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Goosebumps Boxed Set, Books 37 - 40: The Headless Ghost, The Abominable Snowman of Pasadena, How I Got My Shrunken Head, and Night of the Living Dummy III
- The Headless Ghost
- The Abominable Snowman of Pasadena
- How I Got My Shrunken Head
- Night of the Living Dummy III
- The Abominable Snowman of Pasadena
- How I Got My Shrunken Head
- Night of the Living Dummy III
Paperback
First published April 1, 1997
About the author
R.L. Stine
1,722 books19.2k followersRobert Lawrence Stine known as R. L. Stine and Jovial Bob Stine, is an American novelist and writer, well known for targeting younger audiences. Stine, who is often called the Stephen King of children's literature, is the author of dozens of popular horror fiction novellas, including the books in the Goosebumps, Rotten School, Mostly Ghostly, The Nightmare Room and Fear Street series.
R. L. Stine began his writing career when he was nine years old, and today he has achieved the position of the bestselling children's author in history. In the early 1990s, Stine was catapulted to fame when he wrote the unprecedented, bestselling Goosebumps® series, which sold more than 250 million copies and became a worldwide multimedia phenomenon. His other major series, Fear Street, has over 80 million copies sold.
Stine has received numerous awards of recognition, including several Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards and Disney Adventures Kids' Choice Awards, and he has been selected by kids as one of their favorite authors in the NEA's Read Across America program. He lives in New York, NY.
http://us.macmillan.com/itsthefirstda...
R. L. Stine began his writing career when he was nine years old, and today he has achieved the position of the bestselling children's author in history. In the early 1990s, Stine was catapulted to fame when he wrote the unprecedented, bestselling Goosebumps® series, which sold more than 250 million copies and became a worldwide multimedia phenomenon. His other major series, Fear Street, has over 80 million copies sold.
Stine has received numerous awards of recognition, including several Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards and Disney Adventures Kids' Choice Awards, and he has been selected by kids as one of their favorite authors in the NEA's Read Across America program. He lives in New York, NY.
http://us.macmillan.com/itsthefirstda...
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
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July 15, 20262.5 / 5 ⭐ Feels like a mid-tier Goosebumps book. More "incredible adventure" than horror or scares. But I still have some thoughts...
Setting: It's a neat choice, how it starts in Pasadena and it's so hot, then they're in Alaska and it's so cold, and then back to Pasadena and the heat. So this has kind of a neat symmetry, and arch form. But most of the book takes place in Alaska. And for much of it, not that much happens. The snowman is only around closer to the end. But anyway, with the extreme hot and cold, I feel like this could be either a summer or winter read (I read it in the July 2026 heat waves!).
Characters: The dad stood out to me. Props to R. L. Stine for including recently divorced parents; probably good to have that representation! And unlike most Goosebumps parents, this dad was actually pretty good. I mean, some stupidity, bringing his kids to remote Alaska, and leaving them alone with the snowman (near the end). But he's a really fun, positive character, who can dole out a joke but also take one. He is strict making sure they are safe (always carry your backpack!). But it's cool he let them join him in Alaska. He also was pretty understanding when the kids messed up at the end. As for the main two siblings, at least they have some traits of interest (the sister is smart, and the brother likes to joke around), and they are decently likable, I think. Their guide guy in Alaska is well-constructed to convey someone consistently unpleasant to be around, kind of self-centered and grumpy.
The plot: A bunch of random stuff happens before it really gets around to the actual snowman, and then the scares are a bit thin, like not that much is done with it. And then there's the random freezing snowballs stuff near the end, which is kind of out of nowhere.
The ending: What actually happens is of course disappointing, but even so, I feel it could have been executed better and still kind of worked. Spoilers here onward (stop now, if you want). Those prank neighbour characters never got what was coming to them! There were two snowballs left, as if they were setting up to freeze those two, but no! And neither are both snowballs used against the two main characters! The lack of snowman in the photos is never explained. I feel like this is a Goosebumps lore, with The Girl Who Cried Monster, and possibly Werewolf Skin (I can't remember for sure). Monsters not showing up in photographs, I mean. But I felt like that should have been made more explicit. The snowman himself just kind of running away, into the mountains maybe, felt really... like a letdown? I'm not sure what should have been done instead, but still. Overall, I felt like the ending, with what was chosen to happen (losing the snowman and the photos), should have leaned into "wow, how mysterious, and oh well, but at least we have each other, and what an incredible adventure we had!". But it didn't even really do that.
Setting: It's a neat choice, how it starts in Pasadena and it's so hot, then they're in Alaska and it's so cold, and then back to Pasadena and the heat. So this has kind of a neat symmetry, and arch form. But most of the book takes place in Alaska. And for much of it, not that much happens. The snowman is only around closer to the end. But anyway, with the extreme hot and cold, I feel like this could be either a summer or winter read (I read it in the July 2026 heat waves!).
Characters: The dad stood out to me. Props to R. L. Stine for including recently divorced parents; probably good to have that representation! And unlike most Goosebumps parents, this dad was actually pretty good. I mean, some stupidity, bringing his kids to remote Alaska, and leaving them alone with the snowman (near the end). But he's a really fun, positive character, who can dole out a joke but also take one. He is strict making sure they are safe (always carry your backpack!). But it's cool he let them join him in Alaska. He also was pretty understanding when the kids messed up at the end. As for the main two siblings, at least they have some traits of interest (the sister is smart, and the brother likes to joke around), and they are decently likable, I think. Their guide guy in Alaska is well-constructed to convey someone consistently unpleasant to be around, kind of self-centered and grumpy.
The plot: A bunch of random stuff happens before it really gets around to the actual snowman, and then the scares are a bit thin, like not that much is done with it. And then there's the random freezing snowballs stuff near the end, which is kind of out of nowhere.
The ending: What actually happens is of course disappointing, but even so, I feel it could have been executed better and still kind of worked. Spoilers here onward (stop now, if you want). Those prank neighbour characters never got what was coming to them! There were two snowballs left, as if they were setting up to freeze those two, but no! And neither are both snowballs used against the two main characters! The lack of snowman in the photos is never explained. I feel like this is a Goosebumps lore, with The Girl Who Cried Monster, and possibly Werewolf Skin (I can't remember for sure). Monsters not showing up in photographs, I mean. But I felt like that should have been made more explicit. The snowman himself just kind of running away, into the mountains maybe, felt really... like a letdown? I'm not sure what should have been done instead, but still. Overall, I felt like the ending, with what was chosen to happen (losing the snowman and the photos), should have leaned into "wow, how mysterious, and oh well, but at least we have each other, and what an incredible adventure we had!". But it didn't even really do that.
February 23, 2021
Average book not the best nor the worst ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (129)
December 31, 2022
Read just the Snowman liked it not loved it
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews