The Curse of the Campfire Weenies and Other Warped and Creepy Tales Book

A boy discovers the answer to one of the great urban mysteries: why are pigeons always pooping in parks? A second-grade class learns why they should always be nice to their math teacher….An ancient predator uses the internet to search out its prey… A young girl and her little brother escape a campfire weenie only to encounter something even more terrifying: a troop of Girl Scouts singing campfire songs.

For this, his third collection of warped and creepy “weenie” tales, critically-acclaimed author and master of the macabre David Lubar traveled deep into the shadowy corners of his mind, looking for new ways to amuse and terrify his readers. And in the tradition of In the Land of the Lawn Weenies and Invasion of the Road Weenies, he reveals the inspiration behind each of the thirty-five stories at the end of the book.

Tim WadhamCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information. - School Library Journal

Gr 5-7
Like the other "Weenies" books, this third collection contains very brief stories for which the term "warped" is an understatement. Lubar clearly knows what sort of icky tale kids find gross and disgusting, yet somehow cool. And how is that possible when the majority of these selections end with death or eternal torment? The author sets up situations with a minimum of fuss and writes in a voice that speaks directly to his audience: kids get squished by bugs; a girl can only get halfway home-forever. Readers can almost hear an evil laugh reverberating at the end of each entry, especially in the final tale about a forgotten monster that plans to return with the help of a storyteller who is clearly Lubar himself. Back matter includes interesting "Where do you get your ideas?" notes. This book will talk itself right off the shelves, and reluctant readers will devour it.