Published by Greenwillow Books

Summary:  “A house. Where is the door? What color is it? Where is the window?  What shape is it?”  Each page asks questions about different concepts like shapes, colors, time of day, size, and weather, inviting readers to look carefully at the pictures and find the answers to the questions.  Near the end, a doll family arrives, complete with cat and dog.  The house is now called something else…a home.  32 pages; ages 3-6.

Pros:  I found myself immediately imagining reading this to my preschool classes and having them take turns answering the questions.  Like many of Kevin Henkes’ recent books, this one has both simple texts and illustrations, but will undoubtedly become a favorite that will be read over and over again.

Cons:  Okay, is it just me, or does the cover of this book look like a Tomie dePaola illustration?  For some reason, I saw a picture of the cover a few months ago, and got the idea in my head that it was a Tomie dePaola homage.  I was, of course, completely wrong.

Published by Feiwel and Friends

Summary:  Victoria Franken and her (dog) assistant Igor love to create slime.  After finding a recipe online, they expand their repertoire, always taking careful notes on what works (rainbow cloud slime, intergalactic space slime) and what doesn’t (shark tooth slime, firework slime).  One stormy night, Victoria has a brainstorm, and she and Igor rush to the attic to mix it up.  When it’s zapped by lightning, the green slime comes to life!  Victoria and Igor rush through the house, pursued by the slime which seems to be wielding a pointy object at her.  It turns out to be…her pencil, which she forgot in her haste, as well as her notebook.  Victoria remembers then to write down her recipe, aided by Igor and Goop, who becomes another faithful assistant.  Includes three slime recipes.  40 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  I don’t know if it was the horror of 2020 that inspired all these Halloween-themed books, but come October 31, we should all be set for story hour.  Here’s another one that’s more fun than scare, featuring a girl scientist who follows the scientific method to a T. If you’re willing to deal with large quantities of glue and glitter, you’ll even have a makerspace activity to go with it.

Cons:  Firework slime looked like fun; I’m not sure why it was considered a failure.

Published by Balzer + Bray

Summary:  When darkness falls, Naya announces that she is going on a hunt for a jumbie.  Her mother tells her that night time is for sleeping, but Naya is undeterred and sets off on her quest.  She doesn’t find a jumbie, but she does run across a whole host of creatures from Caribbean mythology.  They look like monsters, but prove to be friendly and eager to join Naya in her hunt.  Alas, the jumbie proves elusive, and they all end up back at Naya’s house.  The last page shows the sun rising as Naya’s surprised mother discovers the pile of creatures all asleep in her front yard.  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Another good story for Halloween, with lots of monsters that kids may not have heard of before.  The illustrations are a lot of fun and may inspire young artists to create their own monsters.  Those intrigued by jumbies can move on to Baptiste’s middle grade series about them.  

Cons:  I would have enjoyed some additional information about the different mythological creatures.