Scared Silly: 25 Tales to Tickle and Thrill

Award-winning storyteller Dianne de Las Casas offers a primer on how to tell a spooky story, with 25 tales organized by age appropriateness and tips on how to effectively tell each tale.

In Scared Silly: 25 Tales to Tickle and Thrill, Diane de Las Casas shares the methods and processes she uses in her own performances, workshops, and artist residencies, including how to effectively encourage audience participation. A brief section explains the benefits of sharing scary stories and offers expert opinions on the subject.

The 25 stories included here, many of them storytellers’ classics, can be used by elementary teachers, librarians, storytellers, and camp counselors. The tales are adapted from around the world and range from suspenseful to comical to thrilling. Each story is annotated with suggestions on how to tell the tale, and each is rated by a ＂Spook-O-Meter＂ that illustrates how scary the story is for what audience it’s intended.

Grades 1-5.

Dianne de Las Casas was an author, award-winning storyteller, and recording artist who toured internationally presenting programs, educator/librarian training, workshops and artist residencies. Her published works include Libraries Unlimited’s Handmade Tales: Stories to Make and Take, Tangram Tales: Story Theater using the Ancient Chinese Puzzle, and Cajun Cornbread Boy: A Well-Loved Tale Spiced Up.