Written and illustrated by Calef Brown
Houghton Mifflin, 2010
$16.99, ages 5-8, 40 pages
Don't look now, nonsensical beasts are on the prowl and they're sure to make you giggle.
Brown, the master of silliness, returns with a celebration of 14 things to be wary of on All Hallows Eve.
He begins with the furriest of brutes, a werewolf named Jack who crouches in the doorway.
Jack's a "give you a scare wolf," a "constantly burping and fouling the air wolf," he writes.
Jack's a "give you a scare wolf," a "constantly burping and fouling the air wolf," he writes.
And he's right over there on the page right beside you, so try not stare!
If you're feeling hungry, you might want to pass on supper with the Grim Reeper, who recites drop-dead epitaphs, or the raven on a tarantula ranch who likes his vittles crispy.
"This is the home / and humble haven / of Old Napoleon / the hungry raven / who gorges on spiders / each day at lunchtime. / Munch, munch, munch. / He calls it 'crunch time.'"
And by all means, never tarry if alley cats begin to hiss and scowl.
"Those fools who meddle / or get in the middle / end up in the hospital / covered in cat spittle," Brown says matter-of-factly.
And if you see the Witches of Texas, practicing hexes, watch out! In conical ten-gallon hats, they do the two-step and fill up a cauldron with newts before starting a sinister feud.
There are also goons about, like the Oompachupa Loompacabra. This shadowy fiend gobbles up the brains of goats by luring them with chocolate bars 'til nothing but horns, hooves and wrappers remain.
If you're feint of heart, Gory Rene may be too gross to see. His original painting "perfectly captured his awful decay" until one day his hideous mange grew so handsome Gore Rene hid the portrait away.
Other creatures are more peculiar than scary. Take the Frankenstinesque Frankenstein, who sits at his desk doing decoupage as an homage "to the human collage -- tha
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By: Jenny Miller,
on 10/6/2010
Blog: Where The Best Books Are! (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: 2010, Halloween Books, children's books about monsters, Even Monsters Need Haircuts, Matthew McElligott, Add a tag
Written and illustrated by Matthew McElligott
Walker & Company, 2010
$14.99, ages 4-8, 40 pages
Some say full moons cause sleeplessness and craziness, and one little boy should know.
He gets up at midnight every month when the moon is as round as a beach ball and heads down to his dad's barber shop to give his monster friends hair-dos.
Like every lunar cycle before, it's been a month since their last cut and some are looking kind of shaggy -- well, sort.
Frankenstein needs his flattop squared up, an ogre has a maverick hair twirling out of the top of his purple head and Medusa's snake locks could use a few braids.
The boy's not a bit scared and he's careful to follow family rules, especially the one about not going out of the house alone.
His friend Vlad, the vampire bat, meets him outside his window and flies by his side as he walks to the back of Dad's shop with a skeleton key in hand.
Once inside, Vlad loses the wings and goes around the shop flipping around wall art of coiffed human heads to show glam monsters on the other sides.
Now it's time for the boy to unpack grooming supplies from his backpack: his stink wax, tangling brush and, of course, shamp-ewww to keep his customers nice and hideous.
Vlad is first in the barber seat: he wants a sculpted forward-combed do. You can tell he trusts the boy completely, since he can't see his reflection in the mirror.
Then Igor pokes his green head in the door and before you know it, the joint is packed. Some of the monsters only need a snip but others are trickier to please.
When Werewolf gets on the chair, the boy has to climb on top of his shaggy head and whip out the branch loppers to do the job right.
Then Skeleton rattles up to the seat and it's hard to know exactly what he wants the boy to do. Perhaps a head buff will do?
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By: Jenny Miller,
on 10/6/2010
Blog: Where The Best Books Are! (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: 2010, Halloween Books, Thomas Docherty, children's books about monsters, Big Scary Monster, books about being a friend, children's books about bullying, Add a tag
Written and illustrated by Thomas Docherty
Templar Books, 2010
$15.99, ages 4-8, 40 pages
A hulking blue monster struts about scaring every creature at the top of a mountain until one day he gets a taste of his own terror.
Standing on the top of the mountain, the monster knows he's the biggest, scariest creature around and delights in sneaking up on little creatures, yelling, "Boo!," and seeing them scatter.
After awhile, the cute little bunnies, pigs, wiener dogs, roosters, frogs and turtles learn to hide from the big blocky fellow, leaving him scratching his head and wondering what to do.
Then one day while looking out from the peak, the big scary monster sees tiny little animals frolicking around in the valley and decides he needs a new herd of hapless creatures to scare.
So he ambles down the mountain, his big clawed arms swinging with confidence. But as the monster gets further down the mountain, something strange begins to happen: his perspective changes.
Rocks become bigger, and so do plants, and soon both are shadowing over him.
And what of the little creatures playing below?
They're enormous: every little creature he used to scare has a counterpart that is double his size.
Shaken by the growing size of things, the monster hides behind a giant fluffy rock for safety. He's never been so scared in his life.
But why is the rock twitching?
Suddenly the rock hops around and yells, "Boo," scaring the monster up the mountain, passed all the giant rocks and plants in search of all the little creatures he used to scare.
But, of course, the little animals are too wise to be found, and as day turns to night, the monster's heart sinks and he begins to cry.
But, of course, the little animals are too wise to be found, and as day turns to night, the monster's heart sinks and he begins to cry.
So what are all those heads popping up from the rock above him?
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By: Jenny Miller,
on 10/6/2010
Blog: Where The Best Books Are! (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: 2010, Ed Emberley, Halloween Books, Rebecca Emberley, children's books about monsters, children's books with songs, If You're a Monster and You Know It, Add a tag
Written and illustrated by Rebecca Emberley and Ed Emberley
Orchard Books (Scholastic), 2010
$16.99
If you want to see your children go zombie over a book, hold this one in front of them.
Then stand back and watch their eyes bulge out and their arms spring forward to get it out of your hands.
The Emberleys latest gem is an eye-popping delight. Bold, crisp cut-outs of rainbow colored monsters growl and jiggle to a raucous rendition of the popular repetitive song, "If You're Happy and You Know It."
As monsters jump out from all angles of the page with huge, hypnotic eyes, readers are coaxed to join in with the song and show they're monsters too by acting out various prompts.
First the monsters snort and growl, then they smack their claws, stomp their paws and twitch their tails. Next comes the silliest yet, wiggle your warts, as monsters shake their spotted bodies and flip around.
Then it's time for readers to show their stuff with a roar. As your child turns the page, a jagged mouthed monster opens his jaws wide over a two-page spread, suggesting just how loud they should cry out.
But wait, isn't it time for the tail of the song?
Clear out some furniture, Mom and Dad, it's time to do all six prompts at once!
If your children are silly and you know it, you won't want to miss this frenetic, fun book. The question is: who will be more wound up at the end? Your readers or the monsters?
Just be sure to have pile of multi-colored construction paper on hand when they tucker out. Nothing will delight them like snipping out monsters of their own.
To download the song, click here. If You're a Monster and You Know It is sung by Adrian Emberley, Rebecca's daughter and Ed's granddaughter.
Ed Emberley is beloved for his drawings books as well as many popular picture books, including the 1972 Caldecott Medal winning Drummer Hoff, written by wife Barbara Emberley.
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