Well, we are rearing in for the final reviews for the Summer Camp Horror Marathon here on A Slice of Horror. Now, no summer camp marathon could be complete without one of the many camp themed stories in the famous childern's series Goosebumps from the 90s.
So for the final mid-week mini-review during our marathon I am reviewing The Horror at Camp Jellyjam by R.L. Stein. As a child of the 90s I read many of the Goosebumps books. And I definitely tried to never miss out on the camp themed stories from this series. They were often some of my favorites. However, this particular story is one I had never gotten around to actually reading. So reading it this last week was my first experience with the well known Camp Jellyjam.
The story begins with a family vacation. Wendy and Elliot are on a road trip with their parents and they are bored out of their mind. To make things more exciting the two kids decide it would be fun to ride in the pull along camper trailer attached to the family car. The parents agree that this should be fine and the kids crawl in.
Unluckily, while driving about a steep winding mountain road the trailer comes detached. The kids roll down the mountainside and right into Camp Jellyjam. This is one of the most well written scenes I've ever seen from Stein. Anyone who has read his books knows he isn't a writer of great literature. And this scene wouldn't hold a candle to the works of Poe or Lovecraft. But it was engaging and legitimately frightening for once. The pure concept of rolling down the mountain hill without any control or restraint is enough to make most people cringe.
Well, the kids come into the camp and are welcomed in as part of the community. The counselors and all the kids are intent to be "Only the Best!" The camp is a sports camp. When any camper wins at a sport they win what is called a King Coin. The coins have a picture of a little purple blob on it with a crown on his head. This is King Jellyjam. Once any camper earns six coins they have the "privilege" of joining in on the Winner's Walk that happens each night.
Wendy and Elliot quickly forget about their worries and join in on the fun. But things turn sinister when campers begin to disappear. Wendy soon realizes that anyone who joins in on the Winner's Walk doesn't come back. After three of her friends disappear and her brother, Elliot, is close to winning his sixth coin she decides to go looking for clues about these disappearances. What she finds in the woods is a monstrous secret, a secret with a terrible stench.
The story here is nothing new and isn't anything special. Stein opens the book with an exciting and fairly well written (for a children's book) edge of your seat scene. But unfortunately the story drops off into a boring lull of sporting events for the bulk of the book's narrative. Luckily the ending is fairly exciting and supernatural, all be it short lived.
So for the final mid-week mini-review during our marathon I am reviewing The Horror at Camp Jellyjam by R.L. Stein. As a child of the 90s I read many of the Goosebumps books. And I definitely tried to never miss out on the camp themed stories from this series. They were often some of my favorites. However, this particular story is one I had never gotten around to actually reading. So reading it this last week was my first experience with the well known Camp Jellyjam.
The story begins with a family vacation. Wendy and Elliot are on a road trip with their parents and they are bored out of their mind. To make things more exciting the two kids decide it would be fun to ride in the pull along camper trailer attached to the family car. The parents agree that this should be fine and the kids crawl in.
Unluckily, while driving about a steep winding mountain road the trailer comes detached. The kids roll down the mountainside and right into Camp Jellyjam. This is one of the most well written scenes I've ever seen from Stein. Anyone who has read his books knows he isn't a writer of great literature. And this scene wouldn't hold a candle to the works of Poe or Lovecraft. But it was engaging and legitimately frightening for once. The pure concept of rolling down the mountain hill without any control or restraint is enough to make most people cringe.
Well, the kids come into the camp and are welcomed in as part of the community. The counselors and all the kids are intent to be "Only the Best!" The camp is a sports camp. When any camper wins at a sport they win what is called a King Coin. The coins have a picture of a little purple blob on it with a crown on his head. This is King Jellyjam. Once any camper earns six coins they have the "privilege" of joining in on the Winner's Walk that happens each night.
Wendy and Elliot quickly forget about their worries and join in on the fun. But things turn sinister when campers begin to disappear. Wendy soon realizes that anyone who joins in on the Winner's Walk doesn't come back. After three of her friends disappear and her brother, Elliot, is close to winning his sixth coin she decides to go looking for clues about these disappearances. What she finds in the woods is a monstrous secret, a secret with a terrible stench.
The story here is nothing new and isn't anything special. Stein opens the book with an exciting and fairly well written (for a children's book) edge of your seat scene. But unfortunately the story drops off into a boring lull of sporting events for the bulk of the book's narrative. Luckily the ending is fairly exciting and supernatural, all be it short lived.
Summing it Up
This is a decent children's horror story. It is one of the more well written stories in the Goosebumps series and it will be a fun ride for many young readers, especially children who enjoy sporting activities. It has an engaging opening and exciting ending but the middle of the story does lull and bit. Not my favorite in the series but a good children's chapter book overall.
Deaths: 1
Language: 0
Gore Factor: 1
Sex Factor: 0
Scare Factor: 1
Fun Factor: 3
Overall Rating: 3
Deaths: 1
Language: 0
Gore Factor: 1
Sex Factor: 0
Scare Factor: 1
Fun Factor: 3
Overall Rating: 3