SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • *Best New Books*
    • Annual Best Lists
  • Reviews
    • One Star Review
    • Nonfiction
    • Toon Reviews
  • Articles
    • Authors
    • Link Du Jour
  • Covers
    • Covering the Newbery
    • Cover Curiosity
    • Unfortunate Covers
  • News
    • Books on Film
    • Morning Notes
  • Newsletter

April 30, 2015 by Travis Jonker

State Secret: Do You Know the R.L. Stine of Michigan?

April 30, 2015 by Travis Jonker   10 comments

What if I told you one of the most popular book series not just in my school, but in the state of Michigan is one that out-of-staters have likely never heard of?

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

What if I told you Michigan is home to the second coming of R.L. Stine (sorry, Bob, I know you’re still with us and quite spry – just go along with me here)?

All these things are true. If you ask any school librarian from Michigan about what’s popular, they will likely name the Michigan Chillers series by Jonathan Rand. Similar to Stine’s Goosebumps series, these books deliver horror stories with a lighter touch, and have a lot of devoted fans among the chapter book/middle grade crowd.

It got me thinking: what other regional delights are out there? Is there a book/series that is popular where you are, but unknown to the rest of the country? I want to know!

Share away in the comments.

Filed under: Articles

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments

About Travis Jonker

Travis Jonker is an elementary school librarian in Michigan. He writes reviews (and the occasional article or two) for School Library Journal and is a member of the 2014 Caldecott committee. You can email Travis at scopenotes@gmail.com, or follow him on Twitter: @100scopenotes.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

May 2022

2022 Books from American Indian Youth Literature Award Winners

by Travis Jonker

May 2022

Ditched Dewey? I Have an Oddly Specific Question for You

by Travis Jonker

May 2022

'This crap really fires me up' FRED GETS DRESSED Gets Challenged

by Travis Jonker

May 2022

2022 Books from APAA Winners

by Travis Jonker

April 2022

Book Vandalism or The Most Deeply Appropriate Thing I've Ever Seen?

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

2022 Books from American Indian Youth Literature Award Winners

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Guest Post: Joke Books in the Classroom and Library by Kevin Purdy

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Bite Sized Archie | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

Heavy Medal

Many May Suggestions: First Quarter Mock Newbery Possibilities

by Emily Mroczek-Bayci

Teen Librarian Toolbox

Book Review: The Science of Being Angry by Nicole Melleby

by Amanda MacGregor

The Classroom Bookshelf

Farewell From The Classroom Bookshelf

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

Grant Snider Visits The Yarn!

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

Sports-Forward Books for Fans of the Movie "Space Jam: A New Legacy" | Read-Alikes

Three Interstellar Novels for Teens Watching 'The Mandalorian' on Disney+ | 2020 All-Star Read-Alikes

Three Action-Packed Adventures for Fans of 'Spider-Man: No Way Home'

2020 All Star Read-Alikes: Three YA Picks for Fans of 'On My Block' on Netflix

Four Magical Middle Grade Novels for 'Encanto' Fans| Read-Alikes

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Benji says

    April 30, 2015 at 6:15 am

    Kids in the South East love Kathryn Tucker Windham’s ghost story books. They include 13 Alabama Ghosts, 13 Georgia Ghost, 13 Mississippi Ghosts, etc. I loved the books when I was a kid, and my students still do as well.

    • Travis Jonker says

      April 30, 2015 at 8:51 am

      Maybe the theme of regional books is ghost stories? It will be interesting to see if other folks have similarly spooky series to share.

  2. Ed Spicer says

    April 30, 2015 at 7:40 am

    Just down the road from you, I have mature, good-reading, first graders that love James Preller’s Scary Tales. He has to be from some region of our country–although I have heard rumors that he is an alien.

    (and I have one first grader that thinks he is too scary)

    • Travis Jonker says

      April 30, 2015 at 8:49 am

      I’ve heard those rumors too. Those books have been very popular at my school.

    • Julie says

      April 30, 2015 at 10:05 am

      James Preller is from New York’s Capital Region and his books are extremely popular here. Kids in upstate NY also love the Adirondack Kids mystery series by Gary and Justin VanRiper. They have constant circulation at the public library!

  3. Ms. B says

    April 30, 2015 at 9:10 pm

    We love American Chillers and Michigan Chillers in Minnesota too!

