Explore A Spooky Swamp

Two youngsters discover the varied plants and animals that make their home in the watery world of the swamp.

(L) Read all about my life and my pals in Spook Swamp.

Florida's famous swamps—from the Everglades to Mosquito Lagoon to Tate's Hell—serve as fitting backdrops for these chilling original stories. Maybe it's because they are often wet, shadowy places of wild beauty where few people dare to penetrate. They are havens for snakes, alligators, black bears, wildcats, and who knows what. People on the run have often hidden in swamps, while others have gotten lost in the watery expanses; the swamp can be a refuge or a nightmare. Mysterious things just happen in swamps. Maybe it's because they are often wet, shadowy places of wild beauty where few people dare to penetrate. They are havens for snakes, alligators, black bears, wildcats, and who knows what. People on the run have often hidden in swamps, while others have gotten lost in the watery expanses; the swamp can be a refuge or a nightmare. Where else can you find a ghost baby, or an angry specter, or a lost soul? How about a ghost who is obsessed with the ghost orchid, or an alluring snake woman? Throw in a skunk ape or two and you've got the ingredients for many entertaining hours sharing these stories around a campfire or reading them to yourself or out loud.

A thrilling middle-grade mystery, The Ghoul of Windydown Vale is from the author of Cleo Porter and the Body Electric. “Don't miss this book! It takes you to another world—and then terrifies you with surprise after surprise. Great ghoulish fun!” —R. L. Stine, author of Goosebumps and Fear Street In this action-packed mystery from award-winning author Jake Burt, Copper Inskeep holds Windydown Vale's deepest and darkest secret: he is the ghoul that haunts the Vale, donning a gruesome costume to scare travelers and townsfolk away from the dangers of the surrounding swamps. When a terrified girl claims she and her father were attacked by a creature - one that could not have been Copper - it threatens not just Copper's secret, but the fate of all Windydown.

The 20 environmental units here are divided into three broad categories (Our Planet's Resources, Our Planet's Natural Habitats, and Preserving Our Planet), and include such subjects as the atmosphere, water, energy, seas and oceans, rain forests, grasslands, urban environments, and waste and recycling. Each unit gives specific activities in library skills, arts and crafts, spelling and vocabulary, geography, math, music and theater arts, English composition, science, history and sociology, and other topics for discussion for grades two through eight. Suggested resources, additional reading lists and a list of addresses to write to for further information conclude each environmental unit.

Down in the swamp where the black waters flow, it gets real spooky when the wind starts to blow. There's danger all around and a warning for you: "Don't go messin' with Alley Loo!" [Children's Picture Book - illustrated in full color on every story page]