Literacy 2023: Book 8: Eerie Tales from the School of Screams

Book
Eerie Tales from the School of Screams by Graham Annable

Synopsis
Children in a classroom are called on by their teacher to deliver an EERIE story to the rest of the class, and we get to see five of them play out.

Disclaimer
I worked with Graham at LucasArts and Telltale, but I would think his stuff is brilliant anyway.

Pros

More of the creepy-funny feel of the Grickle animated short films he’s been making for years, but on paper.

Suitable for kids — Or maybe more accurate to say that it’s aimed at kids but suitable for adults? I don’t care! — but there’s little sense of anything being watered down. This feels like the creepy stories real kids would tell each other.

Graham is a master of expressions and poses; even after years of being a fan, I’m impressed by how he can get across a full-on mood and complete state of mind for a character by changing the position of a line by a fraction of a millimeter.

The anthology format is great; it calls back to kids’ horror shows like Are You Afraid of the Dark? as well as adult horror anthologies, but also carries through the entire framing story.

“The Face in the Forest” is my favorite of the stories, and it manages to be horrific and heartwarming at the same time.

I love how it feels old-fashioned and modern at the same time; it feels like it’s not trying to be anything else.

Cons

I read it too fast, so I’m only an hour from getting it in the mail and I already want the sequel.

I’d been hoping for Principal Skeleton.

Verdict
I loved it. I wish I’d had comics like this when I was younger, “younger” including “in my forties.” If you’re a fan of Graham’s creepy-funny animated horror shorts, then this is a no-brainer. If you’re not a fan of them, then what is wrong with you?