Shocktober 10/3/21

When I was a kid, I was very into monsters--Frankenstein's Monster, the Wolf Man, the Mummy, Dracula, etc. And since this was the case, I was also into How to Care for Your Monster, a slender children's book written and drawn by Norman Bridwell, better known as the creator of Clifford, the Big Red Dog.

How to Care for Your Monster presumes quite accurately (at least in my case) that all kids love monsters and would like to own one, and it runs down the list of monsters and the advantages and disadvantages of owning each type of monster.

I acquired my first copy of this book through Scholastic Book Services, which sold a variety of children's books back in the 1970s through mail order (which meant that you had to get permission from Mom and/or Dad to buy). I held the copy dear for many years--until I lost La Casa del Terror and damn near everything in it, including most of my books.

But thanks to the Internet in general, and eBay in particular, I've been able to reacquire several cherished posessions--including a copy of How to Care for Your Monster.

For right now, I've got it safely locked away in the store room at Mom's house. But whenever I get set up in La Casa del Terror 3, it'll have an honored place in my living room.