Looking for some scary books (or maybe not so scary) to get into the Halloween mood? Here are a few suggestions to put on your Halloween reading list:

The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury
The Halloween Tree VHS
A group of boys set out trick-or-treating on Halloween, but end up searching for their friend Pipkin. The mystifying Mr Mondshroud leads them on an adventure that explores the Halloween traditions of many cultures. Bradbury's way with prose captures a child's view of the holiday perfectly.


Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
Something Wicked This Way Comes DVD
In Bradbury's classic novel, a dark carnival comes to town one autumn night. Two boys, Will and Jim are curious but discover something wicked is going on.


From the Dust Returnedby Ray Bradbury
Ray Bradbury’s short story "Homecoming," first appeared in the October 1946 issue of Mademoiselle magazine and told the tale of the Elliots, an outlandish clan of good natured creatures and their adopted son Timothy. Bradbury has published just five other stories about the Elliots and in From the Dust Returned he weaves these original tales with newer chapters and an overall storyline. Read my full review


The Thief of Always by Clive Barker
10 year old Harvey is bored and wishes for something fun to happen. He is shown the way to the Holiday House where each day includes all four seasons; spirng mornings, summer afternoons, Halloween evenings and Christmas nights. Everything is wonderful until he begins to question what is going on.


Shade of the Treeby Piers Anthony
A city dwelling family inherits a house in rural Florida, but they find it is haunted. Usually known for his lighter fantasies, Piers delves into the dark side in this novel.


October Dreams Edited by Richard Chizmar and Robert Morrish
The subtitle of this collection is A Celebration of Halloween and contains short stories on that theme.


Richard Matheson is a screenwriter and author of many novels and shorts stories, including Stir of Echoes, Hell House and "Terror at 20,000 Feet". Read more about Richard Matheson


If you're in the mood for some classic Halloween reading, why not try War of the Worlds by HG Wells or The Strange Case of Dr Jeckyl and Mr Hyde by RL Stevenson