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Tales from Beyond the Brain
Imagine walking home from school one day and seeing a brain on the side of the road, a brain that, it turns out, is looking for a new home. Or instead of paying attention to the teacher, you shoot a paper airplane across the room and accidentally rip a hole in the fabric of the universe. And what would you do if you discovered that your class reading group was actually recruiting kids with telekinetic powers? Tales from Beyond the Brain is a collection of thirteen spooky stories that are as outrageous as they are terrifying. It's a throwback to the weird tales of yesteryear, in the vein of Tales from the Crypt and The Twilight Zone , but with contemporary characters and settings. Getting an education has never been more dangerous.
170 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2019
2 people are currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Szpirglas
34 books11 followersJeff Szpirglas has had a varied career. He's shoveled manure, worked in a steelyard (he hails from Hamilton, after all), and even frolicked in the offices at CTV Television and Chirp, chickaDEE, and OWL magazines, where he was the kids' page editor. His manure-shoveling days long behind him, Jeff currently teaches children by day and writes books/fights supervillains by night.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 4, 2019
If Goosebumps were anthology books, this book would be one of them!
Cute little stories that are for middle grade readers ages 9 to 12. Mostly set in the school atmosphere. Scary and well written. I enjoyed these creepy little stories.
I would definitely recommend this book to spook your children!
Cute little stories that are for middle grade readers ages 9 to 12. Mostly set in the school atmosphere. Scary and well written. I enjoyed these creepy little stories.
I would definitely recommend this book to spook your children!
January 29, 2025
Horror stories for kids never go out of vogue, but 2019's Tales from Beyond the Brain by Jeff Szpirglas is a bit more disturbing than others of its era. Maybe it's Stephen P. Hughes's chilling illustrations, or the gory descriptions in a few stories, but the book differentiates itself from many others like it. The opening story is "An Apple a Day". Every Student of the Day selected by Mr. Oakwood from his class has always brought him a shiny, flawless apple, but when Lewis Stoller brings in a tiny, bruised apple and Mr. Oakwood treats him cruelly because of it, one girl in class, Megan, decides to exact revenge. A small, sweet fig offered to Mr. Oakwood in lieu of an apple...a strain of bee eggs primed to hatch...Megan's turn as Student of the Day is not going to end pleasantly. "The Paper Cut" is next. Mike and Jerry get a kick out of flying paper planes in class. The teacher, Mrs. Taylor, typically ignores them, but when Jerry copies a strange folding design from a foreign website, his paper plane tears a hole in the fabric of space. Mrs. Taylor is furious, but does she know more about this quantum accident than she lets on? In "Twenty-four Frames Per Second", Sam is sad that a local vintage movie theater is going out of business. Mr. Lambert, the manager, invites him inside to show him how the magic of cinema functioned many years ago. If only Sam knew that this theater's film reels lock kids forever in a realm beyond our own...
Walking home from school at the start of "Two Brains, One Alice", the title girl hardly believes her eyes: a human brain is buried under leaves and brush in the street gutter. She can't explain her urge to pick up the squishy, viscous organ and carry it home, but that night whenever she touches the brain, her academic faculties increase dramatically. Alice could become a star student...but then the brain exerts stronger influence, coercing her to enter the house of Gilbert A. Curry, whose brain she possesses. His backstory floods her mind, and she realizes with horror that his brain needs a new home. Lucky for him, one is at hand. "Scratch" features a boy named Avi who enjoys drawing pictures, especially ones making fun of Ms. Fetch, his old, overweight teacher. She hardly seems intimidating, but Ms. Fetch has ways to make impertinent boys sorry, as Avi finds out. Would she wreck a kid's psyche and body as payback for his artistic pranks? Greg, the protagonist of "Whiskers", never knew he might want a cat until a stray followed him home. Cleaning Whiskers's litter box isn't fun, but Greg's mother loves the cat, so he's okay with doing the extra chore. One day Whiskers leads him down a steep, dangerous ravine to an isolated cabin. Who could be living here? Greg ventures inside for a look around, but if it's a trap, it may be the last one he ever falls into.
