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To make up for my lack of promised Halloween reviews in the past two days, I'm going to do something a little different today. Those of you who are long time followers will know that I occasionally review books that aren’t YA, including picture books. Even though these are published for kids, not only kids can enjoy them. So I wanted to review some Halloween picture books I’ve come across lately. The problem is, there’s not really that much you can say plot-wise about a picture book. So rather than doing a review for each, I’m going to do several mini-reviews. So here we go.

The Banshee by Eve Bunting and Emily Arnold McCully
I actually picked this one up as a gig for a local newspaper I do reviews for. It sounded like a perfect Halloween story. It's about a little boy in Ireland (can't remember his name off the top of my head) who thinks he hears a banshee outside of his house. For those of you who aren’t versed in the supernatural, the banshee of Irish legend is a ghostly woman who is said to wail outside a house where there is an impending death. Naturally, this scares the boy silly because if it IS a banshee, then who at his house is going to die. In the end, it's a cute story about facing your fears. Not really my thing. The one thing that redeems the book is the illustrations. They are dark and murky, which perfectly complements the tone of the story. Overall, this is a great story for the subject matter: a banshee. Beyond that scope it's less than satisfying.

Shady Glade Rating 5/10

Queen of Halloween by Mary Engelbreit
This book is the Halloween installment of Mary Engelbreit's Ann Estelle series. This time Ann Estelle is all dressed up in the perfect fairy queen costume and is ready to get lots of candy. She learns a lot about bravery when she works up the courage to make her way up to ring the doorbell of the creepiest house on the block. But if you’re familiar with Mary Engelbreit you'll know that it really isn't that creepy. Not my favorite Ann Estelle story, but it was cute and I always love Mary's illustrations. Plus, this one comes with a Ann Estelle paper doll, which definitely gave it bonus points in my book.

Shady Glade Rating: 6/10

Halloween Night by Marjorie Dennis Murray and Brandon Dorman
This is essentially the Halloween equivalent of The Night Before Christmas. It’s written in rhyming text and features a whole bunch of monsters, witches, vampires, etc. getting their house ready for this big Halloween celebration. But the guest of honor (10 trick or treaters) run away screaming when they see the house. So everybody parties without them. It’s a cute book, and although it isn’t an original concept, the art was interesting. A great book for young kids who are eagerly anticipating the Halloween holiday. I could see this becoming an October tradition for some families.

Shady Glade Rating: 5/10

Cat Nights by Jane Manning
This is one of my favorite books of the bunch, just because it’s so original. Now although the main character is a witch, this is easily a book that could be enjoyed year-round because it’s not necessarily “Halloween” in nature. The story centers around the witch Felicity who is so excited to reach her 263rd birthday. Why? Because on this special birthday a witch is finally granted the power to turn into a cat for the night. Felicity loves being a cat, but her witch cousins are worried that Felicity might decide to use the spell one too many times. (You can spend 8 nights as a cat, but the 9th time you stay a cat). The three cousins attempt to intervene with some interesting results. In the end it’s a really cute story about learning to be true to yourself. Reading this made me want to turn into a cat too. Just for one night though.

Shady Glade Rating: 8/10

Halloween by Jerry Seinfeld and James Bennett
And last, but certainly not least is one of my favorite Halloween books of all time. Don’t be fooled by the simple title, or the fact that this is a picture book. I can confidently say that this a book adults can enjoy just as much as kids. It reads just like one of Jerry Seinfeld’s comedy acts. Jerry takes us through the childhood experiences of Halloween, including the ultimate quest for good trick-or-treat candy to what happens when that store bought superhero costume isn’t as great as you thought it would be. Kids will certainly relate to the situations here, and adults can chuckle as Jerry’s hijinks bring up memories of their own Halloween mishaps. Combine this story with illustrations that perfectly complement the writing, and you’ve got a real winner. Seriously. You need to check this one out.

Shady Glade Rating: 10/10!

And there you have it! I hope you found some books to dive into this Halloween. And if you don’t normally read picture books, that’s okay too. You are never too old for a good picture book.

Copy provided by the publisher for Queen of Halloween, Cat Nights, and Halloween Night

*Gasp* Look! A review! How nice. I haven't reviewed a historical fiction book in awhile, so I thought I'd mix it up a bit. Be back with more reviews in the next few weeks (hopefully!).

Aftershocks by William Lavender

Jessie’s troubles start when she is discovered looking at medical instruments in the local medical supply shop window. She can’t help but be fascinated by the strange tools used by doctors, especially since she wants to practice medicine herself. However, her father has other plans. A doctor himself, he is adamant that no proper young lady in San Francisco’s high society will ever practice medicine. He insists that it is not a dignified profession for a woman.

All of this changes when Jessie discovers some less-than-reputable late-night excursions between her father and the family’s new Chinese maid, Mei Lin. On New Year’s Eve in 1904, Mei Lin disappears, and Jessie is sure that Mei Lin has fled to protect her unborn illegitimate child. When Chinatown is almost completely destroyed by the San Francisco Earthquake of 1906, Jessie seizes the opportunity to search for her half-sister. It isn’t long before she finds Lilly, a Chinese orphan with distinctively reddish-black hair like Jessie’s father. She is sure that this is her half-sister, but how can Jessie save her sister, and spare her strict family the shame of the secret she’s discovered?

San Francisco in 1906 is a dangerous place. William Lavender’s book Aftershocks does an excellent job of capturing this spirit of chaos and showing that sometimes it’s not the natural disaster, but what happens afterward that will ultimately change lives. This one of those truly multi-layer novels that has so much going on, it's hard to summarize in just a few short paragraphs. However, far from making the story confusing, it gives this historical novel a new level of depth and complexity.

The cover of this book reveals that this is “a tale of romance and social justice,” but it ends up being much more. Although this story takes place during a major historical disaster, the book focuses more on how the event changes Jessie’s life, not how it ravages the city. While engulfed in this book, the audience grows, changes, and matures right along with Jessie as she struggles with the family secret that literally changes her life.

Shady Glade Rating: 10/10

I Can Has Cheezburger?: A LOLcat Colleckshun by Professor Happycat and Icanhascheezburger.com

As a follower of the site for about a year, I was exstatic when I found out they were releasing an I Can Has Cheezburger?book. My very own collection of Lolcats? I am so there! The book is an excellent collection of the best, funniest, and quientissential Lols found on (and off) the site. It's a quick read (mostly pictures with a few phrase captions) but it's a book I will read over and over, especially when you need a humor pick-me-up. I only had the guts to ask for one book this Christmas (since I have so many already), but I am so happy that this was the only book I got. It totally made up for a lack of books in other areas.

I need to warn you, there's quite a few reoccuring phrases and jokes, which may take a bit to catch onto. And the grammar and spelling are horrible. But that's one of the things that makes it so funny. Besides, you'll be fluent in Lolspeak in no time! Of course, the book is great for explaning the jargon and reoccuring gags, if you're simply lost altogether. Bottom line: if you're in a humor slump, you need to order your copy of I Can Has Cheezburger? right away!

I Can Has Cheezburger? is available to order on Amazon.com: