Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids (book) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids

Cover of the first edition, illustrated by Bobbie Spargo.
Author	Jamie Rix
Audio read by	Andrew Sachs (1993)
Illustrator	Bobbie Spargo
Cover artist	Bobbie Spargo
Country	United Kingdom
Series	Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids
Release number	1
Genre	Children's horror
Publisher	André Deutsch Limited, etc.
Publication date	17 May 1990
Media type	Hardback
Pages	112 (first edition)
Awards	Nestle Smarties Book Prize 1990 (Fiction, Age 9–11)
ISBN	978-0-23-398531-2 (1st ed.)
Followed by	Ghostly Tales for Ghastly Kids
Went out of print in 2009

Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids is a spooky and fun book by British author Jamie Rix. It was the very first book in the Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids series, which tells scary stories that also teach important lessons. The book came out on May 17, 1990, and has 15 short tales.

These stories feature all sorts of strange characters and situations. You'll meet a monster who teaches math, animal nannies, a barber who helps rude kids learn manners, and even a giant who just keeps growing! The book also includes magical items like a special hat and a magic book.

Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids was a big hit and won the 1990 Nestlé Smarties Book Prize for fiction in the 9–11 age group.

What Happens in the Stories

The New Nanny

The Frightfully-Busy family was, well, frightfully busy! The parents worked all the time, and their kids, Tristram and Candy, were super naughty to their nanny, Mrs. Mac. When Mrs. Mac left, the parents hired new nannies from an agency called Animal Magic.

First came a talking python. Tristram and Candy thought it was hilarious and treated her terribly. They burned her tail, tied her up, and even dunked her head in the toilet! The python quickly slithered away.

Next, a giant spider arrived. The kids splashed water on her and made her weave a huge web climbing frame. They then tied her up in it! Their dad had to escort her out in a wheelbarrow.

Finally, an alligator came. The kids hit her with a bat. When the parents returned, the alligator had eaten Tristram and Candy! She laid two eggs, and out hatched the children, who were suddenly very sorry for their bad behavior. Mrs. Mac was rehired, bringing suitcases made of snakeskin, fuzzy material, and alligator-skin.

The One-Tailed, Two-Footed, Three-Bellied, Four-Headed, Five-Fingered, Six-Chinned, Seven-Winged, Eight-Eyed, Nine-Nosed, Ten-Toothed Monster

In the Indian village of Jaisalmer, a scary monster lived in nearby caves. Everyone was terrified of it, especially because it would appear at sunset. Tulsidor, a farmer's son, was terrible at math and worried about his upcoming exam.

One night, Tulsidor was so busy thinking about numbers that he forgot about the monster. He fainted when it appeared. He woke up in the monster's cave, only to find the monster reading! The monster wasn't scary at all; it was just clumsy and lonely. It offered to teach Tulsidor math using its many body parts.

Tulsidor learned a lot and realized the monster was kind. He brought the monster back to his school, and it became the best math teacher ever. Jaisalmer became famous for its mathematicians, all thanks to the friendly monster.

The Spaghetti Man

Timothy King was a very picky eater who threw huge tantrums at meal times. His parents struggled to make him eat. One day, after he threw his breakfast, a strange smell of flour and spaghetti filled the kitchen. Timothy felt a hand over his mouth, almost suffocating him. When his parents returned, the smell and feeling were gone.

His mother said it was "The Spaghetti Man," who takes children who refuse to eat. Timothy scoffed, but he started eating his meals. However, he soon went back to his old ways. The next day, the same toast kept reappearing on his plate, no matter where he tried to hide it.

When Timothy was home alone, he caused a lot of mischief. He emptied the fridge, broke lightbulbs, and flooded the bathroom. Suddenly, the front door unlocked. Timothy expected his mother, but instead, the smell of spaghetti returned. He woke up in a room full of children, each with a food label on their clothes. Timothy's label said "lasagne." A girl explained they were in Italy and would be turned into food by the Spaghetti Man! Timothy tried to start a rebellion, but a chef appeared, smiling. That night, the factory where the Spaghetti Man worked was busy. Back home, Timothy's parents were much happier without his tantrums.

