Published by Alazar Press

Summary:  Alaina wakes up feeling excited about the day ahead.  The second graders are putting on a play, and she, a kindergartener, gets to deliver the last line, “Thank you for coming.  Goodbye.”  She reviews her line with her mother as they walk to school, then goes over it in her head throughout the day.  Finally, it’s time for the big production.  Alaina watches in the wings, getting caught up in the different emotions that the actors portray.  When it’s time for her line, she is too excited to stay on script, and instead improvises: “Wasn’t that great? Wasn’t it stupendous? What about those jokes, and the yelling, and the crying, and the dancing, and…?”  The teacher cuts her short by closing the curtain, but Alaina sticks her head out for her final, “Thank you for coming. Goodbye!”  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  Eloise Greenfield, who died this year at the age of 92, once said she wanted her books “to enable Black children to realize how beautiful and smart they are”. She realizes that vision in this posthumously published story about Alaina.  The story and the gorgeous illustrations capture the excitement of the theater, and Alaina’s delight in the production is infectious.  This would make a great introduction to read before attending a play.

Cons:  Seems like someone could have thought of a slightly catchier title.

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.

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.