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A Creepy Countdown-Charlotte Huck September 30, 2007

A Creepy Countdown by Charlotte Huck is a counting and a countdown book-this is good. It’s a rhyming book- what kid could not love that. But, most of all, it’s a book with marvelous illustrations and this is great. Students love counting the creepy, ever so Halloween-y, creatures: “One tall scarecrow standing on a hill. Two lumpy toads sitting very still.” Until “Ten tiny mice, feeling very brave squeaked…” and the countdown begins until, again, we have “One tall scarecrow stood all alone.” Jos. A Smith is quite the illustrator. His scratchboard technique is perfect for the scary creatures. I read the story to all ages in the library-some for the counting and all for the rhyming and art. Some of the students listening to the story and loving the illustrations want to immediately try the scratchboard effect-elementary school-style, of course. I’ve seen some pretty impressive attempts . The book’s illustrations are done in black and white with effectively placed watercolor details. A Creepy Countdown is a book well worth reading and admired.

A Creepy Countdown
Written by Charlotte Huck
Illustrated by Jos. A. Smith
Pre K-Grade 2

• A Creepy Countdown at Amazon
  
• The Art of Jos. A Smith
• The Two Faces of Jos. A. Smith

Heckedy Peg-Audrey Wood September 16, 2007

Why is it that kids are so fascinated with scary stuff? Actually, I don’t think they’re fascinated with “real” scary things, but books and movies and campfire tales and peek-a-boo delight them to no end. And one of those “delightful” scary things? Why no other than Heckedy Peg, a book by Audrey Wood. The mother in our story is off on an errand to town. Each of her seven children (for being so good) is to be brought back one requested item. Before she leaves, the mother admonishes Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday not to play with fire and not to let a stranger in. Exit Mom. Enter children playing with fire and letting in the tricky and oh-so-nasty Heckedy Peg. Heckedy Peg changes the children into “dinner”, loads them into her cart and takes the “food” to her hut. It’s up to the returning mother to discover her children (Thank goodness for nosy blackbirds,) and heroically save the day. Let’s see: We have fire; transmutation (hey); kidnapping; strangers; faux dismemberment; drowning and egg pudding. What more could a child desire in a book? Okay, maybe not the egg pudding. The pictures by Don Wood are impeccably done-could we expect less? Oh, back to that Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday thing-interestingly, that’s how most of the students visiting the library ask for the book: “Where’s that Tuesday Sunday book?” You gotta love it.

Heckedy Peg
Written by Audrey Wood
Illustrated by Don Wood
Accelerated Reader RL 3.2

• Heckedy Peg at Amazon
• Audrey’s Home Page

Piggie Pie!-Margie Palatini September 2, 2007

(Warning: When reading this book to children beware of an abundance of alliterative “p” words. Hand out tissues.) Gritch awakes one morning with a tremendous craving for Piggie Pie! Lacking the most important ingredients-8 plump piggies-she jumps on her broom and flies off to Old MacDonald’s to rectify the situation. Noticing her arrival overhead at the farm, the piggies read the writing on the wall, er, in the sky and decide subterfuge to be the best protection against Gritch’s hungry needs. Disguised as various farm animals, the piggies undergo some rather intense witchy interrogations. Even a conspicuouly lumpy looking “Old MacDonald” is no help. “No piggies.” (Thankfully, Gritch isn’t the most observant witch in the covey.) “Now what was she going to eat?” Enter a huffing and puffing wolf. “Wolf’s the name.” