Halloween gives families a chance to create and enjoy many traditions. Dressing up in costumes, carving pumpkins and trick-or-treating are among the most popular, but families can also share great Halloween books together. Here are our recommendations for October reading:
Ghosts in the House by Kazuno Kohara ( Square Fish): Kazuno Kohara’s award-winning picture book about a practical child witch who puts her ghostly friends to good use is irresistibly cheerful. The illustrations are bold and bright, and the text is so simple you’ll want to read it again and again. Ghosts in the House is bound to leave both adult and child readers in high spirits.
Pumpkin Heads! by Wendell Minor (The Blue Sky Press): Wendell Minor’s Pumpkin Heads! celebrates the many faces of Jack-o-lanterns. With fewer than 100 words set in large type, this story is a breeze to read, even at bedtime. The real treat will be exploring Minor’s stunning illustrations with your child. Bright fall colors, country settings and expressive pumpkin faces give you lots to discuss.
The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything Written by Linda Williams Illustrated by Megan Lloyd (HarperCollins): The author of this now-classic picture book calls it a “stand-up story” because it gives child readers a chance to stomp, clap, and wiggle their way through the tale. In the story, empty articles of clothing follow a brave old woman home to scare her, but she comes up with a funny and “fitting” response.
For more books you and your child will love, check out these online resources:
- Children’s Book Council’s Best of the Best: www.cbcbooks.org
- Bank Street College of Education’s Best Books of the Year: www.bankstreet.edu
- Parents’ Choice Best 25 Books of 25 Years www.parents-choice.org