Review: Newer Halloween Picture Books

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The stories and illustrations in the Otter books are always squee-worthy. And a book with end pages covered in candy? Who wouldn't like that?! As usual, Otter has SO many things to do to get ready for Halloween - pumpkin selecting, decorating, and of course making sure everyone has a scary costume. But, what happens when Otter decides the trick-or-treaters are just a little TOO scary? Will she have to hide under the bed with Pig for the rest of the night? A fun little read for any child, but especially one who might not be too sure about those other ghosties and goblins.

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It's Halloween, and Splat is determined to be the scariest cat in the class. Unfortunately, he's just too much of a scaredy-cat. He's afraid of a little spider, and everyone says his costume looks more silly than scary. And when Mrs. Wimpydimple tells a ghost story in the dark, Splat gets so frightened that he tips over his jack-o'-lantern. But when the lights go back on, the entire class is scared silly by a small, black, furry creature with a big pumpkin head. Whooooo can it be?

Another one along the same vein, children will find it easy to laugh at Splat's goofy facial expressions, and parents may identify with Mother, drily agreeing that, yes, Splat is pretty scary.

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Parents will also identify with the search for the perfect costume (this year I had to come up with a lovable devil, Go-Go from Big Hero 6, a gardener, Teddy Roosevelt, Hulk, and a red Lego.) Witch's Cat goes through a rainbow of costume ideas before coming up with a pretty clever one at the end. Adorable, seemingly 3D illustrations you want to run your finger over, this may also inspire a Halloween scene art project.

Review: Who the What?

I'm seeing a small trend in my TBR pile...

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Two Clark the Shark books today...

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Clark is really growing on me, as a big lovable - toothsome - lug. In "Tooth Trouble", we learn there is one thing sharks might be afraid of...dentists! ("It took his mother, two dads, and a dental assistant to get Clark into the dentist's chair.") Of course, it turns out this dentist isn't scary at all - she even tells really HORRIBLE jokes, just like our dentist! (Sorry, Dr. Westover, but we have to call it like we see it.) It's great to see a beginning reader that is actually a good story, not a forced collection of vocabulary words. Another great passage:

"Billy-Ray Ray says dentists are mean and scary," said Clark.

"Billy-Ray also told you that whales can fly," said his mom.

"Oh, yeah," said Clark.

In Clark the Shark Takes Heart, Clark wants to impress Anna Angelfish, but he tends to go a bit overboard, with some unintended results. When he finally goes with sweet and simple, he of course gets the girl. Er, fish.

Then we have:

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Splat can hardly wait to put on his uniform, tie knots, and build a fire. But when a new member of the group does everything just a bit better than everyone else, Splat wishes he could have a chance to shine. Thanks to some sticky mud, he might get to show what a great outdoors-cat he really is!

I am not as big a fan of Splat, as his books tend to be hit-or-miss. Reviews of a couple I liked can be found here and here. This one is thankfully without the gimmicks of lift-the-flaps or stickers, and I was equally thankful that the author (actually Laura Driscoll) did not take the path of Scott, the impressive new scout, being arrogant, or Splat being peevishly jealous. Splat admires Scott's abilities, Scott is happy to help Splat out, and when Splat gets the chance to return the favor, nobody has to feel bad about it. Definitely one to circulate among the kids (and maybe the grown-ups!)

Hey - say, "Rob Scotton's Cat Scout Scott" three times fast.

Never mind, I can't say it once.

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Charlie has a new picture boo out, too, which we are waiting on. The first thing my kids do upon picking up any Charlie the Ranch Dog book, is look for the chipmunk on each page. A couple spreads don't seem to have one, which will cause no end of consternation in my household. Other than that, I think the kids will enjoy the story - heck, anything involving mud makes them happy!

Picture Books for Halloween

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While I absolutely loved Grogan's original novel, I have felt so-so about the picture book series. The things that happen in the stories are just as funny as those in the novel, but they are just too wordy and stiff for preschoolers. In this one, Marley's family is trying to host a Halloween party, with Marley 'helping' along the way. I would use it as a one-on-one read-aloud, when you have plenty of time to just talk about the pictures and what Marley is doing, in between reading the text.

 

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Lift-the-flap books are usually popular with the younger set, but this was a bit disappointing. Rather than the inside of each flap answering a question or in some way relating to the outside, the publishers just seem to have taken a regular picture book and alternated the pages that way. I think it would have worked better as a plain old picture book, as the story is still cute. Seymour disappears into a haunted house, and Splat and Spike must go in and find him. Again, I think this would work best as a one-on-one.

