BO O KS
BY H AILE Y CH AMB E RLAIN
CIRCLE OF HECK
Young Writers Association’s Scare-A-Thon hosts Portland author
E
ugene will soon be graced with the presence of an
author so clever, elaborate and terrifying that he
has channeled his talents into writing some of the
most interesting and “obstinately obscure” books
you’ll ever read. Dale Basye, an author from
Portland, will be a featured speaker at the Young
Writers Association (YWA) Scare-A-Thon FUNdraiser on
Saturday, Oct. 27. Basye will be reading excerpts from his
Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go book series.
Reading Heck, you have to ask yourself: “Who exactly
is this intended for?” Basye doesn’t
sidestep the truth of his storyline,
which is that two children, Milton
and Marlo Fauster, have died and
gone to the kid equivalent of hell.
That might seem unsettling to the
parents out there supervising
reading for the tween-and-under
set, but Heck isn’t the kind of book
that will send kids into a frenzy of
nightmares, rather it will encourage
them to search out all of the
allusions Basye interjects into his
captivating storyline.
“It’s interesting when people
ask me why I choose to write for
children, and I have to say, I really
don’t. I may tone down the off-
color nature or innuendo-rich
witticisms that often spring up
naturally, but other than that, I
write to amuse or engage me and don’t think too much
about the reader. That may sound terrible, but I mean it in
a good way: I don’t pander or assume I know what’s in the
head of that wonderful young person on the other side of
the page. I just naively hope that they enjoy the ride as
much as I,” he says.
Like Dante’s Inferno, Heck has multiple circles, and
each of Bayse’s books tells the story of that circle, starting
with Limbo. The most recent book published is Snivel:
Where the Whiny Kids Go. In each circle Marlo and Milton
encounter an array of interesting
historical figures who have been
sentenced to an eternity in Heck
where they act as teachers, torturers
or in most cases, both. Just a few
SCHEDULE:
11 am Not too scary (for kids under 7)
Rich Glauber leads a disquieting sing-along/move-along. Winners under age 7 are
read. Enter a “Horribly Haunted” design contest.
12 pm Gettin’ scarier (elementary school)
Bary Shaw reads the elementary-age winning entries and storyteller, Robert
Rubinstein, tells chilling folktales. Enter a dreadful “Instant Writing” contest. Get your
fill of midday terror and afternoon frights with author Dale Bayse.
1 pm Flat-out fright (middle & high school)
Bary Shaw reads teen and adult winners. Dale Basye entertains with his Circle of
Heck books. Adults and teens enter a chilling “Instant Writing” contest.
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of the characters in the story include Edgar Allen Poe as
“Vice Principal Poe,” Orpheus as “Mr. Orpheus, professor
of Music Deprecation” and Van Gogh as “Mr. Van Gogh,
Art Teacher.” The references are just another touch Basye
added that only contributes to the detail in his series, “It
helps me, when creating a story, grabbing a lot of arcane
bits here and there so it seems real to me. Ideally, kids will
be able to read my books and get one experience, while
adults will be able to read them and get another.”
Whether you get his books for the kids in your life, or
for yourself, Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go is an extremely
intellectual, entertaining series that anyone can enjoy.
Dale Basye is speaking at the YWA Scare-A-Thon
FUNdraiser, 11 am to 2 pm Saturday, Oct. 27, at Barnes &
Noble; free. ■