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HomeNewsArchivesFamous Author Given “Goosebumps” During Book Signing

Famous Author Given “Goosebumps” During Book Signing

R.L. Stine, author of the "Goosebumps" series for children, signs 9-year-old A'Jadah Mitchell's stack of books Wednesday evening at Undercover Books and Gifts.Fans of all ages showed up to get their copies of “Goosebumps” signed by famous author R.L. Stine at Undercover Books and Gifts Wednesday evening.

From grandparents to grandchildren a wide range of St. Croix’s local community came out for the chance to meet Stine. The store was filled with anxious readers as Stine signed more than 150 books in the 90 minutes he was there.

“The kids were so wonderful, so enthusiastic and everyone was so nice,” said Stine who has written 330 books—105 of which are part of the “Goosebumps” series that started in 1992.

Undercover owner Kathy Bennett contacted Stine about doing the signing last year when she found out he and his wife have been visitors to the Big Island every Christmas for over 20 years.

“This is one of the more successful signings, and I am hoping to have him come back next year,” said Bennett, who had her own stack of books to be signed.

Librarians showed up to have Stine sign copies for local school children, others were having him sign copies for their grandchildren back in the States, while some people even went through the line twice because they forgot to get copies for family members.

Even random shoppers were surprised when they realized that they walked in on the book signing and couldn’t turn down the opportunity for his signature. One eager fan even had Stine sign his copy of George Orwell’s “1984.”

According to Stine, the oddest thing he has ever signed was a fan’s Pringle’s potato chip, but because of the shape it wasn’t that difficult, he said.

Oshun Saro, 23, who hasn’t read a “Goosebumps” book since she was in elementary school, purchased her favorite, “Night of the Living Dummy,” for Stine to sign. “I grew up reading his books and watching the TV show,” Saro said.

Others, like 23-year-old Taylor Adams, had “A Night in Terror Tower” signed so he can send it back to Missouri for his sister-in-law to read to her second-grade class.

Young readers—like brother and sister Khaleif, 6, and Khaliah Jones, 10—also showed their passion for Stine’s books. Khaliah said he’d read more than 20 Stine titles.

“It’s exciting to see what happens because they always make me wait until the end,” said Khaliah Jones, who is a fifth-grader at Ricardo Richards Elementary School.

Stine continues to write and is looking forward to producing an adult horror book sometime next year for his mature fans.

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