  4. Sam Bloom says

    May 2, 2015 at 5:15 pm

    American/Michigan Chillers are big hits in Cincinnati, too!

  5. Sheila says

    May 5, 2015 at 3:29 pm

    Greetings from Kalamazoo! The Michigan Chillers were the most checked-out books in my library- and the most beat-up!

  6. Adam (@MrShafferTMCE) says

    May 6, 2015 at 2:03 am

    Funny, the public library here in Bellingham, WA, has a ton of these Michigan/American Chillers. My son checked one out one day. The librarian said a kid who moved from Michigan had donated the whole set.

    I’m sure there are Pacific Northwest series, but I can’t think of any at the moment.

  7. Johannes says

    December 29, 2015 at 5:22 am

    Remember them. Ever since my uncle brought me one of from the States the Michigan books as a child: The Great Lakes Ghost Ship or something. Loved it!

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

  • Author/Illustrator Blogs

    • Erin Stead Illustration
    • Hey, Rabbit!
    • James Preller's Blog
    • MATTHEWCORDELLBLOGS
    • Mo Willems Doodles
    • The Scop
  • Book Blogs I Like

    • A Book and a Hug
    • A Fuse #8 Production
    • A Kids Book a Day
    • A Year of Reading
    • Abby (the) Librarian
    • Awful Library Books
    • Becky’s Book Reviews
    • Better Book Titles
    • Book-A-Day Almanac
    • Bookends
    • books4yourkids.com
    • bookshelves of doom
    • Bottom Shelf Books
    • Calling Caldecott
    • Caustic Cover Critic
    • Chad C. Beckerman
    • Charlotte’s Library
    • Cheryl Rainfield
    • Chicken Spaghetti
    • CHILDREN’S ILLUSTRATION
    • Collecting Children’s Books
    • Cybils
    • EarlyWord
    • educating alice
    • Finding Wonderland
    • For Those About to Mock
    • Good Comics for Kids
    • Good Show Sir
    • GottaBook
    • Great Kid Books
    • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
    • Hi Miss Julie!
    • Jen Robinson’s Book Page
    • Kidsmomo
    • Maria T. Middleton Design
    • Nerdy Book Club
    • Neverending Search
    • Nine Kinds of Pie
    • One Book, Two Books, Old Books, New Books
    • Out of the Box
    • Oz and Ends
    • PlanetEsme
    • Read Roger
    • Reading Rants!
    • Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
    • sharpread
    • ShelfTalker
    • so tomorrow
    • The Children's Book Review
    • The Miss Rumphius Effect
    • Uncovered Cover Art
    • Waking Brain Cells
    • Watch. Connect. Read.
  • Library Blogs

    • ALSC Blog
    • Blue Skunk Blog
    • librarian.net
    • LISNews
    • Stephen's Lighthouse
    • Tame The Web: Libraries and Technology
    • Tame The Web: Libraries and Technology
    • Unshelved
  • Follow This Blog

    Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    Primary Sidebar

    • News & Features
    • Reviews+
    • Technology
    • School Libraries
    • Public Libraries
    • Age Level
    • Ideas
    • Blogs
    • Classroom
    • Diversity
    • People
    • Job Zone

    Reviews+

    • Book Lists
    • Best Books
    • Media
    • Reference
    • Series Made Simple
    • Tech
    • Review for SLJ
    • Review Submissions

    SLJ Blog Network

    • 100 Scope Notes
    • A Fuse #8 Production
    • Good Comics for Kids
    • Heavy Medal
    • Neverending Search
    • Teen Librarian Toolbox
    • The Classroom Bookshelf
    • The Yarn

    Resources

    • 2022 Youth Media Awards
    • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
    • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
    • Summer Reading 2021
    • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
    • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
    • Summer Programming Survey
    • Research
    • White Papers / Case Studies
    • School Librarian of the Year
    • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
    • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

    Events & PD

    • In-Person Events
    • Online Courses
    • Virtual Events
    • Webcasts
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Media Inquiries
    • Newsletter Sign Up
    • Content Submissions
    • Data Privacy
    • Terms of Use
    • Terms of Sale
    • FAQs
    • Diversity Policy
    • Careers at MSI


    COPYRIGHT © 2022


    COPYRIGHT © 2022