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A review by liamunderwood
How I Got My Shrunken Head by R.L. Stine
1.5
After The Abominable Snowman of Pasadena we have another Goosebumps book where R.L. Stine diverts his attention into action adventure territory instead of spooky thrills and chills. The Abominable Snowman of Pasadena took us to a chilly Alaska, whereas in How I Got My Shrunken Head we journey to the jungle setting of Baladora. The protagonist Mark is fine, but honestly so much of this book is just nonsense. When the term 'Jungle Magic' started getting thrown around with sincerity I just couldn't stop my eyes from rolling.
The ridiculous plot takes Mark from one inexplicable situation to the next, with very little excitement to the proceedings, and any predicament is handily solved in ways that defy any sense of logic. I know this is ultimately a children's book, and I understand that Stine at this point has written almost forty of these books, but even so - just a little consistency would be appreciated. How I Got My Shrunken Head is utterly forgettable and the 'twist' ending is easily one of the weakest so far.
1.5/5
Goosebumps Ranked
1) One Day At Horrorland - 4/5
2) Stay Out of the Basement - 4/5
3) Attack of the Mutant - 3.5/5
4) Welcome to Dead House - 3.5/5
5) The Headless Ghost - 3.5/5
6) The Phantom of the Auditorium - 3.5/5
7) Piano Lessons Can Be Murder - 3.5/5
8) Night of the Living Dummy - 3.5/5
9) The Girl Who Cried Monster - 3.5/5
10) The Werewolf of Fever Swamp - 3.5/5
11) The Scarecrow Walks at Midnight - 3/5
12) The Haunted Mask - 3/5
13) The Ghost Next Door - 3/5
14) Ghost Beach - 3/5
15) Monster Blood - 3/5
16) Night of the Living Dummy II - 3/5
17) The Haunted Mask II - 3/5
18) Deep Trouble - 3/5
19) Say Cheese and Die! - 3/5
20) A Night in Terror Tower - 2.5/5
21) Why I'm Afraid of Bees - 2.5/5
22) The Cuckoo Clock of Doom - 2.5/5
23) Be Careful What You Wish For... - 2.5/5
24) The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb - 2.5/5
25) Monster Blood II - 2/5
26) My Hairiest Adventure - 2/5
27) Go Eat Worms! - 2/5
28) Monster Blood III - 2/5
29) The Abominable Snowman of Pasadena - 2/5
30) It Came from Beneath the Sink! - 2/5
31) Return of the Mummy - 2/5
32) Let's Get Invisible! - 2/5
33) Welcome to Camp Nightmare - 2/5
34) A Shocker on Shock Street - 1.5/5
35) Revenge of the Garden Gnomes - 1.5/5
36) How I Got My Shrunken Head - 1.5/5
37) The Horror at Camp Jellyjam - 1.5/5
38) The Barking Ghost - 1.5/5
39) You Can't Scare Me - 1/5
The ridiculous plot takes Mark from one inexplicable situation to the next, with very little excitement to the proceedings, and any predicament is handily solved in ways that defy any sense of logic. I know this is ultimately a children's book, and I understand that Stine at this point has written almost forty of these books, but even so - just a little consistency would be appreciated. How I Got My Shrunken Head is utterly forgettable and the 'twist' ending is easily one of the weakest so far.
1.5/5
Goosebumps Ranked
1) One Day At Horrorland - 4/5
2) Stay Out of the Basement - 4/5
3) Attack of the Mutant - 3.5/5
4) Welcome to Dead House - 3.5/5
5) The Headless Ghost - 3.5/5
6) The Phantom of the Auditorium - 3.5/5
7) Piano Lessons Can Be Murder - 3.5/5
8) Night of the Living Dummy - 3.5/5
9) The Girl Who Cried Monster - 3.5/5
10) The Werewolf of Fever Swamp - 3.5/5
11) The Scarecrow Walks at Midnight - 3/5
12) The Haunted Mask - 3/5
13) The Ghost Next Door - 3/5
14) Ghost Beach - 3/5
15) Monster Blood - 3/5
16) Night of the Living Dummy II - 3/5
17) The Haunted Mask II - 3/5
18) Deep Trouble - 3/5
19) Say Cheese and Die! - 3/5
20) A Night in Terror Tower - 2.5/5
21) Why I'm Afraid of Bees - 2.5/5
22) The Cuckoo Clock of Doom - 2.5/5
23) Be Careful What You Wish For... - 2.5/5
24) The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb - 2.5/5
25) Monster Blood II - 2/5
26) My Hairiest Adventure - 2/5
27) Go Eat Worms! - 2/5
28) Monster Blood III - 2/5
29) The Abominable Snowman of Pasadena - 2/5
30) It Came from Beneath the Sink! - 2/5
31) Return of the Mummy - 2/5
32) Let's Get Invisible! - 2/5
33) Welcome to Camp Nightmare - 2/5
34) A Shocker on Shock Street - 1.5/5
35) Revenge of the Garden Gnomes - 1.5/5
36) How I Got My Shrunken Head - 1.5/5
37) The Horror at Camp Jellyjam - 1.5/5
38) The Barking Ghost - 1.5/5
39) You Can't Scare Me - 1/5