 

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Here's one I can recommend! C., in second grade now, has recently discovered seek-and-find books, so this one was right up his alley. The second in a series by Bruce Hale and Dave Garbot, the illustrations are not quite as tiny and detailed as Where's Waldo or Marzollo's I Spy books, but still busy enough to keep him searching for a bit. In the Seek and Solve series, readers are given pictures of suspects for some sort of crime, and follow a detective-type character as he searched for clues. These are summed up on a final page before the answer is revealed. A great start for those who might be frustrated by the other series we mentioned.

 

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Saving the best for last, this title by Marjorie Daniels Murray will be working its way into our read-aloud list. Silly and just a little bit creepy, an easy cadence loosely following the pattern of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas. Brandon Dorman's illustrations are wonderful, managing to be both colorful and dark atthe same time. Kids will enjoy picking out all the gory details (my favorite is the happy little rat peeking out of the soup du jour.)

 

Thank-you to HarperCollins for these Halloween treats!

Review: Picture Books for Mother's AND Father's Day

At first I wasn't sure about putting these books together in one post. Sure, a couple are about both parents, but don't Dads already get the shaft as it is? Think about it: Mother's Day happens in the spring, when kids are still in school, but teachers are happy to throw in an art project to keep them focused. Father's Day? Beginning of summer, when whoever takes care of the kids is scrambling with a schedule of swimming or daycamp or sports or, of course, summer reading program, and nobody thinks about a craft.

 

And then there are the sermons at church, as we were joking about in story time last week. For Mother's Day, pastors typically wax poetic about how awesome mothers are, and how they deserve our highest praise and respect. On Father's Day? The message is generally how dads are failing their kids, and need to step up their game. (Hint to such pastors: if the father is in church with his family, he probably doesn't need to hear this particular sermon. And, if by chance this is the first Sunday in ages his wife has been able to drag him in the doors, being attacked from the pulpit is not likely to result in a return visit. Just sayin'.)

 

As I thought about it further, however, I realized how many parents do double duty, fulfilling both "Mom" and "Dad" functions. Even in a two-parent household, you have those who have to be absent for long periods - and how about those families with two moms or two dads? Not to mention all the kids being raised by grandparents. I think we can handle mixing the titles in one post - feel free to come back to it again in June, or even in September for Grandparents' Day!

 

 

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With Stickers! So, you know, you can plaster them all over the furniture and Mom can think of you as she tries to scrape them off without damaging the finish.

 

Seriously, this is a cute story of Splat and his siblings making gifts for Mom and Dad "to show how much (they) loved them".  A rash of one-upsmanship turns into collaboration, which turns into a minor disaster involving seagulls (of course, what else?), and all is well in the end. Bonus: Each of the crafts made by the kittens is completely doable by kids of any age, and may prompt some creativity once you are done reading.


      
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Question: why do all the other animals in Bear Country do animal things, but the Berenstains act like people? Just one of those ramblings my mind has gone on over the years.

Each of the books in this pair begins with listing some of the things Mama and Papa Bear do for their families - never a bad reminder. In each case, the cubs search for just the right gift to show their appreciation. For Mother's Day, it's a photo album, and for Father's Day, a set of coupons to get his chores completed by someone else (with a little help from him, as it turns out.) Traditional gifts kids can complete with help, and nice little stories to read together.



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Tiptoe Joe goes tiptoeing through the woods, inviting his friends, "come with me. I know something you should see!" His friends clomp, thud, and swish along, asking, "What's the secret? Let us know!" Since this is included in our Mother's/Father's Day post, you can probably guess the sweet secret at the end. Children may guess as well, and will probably memorize the repetitive text in no time at all. Warm, happy illustrations make this an excellent choice for lap reading or bedtimes. A natural segue into Mommy or Daddy's joy when their little one was born, and the friends they couldn't wait to tell.




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Yay for Grandmas! I shudder to think of the daycare struggles we would be going through if we didn't have Grandma to watch the kids. If your kids are sick, you can't take them to daycare. You can, however, take them to Grandma's, and know they will get plenty of attention and care. Daycare workers may sing to your child on his birthday, but they probably won't spend hours making a busy board for him, because they know how much he likes switches and latches. And, I have no doubt that, by and large, daycare workers love their charges: but, it just isn't the same as the connection between an imaginative youngster and a grandma with time to encourage that imagination. The latter is what is illustrated here, in Jean Craighead George's gentle words and Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher's soft, autumn-hued pictures. Highly recommended for libraries or to be given as a gift.

Thank-you to Harper Collins for all these review copies!