There was hardly a human being alive in the '90s -- and at least vaguely literate -- who didn't have a soft spot for the goosebump-inducing tales of Mr. R.L. Stine. His iconic Y.A. series taught us all valuable warnings like "be careful what you wish for" and "piano lessons can be murder," warnings that won't be soon forgotten.
Even as our literary canons expanded in the decades to follow, to include classics of a more respectable variety, "Goosebumps" continued to hold a special place in our nightmares. Just ask Sara Lautman, an illustrator who recreated choice moments of the iconic series entirely from memory.
![pumpkin]()
Lautman's drawings are sure to reawaken your childhood fears of bees, cuckoo clocks, egg monsters from Mars and whatever is dwelling in your basement. "In my memory I was too sophisticated for 'Goosebumps' when they were in their golden age, which must have been something like 1994 to 1996," Lautman confessed to The Huffington Post. "Maybe I only recall the books’ hokiest details because they brought me up for air. Yeah, I was into it. First exposure was '94 for sure, in a Lucky Dip from a fourth grade holiday grab bag."
The illustrations depict the terrifying potential outcomes of different activities perpetuated to infinity. "I was listing all the inane 'Goosebumps' trials I could remember," Lautman explained. "A lot of them were 'Pleasure Island' scenarios -- gluttons’ punishment. Trampoline forever, trick-or-treat forever, super-slide forever, parents gone forever, eat all the donuts in the world forever, and so on." Why, you ask, did she choose to draw solely from her memory of the series? Simply put, "illustrating from memory is the funniest way to do it."
The memory of Stine's elementary school horrors is as terrifying as ever, even if Lautman's version isn't 100% accurate. "I’m taking liberties up the wazoo with these drawings," she said. "Those pumpkin-head people, for example, spoke only in loud hissing tones." We never would have remembered that. Mostly, Lautman's visions remind us of how no book series since has captivated our hearts and turned our stomach quite like "Goosebumps." We have to agree with Lautman's answer when asked if she had a favorite book: "Nnnnn… Well, maybe th... eh. No. Nope. I guess not."
See Lautman's wonderful nostalgia-fest below and let us know which 'Goosebumps' moments you'd like to see in ink below.
Even as our literary canons expanded in the decades to follow, to include classics of a more respectable variety, "Goosebumps" continued to hold a special place in our nightmares. Just ask Sara Lautman, an illustrator who recreated choice moments of the iconic series entirely from memory.
Lautman's drawings are sure to reawaken your childhood fears of bees, cuckoo clocks, egg monsters from Mars and whatever is dwelling in your basement. "In my memory I was too sophisticated for 'Goosebumps' when they were in their golden age, which must have been something like 1994 to 1996," Lautman confessed to The Huffington Post. "Maybe I only recall the books’ hokiest details because they brought me up for air. Yeah, I was into it. First exposure was '94 for sure, in a Lucky Dip from a fourth grade holiday grab bag."
The illustrations depict the terrifying potential outcomes of different activities perpetuated to infinity. "I was listing all the inane 'Goosebumps' trials I could remember," Lautman explained. "A lot of them were 'Pleasure Island' scenarios -- gluttons’ punishment. Trampoline forever, trick-or-treat forever, super-slide forever, parents gone forever, eat all the donuts in the world forever, and so on." Why, you ask, did she choose to draw solely from her memory of the series? Simply put, "illustrating from memory is the funniest way to do it."
The memory of Stine's elementary school horrors is as terrifying as ever, even if Lautman's version isn't 100% accurate. "I’m taking liberties up the wazoo with these drawings," she said. "Those pumpkin-head people, for example, spoke only in loud hissing tones." We never would have remembered that. Mostly, Lautman's visions remind us of how no book series since has captivated our hearts and turned our stomach quite like "Goosebumps." We have to agree with Lautman's answer when asked if she had a favorite book: "Nnnnn… Well, maybe th... eh. No. Nope. I guess not."
See Lautman's wonderful nostalgia-fest below and let us know which 'Goosebumps' moments you'd like to see in ink below.