By the time you guys are reading this, my favorite holiday – Halloween – will be over, but it has certainly been a fun one to observe and photograph. It’s my first Halloween here in town and, like most holidays in the River City, there was no shortage of really cool things going on. 

In my experience so far, Vicksburgers really get into the spirit of holidays and I absolutely love that about us. During the Halloween season, we saw everything from trunk-or-treat events to performances of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” happening across not just Vicksburg, but Warren County. With everyone from church groups to local theaters getting involved, it’s just a really cool example of the wide variety of events and diverse quality of life offered here. 

What on earth does that have to do with books? Good question. When I was a kid, it became very apparent to my third-grade teacher that I enjoyed two things: scary stuff and books. So, for years after I was no longer in her class, a book would somehow find its way to me around Halloween. It was always a book of scary stories and it always had the same inscription on the inside cover: “To Blake, who loves to be scared. – Mrs. Graham.” 

Even as a kid, I knew it was special that she remembered that about me and went to the trouble of picking out a book and making sure I got it each year. This went on until she retired when I was almost in high school. And she was right! I love both of those things. And I was thinking about my book addiction earlier this month when Kelle Barfield – who is not only the president of the Warren County Board of Supervisors, but also the owner of Lorelei Books here in town – was talking to my Leadership Vicksburg class. 

Somewhere in her really informative explanation of how our county is run, the bookstore was mentioned and I want us all to take a moment and be proud of me for not spending my entire paycheck there, since it is located directly across the street from The Vicksburg Post’s office downtown. Having a local bookstore in town is a huge deal! They are hard to come by these days and I was so excited to see one here, as well as to find out how active our local library is.

Each year around this time, my parents and I have the obligatory Christmas conversation where I say, “Please don’t spend money on me; spend it on the grandkids.” And every year, they give in and ask for a list of books I want, since those are relatively inexpensive and they know I won’t complain. So, for the next couple of months, I guess I’ll resist the urge to step across the street (sorry, Kelle. I’ll be back in January). But, knowing I can get my Kurt Vonnegut fix – or whatever author I happen to be binge reading – right next door is great. And since Mrs. Graham has long since quit sending me books, and it is JUST after Halloween, maybe I can justify loading up on some scary stories to get me through until the Christmas gifts come rolling in.

Happy Halloween, everyone. 

Blake Bell is the general manager and executive editor of The Vicksburg Post. He can be reached at blake.bell@vicksburgpost.com.