The 13 Days of Halloween by Carol Greene Illustrated by Tim Raglin

from goodreads

4.5 stars

Well, Halloween is coming up this Saturday. I am still making some last minute tweaks to the kids costumes but for once I am feeling like we are ready.

Miss V is going to be Little Red Riding Hood. I made her a red and white tutu style skirt and a nice warm fleece hood and cape. Hopefully the cape will help her stay a little warm when they are out on Saturday. Halloween can be pretty chilly in Canada.

Miss G is going to be a ballerina witch cat, the last time I checked. Hopefully it all works out for her and she will be happy with the result.

With Miss P I totally thought we would have an extra year of putting her in whatever costume we wanted, but nope. She is determined to be a dinosaur/dragon. Luckily my friend has a dragon costume lying around and I think it will be perfect. Seriously, how did my 2.5 year old get so opinionated?!

I am looking forward to a nice quiet Halloween. Our neighbourhood is an older one so there aren't as many kids. Last year I think we got 15 kids at our door. So, it should be a nice time of reading and relaxing while my husband take our our kids and I wait for whoever drops by.

Yay for Halloween!

Synopsis

A nicely dressed, gentlemanly ghoul gives gifts to his friend.

My Thoughts

Well here is another book where they take a familiar song and change the words around to be a fun Halloween book.

I loved the illustrations and the toads. The toads were probably my favourite.

I loved how everything worked with the tune so we could all sing along. My kids liked seeing all the different gifts. Miss P especially liked the spiders and the worms. She also liked the lady's dresses. Every time we turned the page she would exclaim "ooh pretty dress". She likes her dresses, what can I say.

All of us were a bit disappointed at the end when we don't get to see what the gift is that the lady gives the the man. I tried to make it fun by saying "oh, we get to use our imaginations. What do you think she gave?" But the kids weren't buying it. My husband even exclaimed "Laaame!"'

This is a fun book that will definitely get you in the creepy and fun Halloween spirit. Happy Halloween!!

The Halloween House by Erica Silverman Illustrated by Jon Agee

from goodreads

5 stars

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. And it seems to be especially true when it comes to books written for specific holidays. Why reinvent the wheel when you can take something beloved and make a few tweaks to come up with a great holiday tale.

I am definitely one of those people who will take a song and change the lyrics to come up with something to fit the situation. I must say that seems to be a talent all on its own. It can be hard to fit things into the rhythms and rhymes.

So hear to all the original creators of songs and rhymes and stories that allow the rest of us to use our creative juices. We wouldn't be able to do it without you.

Synopsis

Two men on the run from the law decide to hide in a mansion. Yet what they meet there is not what they thought.

My Thoughts

This book is awesome! Not only do my kids love it, but I love it too.

It is a play on the song "Over in the Meadow" and the rhymes fit the song perfectly. I would sing the song but it was still a bit too cheerful for the book so I changed the song to its minor key form and it definitely helped the story become a bit more eerie.

In this Halloween house they meet werewolves, vampires, worms, skeletons, witches and more. The illustrations really helped the story come alive. I loved seeing the scared expressions on the faces of the convicts as they were running from monsters and dancing with skeletons.

I especially love the last picture of the book. I won't tell you what it is but it definitely completes the book.

If you are looking for a fun book to get you into the Halloween spirit this definitely is the book. It was such a delight.