If you're squeamish about dental gore, be cautious about reading "A Kernel Takes Root". Jamie tries to extract a popcorn kernel stuck between his teeth, but the kernel suddenly morphs into an ugly fang that crowds aside his natural teeth. More fangs sprout, making it hard to open his mouth, and the invading teeth exert authority over Jamie's ability to speak. They won't let him ask his parents to drive him to the dentist, and the nightmare intensifies at school. Jamie's mouth is full of twisted fangs, but can he and his friend Hamid outsmart the teeth? If they do, will Jamie suffer devastating longterm health effects? "Chewy Ones" takes place on Halloween, after Alain comes home with a sackful of candy from trick-or-treating. His parents weed out any sweets that look suspicious, including a round one in pretty multicolored foil that looks fine to Alain. After bedtime he sneaks down, digs the candy in its pretty packaging out of the trash, and pops it into his mouth. Too late he realizes his parents' concern was justified, when the candy inflates past his lips into a gigantic bubble, lifting him into the night sky. Does the candy's designer have a malevolent plan for boys who disobey their parents? In "Last of the Daves", an unseen, anonymous aggressor begins eradicating all people named David. Dave Ziegler first notices something amiss when Dave Anders disappears from class and nobody else remembers him. Soon Davids from all over are vanishing right out of their clothes, moving down the alphabet from A to Z. How long does Dave Ziegler have left? Can he legally change his first name in time to escape the purge?
Jerome and Marty in the story "Stuffing" never behave well on their bus ride home from school. They pull stuffing out of the old, worn seat to fling at each other, but one day the driver catches them in the act. "Grumpy-Butt", as they've nicknamed her, vows to make them pay for the damage. Will either boy survive her crazed version of discipline? Maya gave up on being a good student long before we meet her in "The Reading Group". Math, science, writing...no matter the subject, she requires a lot of extra tutoring. This year her teacher, Mr. Wexler, tries a new strategy on Maya, and it triggers psychic emanations she had no idea she possessed. She wields stunning new power over her classmates, many of whom have teased her for being unintelligent. Mr. Wexler encourages Maya to use her psychic energy for vengeance, but does she have it in her to inflict pain on the ignorant? Next up is "Evil Eye." Jane has a scratched cornea after a boy named Matteo pushed her down and her face collided with a gravestone. The doctor says the injury is mild, but Jane is shocked when suddenly she seems capable of astral projection. Her wounded eye has developed supernatural abilities, and Jane must intervene before it takes revenge on Matteo in a way that can't be undone. Our final story is "The Page Turner". While leafing through a book-club catalog, Anika Singh's curiosity is piqued by an item described as "Your Biography," available to buy for just $2.99. What sort of gimmick is this? She places the order and is surprised by how thin the book is when it arrives. The pages at the back are clumped together, almost impossible to separate, but as Anika scans the first pages, a deep sense of alarm grows. The book records details of her life that no one could know, and new pages continually appear to report what's she's doing right now. Is it an elaborate prank? Anika forces open the clumped pages at the end, desperate to get to the bottom of this mystery, but the book warns her that accessing these pages too soon will be catastrophic. Is she unspooling the remaining decades of her life in a mere matter of seconds?
The horror elements of Tales from Beyond the Brain are surprisingly potent for its target age group, but the stories don't make sense if you think about the details at all. That's unfortunate; Jeff Szpirglas has talent for setting a scary scene, and the book could have been excellent were more time invested in developing cohesive narratives. A few of the stories might be too gross to be redeemed—"A Kernel Takes Root" is the main culprit there—but Tales from Beyond the Brain had potential, and I'm sorry it came nowhere near being fulfilled. Illustrator Stephen P. Hughes is a bright spot, though; his black-and-white renderings are slices of visceral fear that improve the book considerably, reminiscent of the work of Tim Jacobus, Nelson Evergreen (Neil Evans), Alberto Dal Lago, or Chris Van Allsburg. Hughes's contributions alone might make this book worth reading. I'd rate Tales from Beyond the Brain one and a half stars, but Jeff Szpirglas certainly is capable of better, and I'll be sure to try him again.
