Title: Thieves of Weirdwood | Author: Christian McKay Heidicker | Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (2020)

"Scary Stories for Young Foxes" by Christian McKay Heidicker

“Scary Stories for Young Foxes” by Christian McKay Heidicker

I’ve been reading this book lately and decided to share. It’s a series of scary short stories, however, each story is connect in some form or fashion. This book is also designed for kids so this would be something to read with your kids if they aren’t easily scared. Rumor has it that Peephole Productions and Boat Rocker Studios are suppose to co-produce a mini series based on this book. I might…

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Thorax Does the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge 2024 - #3: Read a middle grade horror novel + #9: Read a book recommended by a librarian

Scary Stories for Young Foxes by Christian McKay Heidicker

My only previous exposures to middle grade horror were Goosebumps books and Neil Gaiman's Coraline, but I wanted to read something a little newer for this challenge. A colleague of mine at the library recommended this one to me*, which was a fun way to (in keeping with some of the themes of this book) kill two birds with one stone.

Scary Stories for Young Foxes is scary even if you are not young or a fox. A human historical figure shows up as a surprise villain (I certainly didn't see her coming). Themes of ableism, betrayal, and abuse are dealt with in a sophisticated, utterly terrifying way. And everyone's a fox. I will definitely be picking up the sequel, The City.

*Note: Technically any book you read about on this blog counts as a book recommended by a librarian for this challenge!

Anyone who was watching me post remember that little meme I made about making a FNaF crossover AU because I noticed some characters were similar? Yeah that wasn't a joke, I actually have a bit of a plan now.

I feel like the first thing I should really do is quickly explain the other inspiration of the crossover. It's called Scary Stories for Young Foxes, written by Christian McKay Heidicker. To avoid spoilers if anyone wants to read it first, I'll place this below a cut. There's also a basic rundown of the AU story later which doesn't include detailed descriptions of gore, but is pretty dark as far as I've gotten.

Scary Stories for Young Foxes is a collection of interconnected stories in the same universe of sentient foxes, with small sections in-between where the storyteller (who is indeed a character) finishes a story and sees that one of the kits she is telling the stories to has run away in fear. She tells tales about rabies, a story that somehow turns Beatrix Potter writing things like Peter Rabbit into a horrifying situation, and, suspiciously enough, a nigh-unkillable and murderous father figure trying to end his son's life.

So you see why I chose the fox book of all things now, right?

The only things I could see as needing a TW are

The main character of the AU is Evan (Crying Child if you don't know that's one of the fanon names of his), and it pretty much starts out like normal FNaF minus the fact that everyone's a fox person. Yes, the fox person aspect is important and you'll see why later. Michael sets up some prank involving an animatronic like what caused the Bite, but it's not Fredbear and it's not involving its mouth. I have no idea what/who the animatronic would be, or what exactly happens in the way the prank was planned, but let's just say Mike realized at the last second this could actually kill Evan and takes the blow for him instead (death by bleeding out, represented by a snake on the drawing as the death swap was inspired by an event in one of the stories in the book). He's left shaken from this, partially because his brother nearly killed him, and partially because Mike died instead.

What really confuses him is his father's lack of reaction to Michael's death. Despite how much Evan was devastated, nothing much changed at home. Elizabeth (who you may note is 7 years old) hasn't changed at all. It's like he's the only one who misses Michael in the whole house. Something doesn't seem right about not getting scared from around corners.

It stays like that for a few months until Elizabeth starts acting odd. Evan starts locking his door as soon as she begins glaring at him, and he refused to open his door for anyone if Elizabeth was nearby. He's tried to bring it up to his father, but he's not doing anything about it. Not even when she starts getting aggressive.

That's right folks, Elizabeth got rabies.

This ends up being too much for Evan, and he starts running off to stat with Henry and Charlie, where he actually feels safe. Henry sends him back home the first few times, until he realizes Evan is actively in danger back at home and lets him stay. At least until Elizabeth dies from her sickness and it's safe again.

William is absolutely disgusted with the fact that Evan refused to stay home and be with Elizabeth when she had a fatal disease, even if that disease could be passed on to him if he stayed home. Upon finding out that Henry was letting him stay with them, Charlie gets murdered, kicking off William's child murder spree. The others happen when he begins experimenting to bring Elizabeth back.

From this point on I don't have much on the AU, but I'll try to think about this.

Scary Stories for Young Foxes

Christian McKay Heidicker

Illustrated by Junyi Wu

One autumn evening, seven little foxes ask for scarier stories than their mother has told them yet. Although they beg and whine, she tells them that she has no more scary stories, but there is an old storyteller who has terrible stories that would scare the white into their tails. They find themselves at the den of this old storyteller, who tells them stories of two fox kits, each on harrowing journeys through danger and the unknown. Mia and her mother flee a deadly illness that takes the rest of their family and come face-to-face with humans. Uly, the runt of the litter with a forepaw that doesn’t work, has to flee from his father who wants to kill him. The pair meet when Uly helps Mia escape the humans. The two have to stick together to make it through a swamp with dangerous creatures, Uly’s sinister father, and the bitter cold of winter. After each story, one of the kits turns tail, too scared to listen any longer. Which kit has the bravery to listen to all of the stories? What happens to the two kits struggling through adventure after adventure? It’s up to an intrepid and insightful reader to find out. Mia and Uly deal with loss and grief in an eloquent way, uniting from their shared familial issues. While the stories are about fictional foxes, readers may see themselves in the characters and their tales. This book fills the imagination with its descriptive word choice and haunting illustrations of each anecdote. The scary stories bring elements of the supernatural, natural, and even human-created terror. But fear not- there’s a kind ending for these little foxes. This book may not be the best choice for easily frightened readers, but lovers of spooky fairytales will enjoy this original concept.

BIBLIO: 2019, Henry Holt and Company/ Macmillan Publishing Group, Age 9-12, $16.99 and $22.99.

REVIEWER: Rebekah Ehrhart

FORMAT:  Middle Reader

ISBN: 9781250181428

10, 11, 17, 20 & 25 for the books ask!!!

thank you sophie!!

10. What was your favorite new release of the year?

Ooohhh this is so hard! I think mayhaps Babel by RF Kuang? Literally RF Kuang is queen of examining colonialism and history through a fascinating fantasy lens and also ripping your heart out at the same time. 10/10.

11. What was your favorite book that has been out for a while, but you just now read?

Okay I thought this one would also be hard but then I realized that there is an obvious answer for me and it's Parable of the Sower by Octavia E Butler. Believe it or not, I've never read a book by her before and now she's already one of my favorite writers. Like, god. it was so heavy to read but I flew through it. She did a great job of balancing the dystopia aspects with hope and resiliency. the development of the world and characters was so good, and the "god is change" stuff was genuinely really cool to think of.

Like, I was a teenager in 2010-2013 and I never thought I'd willingly read a dystopia again bc of that Experience.... but here I am, thinking this is probably in my top 10 books of the year.

Also, shout out to Beloved by Toni Morrison, Mythology by Edith Hamilton, The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker and Uprooted by Naomi Novik - other backlist books that I really, really loved.

17. Did any books surprise you with how good they were?

I read a middle grade horror book called Scary Stories for Young Foxes by Christian McKay Heidicker and it was reeeeally good. i will never look at beatrix potter the same way again skskfjfjjskdfkf iykyk.

Another book I was surprised by was Far Sector by NK Jemisin and Jamal Campbell. well. surprised is the wrong word since I picked it up bc NK Jemisin wrote it and it won a Hugo for best graphic novel. But after checking it out I realized it was a green lantern comic, which I could not care less about lol. BUT. It was actually really good once I gave it a shot - it's a stand alone space mystery political adventure! very fun!

And one more I was blown away by was An Invitation from a Crab by panpanya. It's a indie manga that my coworker lent me and it's incredibly surreal and dreamlike and weird, but I kinda am obsessed with it.

25. What reading goals do you have for next year?

For some reason I like to wait till that like, 1 week period between Christmas and New Years to fully define my reading goals, but I have thought about it a little! I always read at least 2 classics I never got to in high school/college, so I was thinking maybe Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf and Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston, since I own both of those. I'd also like to read a Russian classic too since I've never tried one of those.

I've never read any true crime and I think it'd be fun to branch out and read a couple from that genre next year!

This isn't a goal per se, but I'd also love to read all of Samantha Shannon's The Bone Season series next year, bc I love her writing a ton!

Attack of the 50 Foot Wallflower by Christian McKay Heidicker

Coming soon to a poll blog near you 🌮

Scary Stories for Young Foxes by Christian McKay Heidicker

2020 Newbery Honor Book

Adapted by Sophia Li of Colony Meadows Elementary (2024)

From Sugar Land, TX

Judges' Remarks: Wow, this was amazing! I loved the detailed, action-packed animation in this movie. The expressive faces of the foxes were particularly well done. The background music gave just the right whimsical-but-tense feeling, and the relentless countdown of how many foxes are left alive gave an effective-if-morbid structure to the movie. The drawings were beatiful, and fluidly and creatively animated: the twitch of an ear, the quirking of an eyebrow, the trembling of a tail, the eyes filling with tears . . . all of these were quite impressive! I also liked the subtle movement of the grass, the way the fox leapt at and caught the butterfly, and the part where the fox fell into the river. This movie zipped through the story at top speed, hitting many of the iconic moments of the book with style!

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Scary Stories For Young Foxes

tw for this book: rabies, abuse, manipulation, animal death, animal cruelty, mild gore, parental abuse, ableism, narcissism, child death, incorrect animal dynamics

rating: ☆☆☆☆

so i just recently finished 'Scary Stories For Young Foxes' by Christian McKay Heidicker and i just gotta say, i love kid's horror. i think the genre is so fun and so important, and this book is great example of why. the story is completely told through the pov of various fox characters, and for that it is extremely immersive. several times while reading this book, i became so immersed in the world that these characters live in, that i lowkey forgot that i myself am not a fox. the characters are relatable and very easy to empathise with, making the emotional beats of the story hit even harder.

the story begins with a group of fox kits, all unnamed, asking their mother to tell them a scary story. she can't provide one scary enough for the kits, but warns them not to visit an older fox who lives deep in the forest, known for telling stories that are too scary for kits. the kits, of course, sneak out to visit the storyteller anyways. when they find her, the storyteller advises that, while stories may be scary, you can find lessons in them if you stay to the end. and that begins the real plot. the book is broken into different segments, almost like mini arcs, and each is a different scary story. they start off seeming like they're separate stories, but by the third or fourth section, they begin to meld into one long epic. each segment is interspersed with snippets of the kits from the beginning of the novel, as they react to the horror of the story they're being told. one by one they flee, until only one is left. will the littlest one flee or stay to the end?

i really enjoyed this book, so much so that i will be purchasing the sequel when i get a chance. this book does deal with heavy subject matter, as is referenced in the tw list above, so understand that this book is not for extremely young or sensistive readers. i definitely recommend it for kids about 8-9+, as well as adults because honestly this book was so fun. the characters slap, the plot slaps, and even as a veteran horror fan, it had me STRESSED at times because i truly did not know whether the characters would make it out alive or not. reading about rabies from the persepective of a fox was truly haunting and i don't think i'll ever be able to truly look at Beatrix Potter the same way ever again. i do absolutely recommend this book for kids though. kid's horror is such an important genre, imo, because it allows kids to experience fear and empathy in a safe, controlled environment. i strongly believe that all kids should experience consensual, supervised fear. it's a good way for them to identify, gauge, and learn from their instincts before they're thrust into a world that is truly and unpredictably terrifying. it also allows the opportunity for parents/guardians/adults to step in and have discussions about how to handle fear in a healthy way.

all in all, the biggest beef i have with this book is the improper animal dynamics. as far as i'm aware, foxes do not follow the alpha/beta hierarchy, but this book does include that hierarchy. that's an easily ignorable ick though. it was a fun, light read with some legitimately upsetting moments, and i highly recommend it to all horror buffs, no matter the age range.

In this second action-packed and hilarious Weirdwood adventure by William Shivering and Newbery Honor winner Christian McKay Heidicker (Scary Stories for Young Foxes), two thieves and their ghost friend wage a battle against a shadowy magical organization intent on opening a Rift between the worlds of the living and the dead.

"[W]ill delight and satiate those besotted with Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Artemis Fowl, Miss Peregrine, the Spiderwicks." --New York Times Book Review on Thieves of Weirdwood

Fresh off of heroically saving their city from nightmarish monsters, 12-year-old reformed thieves Arthur and Wally are determined to join the Wardens of Weirdwood--defenders of the border between the Real and Imaginary worlds. 

Their mission: defeat the Order of Eldar, a shadowy group that exploits the creatures of the Fae for their own gain. When the Order opens what seems to be a Rift between the worlds of the living and the dead, they set up a menagerie of ghosts to make money off those grieving for their lost loved ones. 

As spirits begin to cross over into Kingsport, Arthur, Wally, and their ghost companion, Breeth, will have to return a fleet of dead souls to the other side of the Veil. 

Perfect for fans of Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky and Keeper of the Lost Cities.

PURCHASE

Title: Cure for the Common Universe | Author: Christian McKay Heidicker | Publisher: Simon & Schuster (2016)

In the mail...

In the mail…

This book showed up in my mail today. It was part of an order I’d placed earlier in the year. I still have a few books out that I’m waiting on but that’s because the won’t be released till a later date. I know it looks like I have a lot of reading to do and I’m aware of that fact……..it’s just that I don’t want to be sitting at my house whenever I have some free time with nothing to do. I always…

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These Books Will Self-Destruct in a Year TBR

I'm challenging myself to read these 5 books in the next year, or else I have to get rid of them! Click and see which 5!

This trend was inspired by Booked and Busy and Et Tu Brody. Basically, I have 5 books that I have physically owned for years that I haven’t yet picked up. This TBR is my motivation to finally read them because if I don’t read these books in a year, I’m unhauling them! Attack of the 50 Foot Wallflower by Christian McKay Heidicker I honestly cannot tell you what this book is about or why I picked…

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Scary Stories for Young Foxes by Christian McKay Heidicker

Genre/category: Texas Bluebonnet Award Masterlist 2021-2022, Newbery Honor Award Honoree 2020, Horror, Novel

Targeted Age: 3rd to 6th graders

Quick plot synopsis: Seven young foxes want seriously scary stories from the Storyteller. Only one kit is brave enough to hear the whole tale of Mia and Uly, who face rabid foxes, human hunters, hungry alligators, and domestic violence.

Why I chose Scary Stories for Young Foxes: Heidicker’s novel appears on the Texas Bluebonnet Award Masterlist 2021-22, in addition to being a 2020 Newbery Honoree. Included with the story are illustrations by Junyi Wu. Scary Stories for Young Foxes is organized as interconnected short stories, each separated by updates on the seven little foxes listening to Mia and Uly’s adventures.

Evaluation:

First and foremost, the visual design of Scary Stories for Young Foxes is impeccable. The interludes between stories are printed with white text on black paper to distinguish them from Mia and Uly’s stories. The final page is also black, reads “Sleep tight, little foxes.”, and is juxtaposed with bright red endpapers (Heidicker, 2019). Along with the design, Junyi Wu’s illustrations add to the scary mood of the novel. Each piece of artwork appears to be done in charcoal pencil, with ample texture created via hatching technique. Each story is headed by a full page illustration, and smaller pieces appear throughout as well. Wu’s artwork shows long shadows, frightening foxes, and fearful young kits. These support the moods of the novel, as well as the fact that it is a horror book.

Both the main characters, Mia and Uly, are dynamic and go through considerable growth during the story. Mia, who is separated from her family first by illness and then by a human, is forced to learn that the world is not always comforting. Uly, who grew up with cruel sisters and only three legs, learns to face his abusive father and conquer his numerous fears. Their stories begin separately, but intertwine as the plot develops. Together, Mia and Uly help each other face their own struggles, past and present. The villains and dangers they face feel realistic, from Uly’s father to hungry alligators. There is possibly one exception: the human enemy that Mia faces is Beatrix Potter. The beloved children’s author’s presence feels a little inexplicable. But, she is truly horrifying through Mia’s eyes and fits into the story.

Of course, when talking about horror it’s important to talk about tension. Good horror stories require good tension, and Scary Stories for Young Foxes does the job. It maintains tension throughout, without becoming tiring. This is achieved through the pacing of frightening events. When Uly is swimming for shore, Mia’s increasingly frantic encouragements heighten the fear of the scene. This climaxes in Uly getting grabbed by an alligator and making a daring escape (Heidicker, 2019). In between horrors, the readers are given respites in the form of happier scenes and the interludes. The little foxes in the breaks help with the tension as well, constantly needing the Storyteller to remind them to be patient.

Do I recommend it?: Definitely! Scary Stories for Young Foxes is the perfect middle grade horror novel, and it is probably my favorite book I’ve reviewed for this blog so far. Kids who read this novel will find that it is satisfying and has a hopeful ending.

Citations:

Heidicker, C. M. (2019). Scary Stories for Young Foxes (J. Wu, Illus.). Henry Holt and Co. (BYR).

Spooooktastic middle grade: SCARY STORIES FOR YOUNG FOXES

Spooooktastic middle grade: SCARY STORIES FOR YOUNG FOXES @mackidsbooks

I can’t believe Halloween is THIS WEEKEND. I’ve been booktalking all the spooky books I’ve been reading year-round, in anticipation of this moment! Scary Stories for Young Foxes, by Christian McKay Heidicker/Illustated by Junyi Wu, (July 2019, Henry Holt & Co.), $16.99, ISBN: 9781250181428 Ages 9-14 A Newbery Honor-winning collection of interconnected stories, Scary Stories for Young Foxes stole…

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