Here are 12+ scary story recommendations for children and adults this Halloween

It's spooky storytelling season.

We checked in with three Louisville teachers — at the elementary, high school, and college levels — about some of their favorite scary stories to share with their classes this time of year.

These authors are masters of building suspense and creating a thrill with the written word.

Brent Peters is an English teacher at Fern Creek High School. Ian Stansel is the director of University of Louisville’s creative writing program, and Samantha Booker is a second-grade teacher at Dunn Elementary.

Here are some fun, spooky reads they recommend this Halloween.

Halloween book recommendations for elementary-age kids

Booker started out her unit on scary writing with "Harry and the Terrible Whatzit," by Dick Gackenback. This is an older story from the 1970s about a child who faces a two-headed monster. Her students really enjoyed the suspense in the story, Booker said, but there's a humorous side to the tale, too.

Her students are also big fans of the Creepy Tales! series, written by Aaron Reynolds and illustrated by Peter Brown. "Creepy Carrots!" is the class favorite, but there are a few other fun titles such as "Creepy Pair of Underwear!" and "Creepy Crayon!"

Looking for something a little less ghoulish? Booker says "Room on the Broom," by Julia Donaldson is less of a scary story and more of a fun Halloween read about friendship.

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Halloween book recommendations for high school students

In his classroom, Peters draws heavily on the works of Neil Gaiman, who is an award-winning internationally recognized British author. He recommends Gaiman's "The Graveyard Book," which is a full-length novel about an unusual boy who is the only living resident of a graveyard.

"Raised from infancy by the ghosts, werewolves, and other cemetery denizens, Bod has learned the antiquated customs of his guardians' time as well as their timely ghostly teachings-like the ability to Fade," the description reads. "Can a boy raised by ghosts face the wonders and terrors of the worlds of both the living and the dead?"

Peters also uses Gaiman's "Coraline" in his classes, which was turned into a full-length film in 2009. The story follows a young girl, who discovers a hidden door to a fantasy of her life.

Some of Peters' other favorites include the graphic novel "Through The Woods" by Emily Carroll, a poem called "Abandoned Farmhouse" by Ted Kooser and the novel "The Shadow of the Wind" by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

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Halloween book recommendations for adults

Stansel recommended two different authors for readers to check out this Halloween season.

He says Carmen Maria Machado's work "plays with horror traditions in ways that are both scary and thought-provoking." Machado is the author of the graphic novel "The Low, Low Woods," and the award-winning short story collection "Her Body and Other Parties."

Grady Hendrix is another of Stansel's favorite writers. His novels are scary, but also very funny and kitschy. Stansel calls it "horror, with a wink." Hendrix's novel "My Best Friend's Exorcism" is about demonic possession, friendship and exorcism and was recently adapted into a film, which is currently available for viewing on Amazon Prime.

Hendrix's latest novel "The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires" is a New York Times Bestseller.

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Features columnist Maggie Menderski writes about what makes Louisville, Southern Indiana and Kentucky unique, wonderful, and occasionally, a little weird. If you've got something in your family, your town or even your closet that fits that description — she wants to hear from you. Say hello at mmenderski@courier-journal.com or 502-582-4053.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: 12+ scary story recommendations for children and adults this Halloween