Walking home from school at the start of "Two Brains, One Alice", the title girl hardly believes her eyes: a human brain is buried under leaves and brush in the street gutter. She can't explain her urge to pick up the squishy, viscous organ and carry it home, but that night whenever she touches the brain, her academic faculties increase dramatically. Alice could become a star student...but then the brain exerts stronger influence, coercing her to enter the house of Gilbert A. Curry, whose brain she possesses. His backstory floods her mind, and she realizes with horror that his brain needs a new home. Lucky for him, one is at hand. "Scratch" features a boy named Avi who enjoys drawing pictures, especially ones making fun of Ms. Fetch, his old, overweight teacher. She hardly seems intimidating, but Ms. Fetch has ways to make impertinent boys sorry, as Avi finds out. Would she wreck a kid's psyche and body as payback for his artistic pranks? Greg, the protagonist of "Whiskers", never knew he might want a cat until a stray followed him home. Cleaning Whiskers's litter box isn't fun, but Greg's mother loves the cat, so he's okay with doing the extra chore. One day Whiskers leads him down a steep, dangerous ravine to an isolated cabin. Who could be living here? Greg ventures inside for a look around, but if it's a trap, it may be the last one he ever falls into.
If you're squeamish about dental gore, be cautious about reading "A Kernel Takes Root". Jamie tries to extract a popcorn kernel stuck between his teeth, but the kernel suddenly morphs into an ugly fang that crowds aside his natural teeth. More fangs sprout, making it hard to open his mouth, and the invading teeth exert authority over Jamie's ability to speak. They won't let him ask his parents to drive him to the dentist, and the nightmare intensifies at school. Jamie's mouth is full of twisted fangs, but can he and his friend Hamid outsmart the teeth? If they do, will Jamie suffer devastating longterm health effects? "Chewy Ones" takes place on Halloween, after Alain comes home with a sackful of candy from trick-or-treating. His parents weed out any sweets that look suspicious, including a round one in pretty multicolored foil that looks fine to Alain. After bedtime he sneaks down, digs the candy in its pretty packaging out of the trash, and pops it into his mouth. Too late he realizes his parents' concern was justified, when the candy inflates past his lips into a gigantic bubble, lifting him into the night sky. Does the candy's designer have a malevolent plan for boys who disobey their parents? In "Last of the Daves", an unseen, anonymous aggressor begins eradicating all people named David. Dave Ziegler first notices something amiss when Dave Anders disappears from class and nobody else remembers him. Soon Davids from all over are vanishing right out of their clothes, moving down the alphabet from A to Z. How long does Dave Ziegler have left? Can he legally change his first name in time to escape the purge?
Jerome and Marty in the story "Stuffing" never behave well on their bus ride home from school. They pull stuffing out of the old, worn seat to fling at each other, but one day the driver catches them in the act. "Grumpy-Butt", as they've nicknamed her, vows to make them pay for the damage. Will either boy survive her crazed version of discipline? Maya gave up on being a good student long before we meet her in "The Reading Group". Math, science, writing...no matter the subject, she requires a lot of extra tutoring. This year her teacher, Mr. Wexler, tries a new strategy on Maya, and it triggers psychic emanations she had no idea she possessed. She wields stunning new power over her classmates, many of whom have teased her for being unintelligent. Mr. Wexler encourages Maya to use her psychic energy for vengeance, but does she have it in her to inflict pain on the ignorant? Next up is "Evil Eye." Jane has a scratched cornea after a boy named Matteo pushed her down and her face collided with a gravestone. The doctor says the injury is mild, but Jane is shocked when suddenly she seems capable of astral projection. Her wounded eye has developed supernatural abilities, and Jane must intervene before it takes revenge on Matteo in a way that can't be undone. Our final story is "The Page Turner". While leafing through a book-club catalog, Anika Singh's curiosity is piqued by an item described as "Your Biography," available to buy for just $2.99. What sort of gimmick is this? She places the order and is surprised by how thin the book is when it arrives. The pages at the back are clumped together, almost impossible to separate, but as Anika scans the first pages, a deep sense of alarm grows. The book records details of her life that no one could know, and new pages continually appear to report what's she's doing right now. Is it an elaborate prank? Anika forces open the clumped pages at the end, desperate to get to the bottom of this mystery, but the book warns her that accessing these pages too soon will be catastrophic. Is she unspooling the remaining decades of her life in a mere matter of seconds?
