We have a great selection of spooky children's books to get you into the Halloween spirit, from cute picture books to the scariest YA horrors.

A History of Halloween!

Our Halloween traditions are drawn from ancient religious and pagan festivals celebrated over the end of autumn. The term Halloween, and its older spelling Hallowe'en, is shortened from All-hallow-even, as it is the evening before "All Hallows' Day" (also known as "All Saints' Day"). Halloween was also sometimes called All Saints' Eve. Allhallowtide was a time for Christians to remember the dead as the nights grew longer and winter arrived.

Halloween may also have roots in the Gaelic festival Samhain, a day of celebration to mark the end of harvest, when bonfires were lit, pranks were played and people dressed up in costumes. The Irish immigrants took their Halloween traditions with them when they settled in the United States, swapped turnip lanterns for the much easier to carve pumpkin and their guising became trick-or-treating.

The long, dark nights of October bring ghostly connotations as it was believed to be a time when the veil between the living and the dead was the thinnest, and when humans could communicate with those beyond the grave. 

Our modern Halloween has appropriated the customs from all of these festivals and is now a chance for fancy dress and pumpkin carving, apple bobbing, trick or treating and enjoying a scary movie or of course, a scary book!

Children's Books with Free Halloween Activity Downloads

Our Kids Zone has lots of Halloween inspired activities including colouring pages, puzzles and party packs. 

3+ 5+

Colin's Castle by Holly Swain

When a vegetarian vampire moves into his dream castle, he soon discovers he has an unwanted house guest . . .a gentle and funny story to share during spooky season.

Download this fun activity pack with a castle maze to solve.

7+

Pocket Potters for fans of JK Rowlings Harry Potter Stories 

Beautifully illustrated, collectable little books that offer a mini magical look into the lives, adventures, and personalities of your favourite characters and creatures from the Wizarding World.

Download an activity pack with over 15 colouring in pages, word searches and puzzles.

9+

Mallory Vayle and the Curse of Maggoty Skull by Martin Howard & Pete Williamson

Comically spooky and woven with whimsy this ghostly read presents an inventive raising-the-dead adventure around breaking a necromancer’s curse. Mallory is a marvellous character to die for — a kooky smart cookie, in fact — with sidekick Maggoty Skull providing plenty of flamboyant humour.

Download an activity pack with creative ideas from designing a haunted mansion to writing a spooky news story.

11+

The Nightmares of Finnegan Quick by Larry Hayes 11+ readers - A thrilling, chilling comic quest that sees Finnegan battle all manner of nasty beings in a world of nightmares. Fuelled by fear and friendship, this tense thriller hits the spot for fans of funny contemporary horror fiction. 

Download an activity pack with puzzles and a page to create your own monster.

13+ 

Dead Real by Poppy T Perry 

Radiantly refreshing, this rom-com, zom-com debut revolves around a duo of kiss-ass characters, and a kick-ass concept. Namely, the trickiness (to say the least) that comes of declaring your undying love for your best friend while your hometown is overrun by undying zombies.

Download a discussion guide, with creative questions, discussion starters, and hilarious hypotheticals to keep the story alive (or undead?) long after you’ve turned the last page.

Write a Spooky Story this Halloween 

Ghouls and ghosts that go bump in the night. Wailing witches flying by the eerie light of the moon. Monstrous mummies emerging from the mist. One thing’s for sure, spooky settings and characters can spark a host of brilliantly creative story ideas. With that in mind, here are some top tips to help kids (witch)craft their own terrifying tales. And remember, spooky stories are for life, not just Hallowe’en - some of these tips and techniques can be applied to all kinds of stories, and terrifying tales are fun and thrilling to read and write all through the year!

Three fearsome tips and techniques for writing spooky stories and craft your own truly terrifying tales!

Scroll on for a frighteningly good selection of books for children of all ages as well as grown-ups who have never quite grown up.

Close the curtains, lock the doors and settle down with one of our spooky reads....

Happy Halloween!