Slappy Birthday to You

Reviewed by: Jill O'Connor - Harriet Beecher Stowe Elementary School, Brunswick, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: December 13, 2017

Review

The first in a new Goosebumps series called SlappyWorld. Slappy is a ventriloquist dummy with a nasty attitude and a cruel sense of humor. When Slappy is gifted to Ian for this 12th birthday, bad things happen. The story is completely predictable (think Chucky), but for the young horror fan, it delivers plenty of suspenseful moments and readers of Goosebumps will tear through this title. There are no vocubulary hurdles nor are there any illustrations, so this would be good for readers ready to get a chill in chapter book form. This reviewer can't help but wish that there were a way to tell this story without so much cruelty and family fighting as it follows the formula of bickering siblings/cousins, disbelieving adults, and scenes of awkwardness among a family trying to celebrate an annual tradition (would a family like this really celebrate a talent show?). An easy purchase for those collections with other Goosebumps titles.

Overall Book Score: fair