Don’t Turn Out the Lights

A Tribute to Alvin Schwartz's Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

By: Jonathan Maberry - editor, Amy Lukavics, Barry Lyga, Brendan Reichs, Brenna Yovanoff, Christopher Golden, Courtney Alameda, D. J. MacHale, Josh Malerman, Kami Garcia, Madeleine Roux, Margaret Stohl, Michael Northrop, Micol Ostow, R. L. Stine

Narrated by: Adam Verner, Hillary Huber

Length: 6 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's Summary

Featuring stories from R.L. Stine and Madeleine Roux, this middle-grade horror anthology, curated by New York Times best-selling author and master of macabre Jonathan Maberry, is a chilling tribute to Alvin Schwartz’s Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.  

Flesh-hungry ogres? Brains full of spiders? Haunted houses you can’t escape? This collection of 35 terrifying stories from the Horror Writers Association has it all, including ghastly illustrations from Iris Compiet that will absolutely chill listeners to the bone. 

So turn off your lamps, click on your flashlights, and prepare - if you dare - to be utterly spooked! 

The complete list of writers: Linda D. Addison, Courtney Alameda, Jonathan Auxier, Gary A. Braunbeck, Z Brewer, Aric Cushing, John Dixon, Tananarive Due, Jamie Ford, Kami Garcia, Christopher Golden, Tonya Hurley, Catherine Jordan, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Alethea Kontis, N.R. Lambert, Laurent Linn, Amy Lukavics, Barry Lyga, D.J. MacHale, Josh Malerman, James A. Moore, Michael Northrop, Micol Ostow, Joanna Parypinksi, Brendan Reichs, Madeleine Roux, R.L. Stine, Margaret Stohl, Gaby Triana, Luis Alberto Urrea, Rosario Urrea, Kim Ventrella, Sheri White, T.J. Wooldridge, Brenna Yovanoff.

©2020 Jonathan Maberry (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers

A Nice Change From the Heavier Stuff

Stories – 4.5/5

Narration – 5/5

“Don’t Turn Off the Lights” edited by Jonathan Mayberry is “A Tribute to Alvin Schwartz's Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark” as told by a number of select authors of Horror.

The stories are all pretty good, but you have to remember that these are intended for Middle Graders, so nothing really heavy. A few of the stories and one poem gave even me a creepy feeling, though.

It’s nice to see that these authors can write a story that depends on plot and atmosphere, and not entirely on the gag factor.

Recommendation – it’s a fun read and if you can see still through the eyes of a child, then you might like this.

awesome!

I really enjoyed all these stories. Reminds me a lot when I was growing up. Had that same Nostalgia. Both narrators did a great job.

Great lunch time listen

I know this is a kid’s book, but I throughly enjoyed listening to this during my daily lunch break. I highly recommend for adults who want to give their brain a rest sitting in your car, eating your lunch and just listening!

decent short stories to pass the time

some were great, some not so much . I liked the lot overall. would recommend for being a free option

Spooky Goodness!

This was the perfect book to kick off the spooky season! Such creepy stories all told in honor of Schwartz's classic collection that is still one of my all time favorites.

Scary good fun!

There is something to say when scary stories meant for children give an adult the chills. This is full of those kind of stories. This book is worth more than money. It holds age old traditions of mystery, things that go bump in the night, and allowing the reader/Listener's imagination go wild.

Little to No Effort

Stories in this collection seem dashed off. They would not be interesting for either children or adults. The narrators are fine but the stories themselves are abysmal, and I’m guess most of them were written in a day. The editor clearly has no understanding of the folktale tradition that led to Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. Avoid at all costs.