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3.47 AVERAGE
3.47 AVERAGE
Welcome to Camp Nightmare by R. L. Stine is book 9 in the original Goosebumps series. Welcome to Camp Nightmare is scarier than most of the Goosebumps I have read before. The ending is a good twist that is set up from the start with little hints along the way, in my last review of The Girl Who Cried Monster Goosebumps 8 this was a big complaint. The Psychological horror of being stranded and having people go missing, that no one remembers being there in the first place works really well. The Welcome to Camp Nightmare 2 part episode from Goosebumps was a childhood favorite of mine, there's minor differences a one plot point change that I liked better than the book. There's a real lack of false scares in this one only one at the beginning, which is the smallest amont in a Goosebumps book so far. The book uses every camping horror trope but twist it and makes it fun. I'm reading these Goosebumps books in order and giving to my three nephews, and they will like this one a lot.
The Plot: Billy is going to his first Overnight camping trip for the summer at Camp Nightmoon. Billy makes fast friends on the bus with his bunk mates of Cabin 4 Jay, Colin, and Mike. The trip starts off bad as there are snakes found in Mike's bunk and bite him right at the start. Mike's hand starts swelling and is told there is no nurse. Larry the older cabin leader is relaxed and says cold water and a bandage are all it takes. Mike goes off to treat his wound and is not heard from again as all his stuck is removed. Mike is the first of many campers to disappear that no one but Billy seems to remember. Billy really freaks out when he finds out the phone is fake and the letters he's been told to write are undelivered. Billy is in Camp Nightmare, not Nightmoon.
What I Liked: Billy makes a lot of smart choices. The reveal of the fake phone was pretty great. The first scare with the desert creatures could has been one of my favorite scares of the series so far. The Bus driver scaring them, the not saying another word worked really well as he starts dumping their stuff. I loved all the clues to the ending, pay attention to the way the land and sky are described. The final twist was pretty good. I liked Larry the do nothing relaxed camp counselor. The scares are pretty good for the most part.
What I Disliked: The forbidden bunk was never really used, that's why I like the TV episode so much better, because you have this device the forbidden bunk already set up, why not learn the history of it. I thought the plot point towards the end where Billy was asked to shoot things was okay but not explained enough.
Recommendations: Welcome to Camp Nightmare worked really well, and gave off some good scares. It was one of the easiest stories to get into so far. It made me remember my sleep over camp days and a lot of the stuff that I was afraid of. I rated Welcome to Camp Nightmare 4 out of 5 stars, and it ranks third out of the Goosebumps books that I have already read. Here's my full ranking of the 9 Goosebumps books that I have read in order to my favorite to least favorite Stay Out of the Basement, Night of the Living Dummy, Welcome to Camp Nightmare, The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb, Say Cheese and Die, Let's Get Invisible, Welcome to Dead House, The Girl who Cried Monster, and Monster Blood.
The Plot: Billy is going to his first Overnight camping trip for the summer at Camp Nightmoon. Billy makes fast friends on the bus with his bunk mates of Cabin 4 Jay, Colin, and Mike. The trip starts off bad as there are snakes found in Mike's bunk and bite him right at the start. Mike's hand starts swelling and is told there is no nurse. Larry the older cabin leader is relaxed and says cold water and a bandage are all it takes. Mike goes off to treat his wound and is not heard from again as all his stuck is removed. Mike is the first of many campers to disappear that no one but Billy seems to remember. Billy really freaks out when he finds out the phone is fake and the letters he's been told to write are undelivered. Billy is in Camp Nightmare, not Nightmoon.
What I Liked: Billy makes a lot of smart choices. The reveal of the fake phone was pretty great. The first scare with the desert creatures could has been one of my favorite scares of the series so far. The Bus driver scaring them, the not saying another word worked really well as he starts dumping their stuff. I loved all the clues to the ending, pay attention to the way the land and sky are described. The final twist was pretty good. I liked Larry the do nothing relaxed camp counselor. The scares are pretty good for the most part.
What I Disliked: The forbidden bunk was never really used, that's why I like the TV episode so much better, because you have this device the forbidden bunk already set up, why not learn the history of it. I thought the plot point towards the end where Billy was asked to shoot things was okay but not explained enough.
Recommendations: Welcome to Camp Nightmare worked really well, and gave off some good scares. It was one of the easiest stories to get into so far. It made me remember my sleep over camp days and a lot of the stuff that I was afraid of. I rated Welcome to Camp Nightmare 4 out of 5 stars, and it ranks third out of the Goosebumps books that I have already read. Here's my full ranking of the 9 Goosebumps books that I have read in order to my favorite to least favorite Stay Out of the Basement, Night of the Living Dummy, Welcome to Camp Nightmare, The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb, Say Cheese and Die, Let's Get Invisible, Welcome to Dead House, The Girl who Cried Monster, and Monster Blood.
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Children's/juvenile
horror
Billy thinks summer camp is great, until his bunk mates start to disappear one by one.
This was one of my childhood favorites!
horror
Billy thinks summer camp is great, until his bunk mates start to disappear one by one.
This was one of my childhood favorites!
Not exactly my favorite. Mostly because I was expecting more thrill and I think RL Stine's style of writing is good but need more new plots.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
N/A
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
An exceptionally good story! The end made me gasp!!
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Disclaimer: I bought this book when I was a kid. Support your authors! All opinions are my own.
Book: Goosebumps: Welcome to Camp Nightmare
Author: R.L. Stine
Book Series: Goosebumps #9
Rating: 5/5
Recommended For...: Middle Grade readers, Horror, Children’s, Paranormal, Mystery
Publication Date: July 1, 1993
Genre: MG Horror
Age Relevance: 8+ (scary moments, animal injury)
Explanation of CWs: There are some scenes involving injury to animals, but nothing is gorey. There are also scary moments that might frighten some children.
If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Right Where You Left Me
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 160
Synopsis: Welcome to Camp Nightmare It's the little camp of horrors! Next summer you'll stay home ... if you survive! Billy thinks that life at camp is a bit creepy, but when other campers start to disappear and his parents do not answer his letters, Camp Nightmoon becomes Camp Nightmare.
Review: This is the one episode of the Goosebumps TV series that scared me and also confused me greatly as a kid LOL. I love that reading it. It makes so much more sense in hindsight than what it did in the TV series, which is just a lesson to everyone that you just need to read the books to gain the insight that you want from TV shows or movies or whatever. I thought that the World building and the character development were fantastic and I really love the twist at the end. I think this is one of my favorite Goosebumps books and the premise of it is one of my favorite horror story elements.
The only thing I will say is that it is really fast paced, but these are meant for younger kids with shorter attention spans and a lot more going on than I do as an adult LOL.
Verdict: It was such a good little read!
Book: Goosebumps: Welcome to Camp Nightmare
Author: R.L. Stine
Book Series: Goosebumps #9
Rating: 5/5
Recommended For...: Middle Grade readers, Horror, Children’s, Paranormal, Mystery
Publication Date: July 1, 1993
Genre: MG Horror
Age Relevance: 8+ (scary moments, animal injury)
Explanation of CWs: There are some scenes involving injury to animals, but nothing is gorey. There are also scary moments that might frighten some children.
If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Right Where You Left Me
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 160
Synopsis: Welcome to Camp Nightmare It's the little camp of horrors! Next summer you'll stay home ... if you survive! Billy thinks that life at camp is a bit creepy, but when other campers start to disappear and his parents do not answer his letters, Camp Nightmoon becomes Camp Nightmare.
Review: This is the one episode of the Goosebumps TV series that scared me and also confused me greatly as a kid LOL. I love that reading it. It makes so much more sense in hindsight than what it did in the TV series, which is just a lesson to everyone that you just need to read the books to gain the insight that you want from TV shows or movies or whatever. I thought that the World building and the character development were fantastic and I really love the twist at the end. I think this is one of my favorite Goosebumps books and the premise of it is one of my favorite horror story elements.
The only thing I will say is that it is really fast paced, but these are meant for younger kids with shorter attention spans and a lot more going on than I do as an adult LOL.
Verdict: It was such a good little read!