The horror elements of Tales from Beyond the Brain are surprisingly potent for its target age group, but the stories don't make sense if you think about the details at all. That's unfortunate; Jeff Szpirglas has talent for setting a scary scene, and the book could have been excellent were more time invested in developing cohesive narratives. A few of the stories might be too gross to be redeemed—"A Kernel Takes Root" is the main culprit there—but Tales from Beyond the Brain had potential, and I'm sorry it came nowhere near being fulfilled. Illustrator Stephen P. Hughes is a bright spot, though; his black-and-white renderings are slices of visceral fear that improve the book considerably, reminiscent of the work of Tim Jacobus, Nelson Evergreen (Neil Evans), Alberto Dal Lago, or Chris Van Allsburg. Hughes's contributions alone might make this book worth reading. I'd rate Tales from Beyond the Brain one and a half stars, but Jeff Szpirglas certainly is capable of better, and I'll be sure to try him again.
June 29, 2019
Received this 2 days ago from LibraryThing Early Reviewers and am making myself take time in reading. Started the day I got it. It is a middle-grade book, but the stories are great and the illustrations are terrific. Will post full review after I finish it!
13 Short tales of spookiness that are great! Not only are the stories well written, eerie, mind-bending, but there are also some great illustrations to go with them. Szpirglas' writing and Hughes art make it a good read for middle grade and adults.
"An Apple A Day" is a look into Mr. Oakwood's class and what was expected of the Student of the Day. Each student took their turn and did all the tasks Mr. Oakwood required. Also an unwritten or announced task of providing a apple on the corner of the teacher's desk each morning. The apples were all kinds, but the main thing was that they were perfect.
When a student wasn't able to provide such an apple, but a poor substitute instead, the student suffered criticism and disdain from the teacher. Meagan was the Student of the Day the next school day. She felt that Mr. Oakwood had been severe on the previous student, so she decided a little retribution was in order. I won't tell any more, except to say it was quite inventive and eerie!
"Whiskers" is a tale about a stray cat Greg found near the old ravine. The kids were warned about staying away from the area because it was dangerous due to the incline. The cat followed Greg home, and soon became a member of the family, with the name of Whiskers. When Whiskers wandered away one day, Greg went looking. When he got near the ravine he heard a meow. He tried to coax her out, knowing how dangerous the ravine could be. She was trying to coax him in.....
I took my time reading this book so I could enjoy each story alone and not like a chapter in a book. I'm still mulling them over in my mind......
13 Short tales of spookiness that are great! Not only are the stories well written, eerie, mind-bending, but there are also some great illustrations to go with them. Szpirglas' writing and Hughes art make it a good read for middle grade and adults.
"An Apple A Day" is a look into Mr. Oakwood's class and what was expected of the Student of the Day. Each student took their turn and did all the tasks Mr. Oakwood required. Also an unwritten or announced task of providing a apple on the corner of the teacher's desk each morning. The apples were all kinds, but the main thing was that they were perfect.
When a student wasn't able to provide such an apple, but a poor substitute instead, the student suffered criticism and disdain from the teacher. Meagan was the Student of the Day the next school day. She felt that Mr. Oakwood had been severe on the previous student, so she decided a little retribution was in order. I won't tell any more, except to say it was quite inventive and eerie!
"Whiskers" is a tale about a stray cat Greg found near the old ravine. The kids were warned about staying away from the area because it was dangerous due to the incline. The cat followed Greg home, and soon became a member of the family, with the name of Whiskers. When Whiskers wandered away one day, Greg went looking. When he got near the ravine he heard a meow. He tried to coax her out, knowing how dangerous the ravine could be. She was trying to coax him in.....
I took my time reading this book so I could enjoy each story alone and not like a chapter in a book. I'm still mulling them over in my mind......
June 24, 2019
Szpirglas’ Tales from Beyond the Brain is a collection of spooky tales aimed at an audience aged 9-12. Needless to say, I’m a bit out of the intended age group, however I still enjoyed this short read. A number of the stories plucked my nostalgia strings as they’d be right at home being told around the campfire by the Midnight Society on the ‘90s hit Canadian TV-show ‘Are You Afraid of the Dark?’. Some entries are weaker than others and some quite campy, but I attribute that to the target age group. The writing was excellent and the creepy illustrations help add a slight sense of dread (good work Mr. Hughes).
The publisher, Orca Book Publishers, provided me with a copy of the book for early reviewing, however, the opinion expressed above is my own.
The publisher, Orca Book Publishers, provided me with a copy of the book for early reviewing, however, the opinion expressed above is my own.
June 26, 2019
A surprisingly great middle grade read! This collection hearkens back to Twilight Zone and Tales from the Crypt. Genuinely creepy and scary, the artwork is top notch. The stories are usually about boys and girls in school. We all know how horrifying school is! I was very impressed.