The Princess's Clothes

Felicity was a spoiled girl whose father called her "Princess." She had so many clothes that she was even in fashion magazines! One day, her mother invited Miss Shears, a fashion expert, to help Felicity choose new clothes. Felicity threw a fit because the clothes weren't pink and lacy. Her mother chose some plain, blue outfits.

Felicity refused to wear them and hid in the garden shed. She was horrified to find her old clothes gone, replaced by the blue ones. She went to school in a strange outfit made of bath towels and a fur coat, getting teased by everyone.

That night, Felicity found a magic parcel with tiny scissors. She used them to cut up her new blue clothes. But then the scissors jumped and cut up her old clothes too! The fabric spun into a tornado, and Miss Shears appeared outside, floating on a broomstick. The next morning, all the clothes were gone. Felicity had to go to school in her duvet from then on.

The Black Knight

King Basil ruled the land of Ruritania, and everyone loved him. But when he died without children, the government searched for a new ruler. Prince Egor from Draconia, a cruel and selfish man, decided to take over. He led his army to Ruritania and attacked the castle.

Egor became the new king, banning all fun and sending people to dungeons. He loved being king because everyone had to agree with him. But he soon got bored. He became even crueler, executing anyone who questioned him. He grew paranoid about being overthrown. One day, a giant pike fish jumped out of a magical river and ate him whole!

News spread that the Black Knight was gone. A woman named Gertrude became queen. She allowed the pike that saved the kingdom to live happily in the Royal Goldfish Pond.

Glued to the Telly

Herbert Hinkley loved television more than anything. He spent all day in his armchair, eating crisps and changing channels. One night, his parents let him sleep downstairs. As he slept, lightning struck the TV aerial, and Herbert was sucked inside the television!

He woke up tiny, inside the TV. He saw his mother's face on the other side of the screen. He explored the TV world, running through newsrooms and movie sets. He even ended up in a hospital scene where he learned he was turning into a cheese and onion crisp! He tried to find a shower, but his fingers were already changing.

Herbert appeared in different shows, from a burning building to a cooking show where a chef tried to bake him! His parents laughed so hard they didn't notice the TV smoking and turning to ash. When they stopped laughing, Herbert's mother found a cheese and onion crisp on top of the ash. She put it in a box for Herbert, hoping he'd come back.

The Barber of Civil

Saucy by Sea used to be known for its rude children. But then a handsome barber arrived, offering free haircuts. Parents loved him because their rude children would leave his shop well-behaved, even though their hair looked the same.

Tania and Peregrine were two of the rudest kids in school. They tormented their teachers and were always trying to be the class clown. The headmaster couldn't handle them. One day, the barber visited the school and invited Tania and Peregrine to his shop.

Inside the barbershop, there were no mirrors, and the chair looked like a dentist's chair. Peregrine found a jar of slugs. The barber walked in, and Peregrine accidentally swallowed a slug! The barber then revealed his secret: he wasn't a barber at all. He traveled around, helping rude children by making them polite and well-behaved.

Tania and Peregrine returned to school the next day with much better manners. The barber then left town to find more children to help.

The Giant Who Grew Too Big For His Boots

Hugh was a giant who lived in a small cottage in Wales with his wife. He had messy black hair and a lisp that made him spray everything when he talked. One day, he grew too big for his home. He stomped into his neighbor's house, forcing them to leave.

Hugh kept growing. He grew out of the house, then ate a whole forest! He scared people out of a church, which was big enough for him to sleep in. But he woke up even bigger, taller than the clouds. He stomped across to London, eating pigeons and drinking from the River Thames. His lisp rained all over the British Isles.

He grew so big that the President of the United States warned him not to cross the Atlantic. But Hugh just stepped across and ate the entire American military! "I NEED MORE SPACE!" he yelled, his lisp raining on Africa for hours. He went to sleep with his feet in Australia, his bottom in India, and his head on the Arctic.

He woke up bigger than the Solar System and even the Milky Way! A satellite warned him not to speak, or he'd drown Earth. Hugh grabbed it, and it poked a wart on his tongue, making him pop like a balloon. He floated back to Earth, landing as tiny as a blade of grass. He tried to take a snail's home, but the snail refused and rolled over him.

The Wooden Hill

Five-year-old Jack was bored. He wanted his mom to read him a bedtime story, but she was busy. She told him to get a book from upstairs, but Jack was scared of the dark. His imagination turned everything spooky: moths looked like bats, and the staircase handrail looked like a ribcage. He worried about the bogeyman.

He heard noises and ran to his parents' room, then back out when a curtain looked like a ghost. He crawled past the bathroom, where the gooey bogeyman supposedly lived. On the second floor, he thought he saw a fire monster outside his bedroom and jumped on it, only to find it was the cat!

Jack rushed back downstairs with a copy of Dracula. His mother scoffed, saying he was overreacting, and read him the adult horror novel as a bedtime story.

The Litter Bug

Long ago, streets were full of rubbish and rats. Then Mr. Dustbin invented the rubbish bin, and the streets became clean, and the rats disappeared. But people forgot how important bins were, and the streets became filthy again.

This was mostly because of a very large girl named Bunty Porker. She ate all the time and threw her rubbish everywhere, creating a mountain of litter the size of two mountains! The UK smelled terrible and attracted insects from all over the world. The Queen demanded the Prime Minister fix it.

The army, led by Colonel Buffy, ambushed Bunty at midnight as she climbed her litter mountain. They tried to arrest her, but Bunty swung her arms like a propeller, knocking all the soldiers away. When she reached the top, she found a giant European black bug hiding underneath. It burst out, snapping its pincers, and ate Bunty and the entire mountain of rubbish! Once the bugs had eaten all the litter, they left the UK. Everyone learned their lesson, and bins became popular again.

Goblin Mountain

Joseph Alexander loved to tear out pages from books and throw them out the window. He thought they would grow into new books. One evening, his parents found he had destroyed every book in the house and sent him to the attic.

The attic was dark and messy. Joseph found a large, black book with an eagle on the cover and illustrations of goblins inside. He thought it was a spellbook. He tore out its pages and threw them out the window. They exploded into flames on the mountain outside, turning into fleeing crows. The book cover in his hands grew hot, and the eagle's eyes glowed red, so Joseph threw it out too.

His mother burst into the attic just as a giant eagle kidnapped Joseph. The eagle dropped him on a ledge next to a smelly cave. A goblin appeared, put a metal leash around his neck, and dragged him into a courtroom. Goblins and crows watched as Joseph was accused of destroying The Great Book of Tharg, an ancient secret book. The judge said Joseph had torn too many books to be innocent and ordered him to be "planted." He would grow into a tree and be cut down to make paper.

Joseph's mother opened the attic door, and Joseph realized it was all a nightmare. He promised never to vandalize another book. His mother forgave him. A giant eagle feather floated out the window towards the mountain.

Sweets

Thomas Rachet caused a scene every time he went shopping because he wanted sweets. He would eat from aisles, spill yoghurt, race shopping trolleys, and even pickpocket customers. He was banned from many shops.

One afternoon, after causing trouble everywhere, Thomas ran away from his mother. He found an old-fashioned sweet shop in an alleyway. An old man let him in. The shop was dirty, full of mannequins, and smelled of cats. The old man knew Thomas's name and his favorite sweets. He also knew about Thomas's bad behavior.

The old man touched a switch, and mechanical sounds came from another room. He caught Thomas in a net. When Thomas woke up, he had been turned into a Papier-mâché statue! His body was passed around shops, waiting for his mother to find him.

The Top Hat

Benjamin received a top hat as a birth gift. He loved it and used it as both a hat and a toy. His father called him "Bunny" because magicians pull rabbits from top hats. When the hat broke, Benjamin became very sad.

For his sixth birthday, Benjamin hoped for a new top hat, but his parents couldn't find one. He threw a tantrum and locked himself in his room. At his birthday party, he tried to ruin the games and his cake. He even tried to crash the magician's act.

The magician's assistant, Marvelous Marvin, wore a top hat. Benjamin snatched it and ran to his room. He tried it on, and a rabbit popped out! Benjamin realized the hat could grant wishes. He wished for a racing bike and other gifts. Marvin warned Benjamin's parents that the hat was magical and could cause trouble. When his parents and Marvin broke down the door, Benjamin wished he "wasn't here." A giant hand grew from the hat, grabbed Benjamin, and dragged him inside. He was never seen again.

The Childhood Snatcher

Amos Stirling wanted to be famous, so he decided to have a famous child. He married a woman named Betty, and they had a daughter. Amos insisted on naming her Albert, after Albert Einstein. He filled her room with textbooks and chemistry equipment and became her tutor, ignoring Betty's concerns that Albert was too young.

One night, a hook-nosed figure in a cloak appeared in Albert's room. He called himself "The Childhood Snatcher." He took a strand of Albert's hair, dropped it in a sack, and disappeared.

By age two, Albert could talk, walk, and had the education of a high school student. Amos kept pushing her, and Albert struggled to connect with other toddlers. The Childhood Snatcher returned every night before her birthday, taking a strand of hair. By the eve of her third birthday, Albert had graduated from university and become Prime Minister!

The Snatcher reappeared, revealing himself as an old man who wanted her youth. He took his fourth hair. Amos and Betty burst into the room, but it was too late. Albert had become an old woman. Betty screamed at Amos, saying she had been right all along.

What the Stories Are About

The stories in Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids explore different behaviors and their results. Many tales, like "The New Nanny," "Sweets," "The Barber of Civil," "The Top Hat," "The Spaghetti Man," and "The Princess's Clothes," are about children who misbehave to get their way. Joseph in "Goblin Mountain" doesn't understand the harm his actions cause.

Some stories have happier endings, like "The One-Tailed... Monster," where Tulsidor helps his village overcome their fears. "The Wooden Hill" shows how a young child's imagination can be influenced by scary stories.

Not all stories focus on children. "The Black Knight" is about a greedy king who abuses his power. "The Giant Who Grew too Big for his Boots" and "The Childhood Snatcher" also feature adults and their problems.

The book also shows how adults can sometimes be part of the problem. In "Glued to the Telly," Herbert's parents let him watch too much TV. In "The Wooden Hill," Jack's mother reads him an adult horror book. "The Childhood Snatcher" highlights how Amos's desire for fame makes his daughter grow up too fast.

How the Stories Were Changed for Cartoons

Some of the stories from Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids were made into cartoons for CITV and Nickelodeon. "The One-Tailed... Monster," "The Black Knight," and "The Man with a Chip on His Shoulder" were not adapted. "The Man with a Chip on His Shoulder" is the shortest story in the whole series, only two or three sentences long!

Here are some ways the adapted stories were changed:

• In "The Princess's Clothes" (Series 1, Episode 4):

* The cartoon doesn't mention Felicity's wardrobe being in fashion magazines. * In the book, Felicity hid in the shed until her father carried her to bed. The cartoon shows her staying there for days or even seasons. * Felicity had red hair in the book, but in the cartoon, she was shown as a black character with black hair. * The way Felicity got rid of her clothes was slightly different. In the book, she had her own scissors before getting magic ones.

• "The Barber of Civil" (Series 1, Episode 9) didn't use Tania's last name, Wilson.
• "The Spaghetti Man" (Series 1, Episode 2) didn't include Timothy breaking lightbulbs as part of his mischief.

Awards and Nominations

Images for kids

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  Cover of the first edition, illustrated by Bobbie Spargo.