The scarier the better, that's what school librarian Felix Sjögren often hears from his students. He works at Nydalaskolan in Malmö, which was awarded the title of School Library of the Year 2024, and according to him, horror books often attract readers.
The more regular a reader you are, the more you want to enter other worlds and maybe read fantasy, but if you're unaccustomed, horror drives the reading forward.
Therefore, Felix Sjögren especially wants to recommend scary books for the autumn break. For small children who have just started reading, he thinks "Halloween" from Petrus Dahlin's easy-to-read horror series is suitable.
The first readers can handle it, and yet it's really scary. It's about a child who goes trick-or-treating, but gets tired and finds a cool gang, but that's something they shouldn't have done! All the students love those books, says Felix Sjögren.
Ghosts with a message
For the slightly older, Felix Sjögren chooses "Zombieberg" by Dan Höijer, about Signe who finds a cabin with an old diary full of strange notes.
It's really scary, and I love it, he says, and also mentions "All Saints' Sacrifice" by Petter Lidbeck and "Room 66" by Magnus Nordin – two books that also take place in scary houses with a special history.
Jonna Bruce, who received the Swedish Academy's Librarian Prize in 2023, recommends a scary book with an important message, "The Frightening Story of Little Her" by Lena Ollmark and Per Gustavsson.
It's about a girl who's an outcast at school, and they tell a lot of ghost stories. She meets everyone, and it turns out they've been bullied and ostracized, so it has a deeper level, she says.
As a page-turner with scary elements, Jonna Bruce suggests "The Ghost Agency" by Kristina Ohlsson.
It's a bit creepy, but not so scary that you get frightened. It's built like a detective story.
"Must-read"
Jonna Bruce also advocates for graphic novels and manga. "Ester's Diary" by Oda Valle thinks she is fine everyday drama about bonus families and longing for a pet, and "Gamer" by Shawn Pryor, which leans more towards fantasy.
Two of Felix Sjögren's favorites are otherwise "The Labyrinth of the Benchwarmers", where children choose adventure over money. And Nora Khalil's "Yani".
It's wonderful because it has a very dark history, including a child being deported, but that's not what you take with you, you get to read about fantastic relationships, friendships, and what it's like to start high school and grow up.
"The Rainmaker" by Zanyar Adami and Ishtar Bäcklund Dakhil depicts little Baran's flight to a foreign country and the longing for a parent who had to stay behind when the family fled after a bomb attack. 3–6 years.
"The Glassblowers' Island" by Elin Nilsson. Magic and science are combined in the story of Vilhelm, whose mother disappears from the glassblowers' island but leaves a mysterious glass heart. 9–12 years.
"Asynja – Wolf Winter" by Elisabeth Östnäs, illustrated by Lina Neidestam. Part 4 in a Viking series about friendship, revenge, and an impending climate catastrophe. 9–12 years.
"Stina's Joik" by Mats Jonsson. Pictures and facts are intertwined in the story of Stina Larsdotter, a Sami girl who lived in the 19th century and didn't stop growing. Jonsson portrays the person beyond the nicknames given to her by her contemporaries. 9–12 years.
"Deep Water" by Marit Sahlström, about a growing social problem. When Milo's big brother Simon becomes a stay-at-home, life changes for the whole family. During a summer at his grandfather's, by the green summer forest in Deep Water, Milo desperately tries to reach his brother. Young adult.