October 23, 2021
Tales from Beyond the Brain is a collection of short horror stories by Jeff Szpirglas made for kids. Most of these stories have their horror take on mundane school-related themes such as comprehensions, wicked teachers, bullying revenge but others are on aspects of a kid's life. I felt this was kind of a mixed bag for me. Not too long, many of them immediately bring up to the horror twist rather quick and on point. Some have slight gorier details, but doesn't go too much into it that might be considered too frightening for young readers. The writing is fine, but there are definitely some weaker entries on here, luckily they are a few that I found enjoyment in reading.
Though the horror tales, given as they are aimed at kid horror fans, felt a little safe at times, the majority are stories that could send a shiver down the spine for some creepy experiences for readers who are into this.
Though the horror tales, given as they are aimed at kid horror fans, felt a little safe at times, the majority are stories that could send a shiver down the spine for some creepy experiences for readers who are into this.
September 8, 2019
I received a copy of this book and was excited to read a collection of scary stories. Even though it's middle grade, I expect scary stories to be scary stories. Unfortunately, I am not the intended audience and don't go to school anymore, so I didn't enjoy how some kids interacted with the teachers. The story I didn't enjoy the most was The Paper Cut, I wanted the story to be over as soon as it started. There were two stories that even I cringed from pain for which were Scratch and An Apple a Day; I can't deal with anything involving nails, it hurts just thinking about it. Every story after the first three got better and better, it's a fun book for a middle grade kid to read, nothing that can scar them enough to have nightmares, but easy to enjoy during the Halloween season. This is a great read for a young audience who spooks easily as there aren't any monsters trying to hurt people, just a few eyes, cats, bus drivers/teachers, witches, nothing too severe.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 4, 2020
5⭐️ for TALES BEYOND THE BRAIN by @jeff.szpirglas
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My nine year old and I thought this book of short stories was horrifying, disgusting, and imaginative. I can’t wait to use some of these short stories (most of which are school-based) with my horror-loving lunch bunch teens this fall!
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Two Brains, One Alice is still freaking me out almost a week after finishing this book!
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Book 24 for #30booksummer
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#middleschoollibrarian #middleschoollibrary #library #librarian #futurereadylibs #iteachlibrary #bookstagrammer #bookstagram #librariesofinstagram #librariansofinstagram #librariesfollowlibraries #librarylife #librarianlife #schoollibrarian #middlegrade #middlegradebooks #iteach #librarylove #booksbooksbooks #amreading #bibliophile #schoollibrariansrock #bookreview #bookrecommendation #igreads #malibrary #msla #mediaspecialist
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My nine year old and I thought this book of short stories was horrifying, disgusting, and imaginative. I can’t wait to use some of these short stories (most of which are school-based) with my horror-loving lunch bunch teens this fall!
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Two Brains, One Alice is still freaking me out almost a week after finishing this book!
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Book 24 for #30booksummer
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#middleschoollibrarian #middleschoollibrary #library #librarian #futurereadylibs #iteachlibrary #bookstagrammer #bookstagram #librariesofinstagram #librariansofinstagram #librariesfollowlibraries #librarylife #librarianlife #schoollibrarian #middlegrade #middlegradebooks #iteach #librarylove #booksbooksbooks #amreading #bibliophile #schoollibrariansrock #bookreview #bookrecommendation #igreads #malibrary #msla #mediaspecialist
July 18, 2019
was a good set of short stories. the book is differently gear to the young readers for a bunch of the stories i could see where they were heading as soon as i started reading them but still a quick enjoyable read.
November 29, 2025
Some of the most creative kids horror stories in the game, and a lot of great reads. My favorites were "Evil Eye", "Two Brains, One Alice, "The Page Turner", "Reading Group", "A Kernel Takes Root", and "Last Of The Daves"
All of those are absolute gems, book gets a 4.75/5 Stars Fantastic
All of those are absolute gems, book gets a 4.75/5 Stars Fantastic
February 21, 2020
Creepy stories, very similar to scary stories to tell in the dark. My class is going to LOVE it!!
February 15, 2021
These stories made my brain go- what. So the title was perfect. The simplest thing can be good or bad for you. Beware that papercut.
Read
June 14, 2022Genuinely creepy body horror moments.
April 4, 2024
Delightfully absurd! Feels like it was actually written by kids. I loved it.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews