. His books
come in many forms and, while
virtually all feature a creepy
tone, many of his works contain
no supernatural or shock value
elements. For those looking for
less straight horror, his works

: The Bachman Books, The Stand,

: The Dark Tower, Different

: Seasons, and 11/22/63 feature a

: focus on drama, fantasy, and

: even some comedy over his

: typical association. For those

: wanting the books that give him
: his association, The Shining, It,

: Pet Sematary, and Skeleton Crew
: are amongst his scariest works.

Scary Stories to Tell in

: the Dark: Alvin Schwartz's

: trilogy, which is allegedly for

: children, was the source of

: nightmares for millions of kids.
: The books are collections of

: very short, one- to two-page,

: stories inspired by folklore and
: urban legends. Perhaps the

: scariest part of this series was

: not the stories themselves, but

: the disturbing illustrations

: by Stephen Gammell. A

: recent re-release of the series

: eliminated the terrifying

: artwork, and the creepiness

: factor just isn’t the same.

: Be sure to read the original

: editions for maximum fright.

R. L. Stine: Often known

: as “Stephen King for children,”

: Stine’s books have frights for all
: ages. While his children’s series:
: Goosebumps and its spin-offs are :
: the most popular and perhaps

: his best works, Stine’s books

: extend far beyond. His Fear

: Street books for teenagers went:
: into much more mature territory }
: and were often reminiscent of
: a horror movie. He even wrote
: a couple novels for adults, like
: Superstition and Red Rain.

: Why not relive childhood

: this October by revisiting

> one of his hundreds of books,

: especially after checking out

: the recent Goosebumps movie?

Edgar Allen Poe: One

: of the original horror writers,

: Poe’s works from the 1800s

: can still be frightening as well

: as entertaining to modern

: audiences. Although his stories
: can be difficult to understand

: language-wise, anyone with an
: interest in classical literature

: or the horror genre should read
: a bit of the literary master. His

  

scariest short stories include
: “The Black Cat,” “The Fall
: of the House of Usher,” and

“The Premature Burial.”

Creepypasta: While not

: usually available in print form,
: Creepypasta is a form of scary
story written by amateurs on
: the Internet that is still very

Image via viajoshuaunruh.com

: effective. Many of the stories

: have been extended to serial

: form or even mainstream pop

: culture, suchas the “Slender

: Man” figure, who originally

: appeared in Creepypasta lore.

: These stories can be viewed on

: websites such as Reddit.com/r/

: creepypasta, or Creepypasta.com

 

Everyone loves in ‘Almost, Maine’

» Latest Douglas College play shows different types of love

Cheryl Minns
Arts Editor
Marts@theotherpress.ca

s evening falls on the

fictional town of Almost,
Maine, characters of various
ages discover different kinds of
love in very literal ways. Taking
place on a versatile, changeable
set in Douglas College’s Studio
Theatre,
Almost,
Maine will
feature six
second-year

They can be found

 

: as the act of falling in love
: causing actual clumsiness.

“I think it’s really relatable

: because it shows all different

: phases of love and different

: kinds of love: love that you don’t
: want, love that you're fighting

: really hard for, love that you

: can’t get and you can’t receive

: back,” said Rachel Fournier,

: who plays several characters,

: including Ginette, Sandrine,

and Gayle.
“You go
through one
or many of
those in your

theat 0 i it’

students just about anywhere: life, angits
‘ , something

playing the spider’s web; the that I think

multiple ; ; ;

roles in six rippling, concentric relate to.”

relate to.

scenes that circles of a pond; or In

deal with , the play’s

love and the spiral shape of prologue

tangible the Milky Way galaxy. [Ramen

metap ors. Ginette
‘All and Pete

the way declare their

through the love to one

play, and indeed in each scene,
there’s something tangible
about love, about a metaphor
of love that we actually get

to take apart and put back
together. It’s written as if it’s
completely ordinary,” director
Deborah Neville said.

Some examples of these
metaphors include hearts
that can literally break and
be put back together, as well

: another, only to realise
: that such a declaration
: can have repercussions
: on such young love.

“It’s so young and innocent,

: and it’s different than all the

: other kinds of love in the play,

: which are a little bit more

: experienced, and the characters
: are in relationships and stuff

: like that,” Fournier said.

“It’s one of those plays

: that makes you think and

: makes you reflect upon your
: own life,” said Sean Brown,

: who plays several characters
: including Jimmy and Randy.

The “almost” in Almost,

: Maine refers to a possibility or
: a chance that something might
: happen, according to Neville.

“We never get to see

: the full journey of love. We
: arrive at amoment where
: something alters,” she said.

During the play, the

Northern Lights light up the
: stage, adding a colourful visual
: to the characters’ emotions.

“The Northern Lights are

: almost like a character that

: stays with us and plays through
: the piece and highlights these

: kind of moments that we’re

: touching on,” Neville said.

: “Like the Northern Lights, each
: moment has its own colour and
: its own specific beauty. Then

: it’s gone again and we don’t

: know what will come next.”

Almost, Maine will be

: playing November 5-13 at the
: Studio Theatre at the Douglas
: College New Westminster

: campus. On November g

: and 10, the show will include

: a talkback session.

Tickets are available

: online at TicketsNW.com

: for $20 each for general

: admission, or $10 each for

: students and matinee shows.

Director Deborah Oa
Set & Lighting Design: | Bryan Kenney.
Costume “— Ines ees

   
 

| Room 4140 - Fourth Floor North
> 700 Royal Ave., New Westminster
By. One block from New Weutminstor SkyTrain Station

 

1

|
7:30pm ey
No shows November 8 & 1 ;
Matinees: ws

Saturday, November 7, 2pm

Monday, November 9, 12pm Ti B ACK
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Aivince cel litt ckets Now Wt .
Purchase online or cal G04 527 5050 @
All pectormances are held.at Douglas College ~

Foe more informeiion'eietplescobege:eovortaeyenes or 604.807— rey