You may know from my previous post on kids’ fall books that I love to collect seasonal children’s books and that I love to decorate our bookshelves for every holiday. Since spooky season is here, I wanted to share some of our Halloween books along with a little review of each in the hopes you may find your next favourite read.
Halloween Night is inspired and follows the format of The Night Before Christmas. As the latter, I can see this becoming a tradition and reading it on Halloween night year after year. The rhymes are delightful as are the illustrations. An instant Halloween classic!
Lots of Cats is probably my favourite on this list and a must-have for any cat lover. When a lonely little witch conjures up a spell to make friends, she gets lots of cats instead. She soon learns how much fun and how much trouble they can be but, above all, discovers what wonderful companions they are. Not scary or spooky at all, gorgeous illustrations, and great story.
In this book, a little ghost is too small and way too cute and struggles to be a real scary ghost. After two attempts, she finally manages to pass her ghost exams, but in the sweetest ending, she decides that there is a better job for her than haunting. Truly a sweet, sweet book. The ending is so heartwarming.
Bonaparte is losing his bones, so he recruits his friends to help him come up with a solution.This is a lovely story, the illustrations are beautiful and it is full of puns that will surely please the parents.
Beautifully illustrated “guide” on how to make friends with a ghost. This one is possibly best for older kids, as the writing is witty and full of puns. How to Make Friends with a Ghost is a lovely story about (a very long) lasting friendship and, for the parents, it will surely bring up some nostalgic Casper vibes.
Bone Soup is a Halloween take on a European folktale called Stone Soup. Both are about community and sharing the little one may have to make something bigger together. The book has a great message with a fun spooky twist.
This is the sweet story of a little mouse who is afraid of spooky sounds. However, she soon discovers all the delightful things Halloween brings. This is a great non-scary story, the artwork is beautiful, and it can be very interactive if you have fun with the sounds.
When a little ghost is scared of the dark, he goes to see his friends, the Witch, the Werewolf, Frankenstein, Dracula, and the Mummy and they quickly change his mind about how great nighttime can be. This is a very cute story and the rhymes make it such a fun read.
The Scariest Book Ever follows the story of a ghost who would rather do anything, including wash his (ghost) sheet, than check out a scary wood. While I love the artistic style of this one with its mix of bright cartoony art and mid-century designs, this is not one of my favourites. I find the way the ghost narrates a little choppy and confusing which makes it difficult to follow the story.
We have a few books from the “How to Catch” series. We love the rhymes and the bright illustrations are great to capture our attention. If you are looking for a book for a particular holiday or theme, they have everything from the Easter Bunny, to Turkeys, Elfs, Mermaids, Dinosaurs, and more.
Until next time, happy spooky reading!
