Last minute literary themed Halloween costumes

October 17, 11:35 PMSeattle Books ExaminerDanielle Dreger-Babbitt

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                             2006 "Sexy Librarian" Costume from Target

Halloween is two weeks away and if you're anything like me you probably have not even considered what you're going to dress up as.  Sure you could repeat last year's sexy cat  costume, but why not mix things up this year?

I did the hard work for you and comprised a list of literary costumes.  I use "literary" loosely to include authors, characters from books, and professions that revolve around books.  Also, I've taken into consideration the financial strain many may be facing and have come up with costume ideas that won't wreck the wallet.

In 2006 Target sold "Sexy Libarian" costumes.  That year another "Sexy Librarian" costume became a hit as well. Sadly, these costumes are longer available (though you may want to try ebay). 

If you're in a pinch, you can make do with a cardigan, pencil skirt, a pair of glasses, some heels, and a dictionary.

If a sexy librarian isn't your style, why not dress as a "stereotypical old, frumpy, librarian?"  You can wear the same outfit as above only swap out the heels for a pair of orthopedic shoes and let a cat sleep on your cardigan for a week.

While we're still in the category of career costumes, you might try being a blogger for Halloween.  All you'll need is a half-empty Starbucks coffee cup, a pair of yoga pants, and a laptop.

For those who would rather dress like their favorite author, here are a couple of ideas:

If you want to dress like everyone's favorite stripper-turned-blogger-turned-Academy Award winning screenwriter Diablo Cody, all you'll need is some leopard print and fake tattoos.  You could draw these on your arms with a marker.

For all the horror fans out there, why not be Stephen King?  Throw on a big pair of glasses and a Red Sox hat and carry around a copy of "Pet Cemetery" and you'll be scaring small children in no time.

If you'd prefer the classic route, there's always Mark Twain.  For that you'll need a white suit, white shoes, and a white mustache. 

As far as literary characters go, the possibilities are endless.  If you need a good group costume, there is the option of going as the characters Bella, Edward, and Jacob from the "Twilight" books by Stephanie Meyer.  Bonus points for the costume since the movie will be released in December.  For the character of Edward, the only items you'll need are vampire teeth and some powder to make yourself pale.  For Bella, cover your body in band-aids and ace bandages and carry around a copy of a Jane Austen novel.  Jacob is a slightly harder look to achieve.  My advice is to wear some super tight clothes with tears in them and give your best "werewolf" face.

For the fans of the Charles Dickens classic "Great Expectations," why not dress like Miss Haversham?  Wear an old wedding dress or ball gown and roll around in the dirt.  You have instant crazy lady.

Other classic costumes include the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Sherlock Holmes, Elizabeth Bennett, or even Mr. Darcy.

Good luck with your costume search.  If you see someone running around Capitol Hill on Halloween dressed entirely in black and acting melancholy, that'll be me pretending to be Anne Sexton.