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.

Published by Candlewick

Summary:  The spread before the title page shows a chicken crossing the road…and a large truck rounding a bend.  The title page shows a flash of light and some feathers smack up against the front of the truck.  And then…”What happened?” asks a ghostly chicken, rising from its flattened body on the road.  Ghostly animals appear to fill her in on the fact that she’s become…poultrygeist!  The chicken wants to be a friendly ghost, but the other animals insist she’s just being chicken, and should use her haunting powers to their fullest.  Finally, she pulls a scary face that terrorizes the other ghosts back into hiding.  The final page shows a happy squirrel about to cross the same stretch of road, with another truck barrelling around the bend.  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  For kids who like funny scares, this one will surely get a lot of laughs, and older readers will appreciate the clever wordplay (“Cock-a-doodle-boo!”).  The neon illustrations against a black background provide a fun haunted look.

Cons:  More sensitive readers may find this more gruesome than funny, and especially be disturbed by the cute little squirrel on the last page.

Portions of this review was featured on Twinkl as part of their Great & Ghostly Guide to Halloween.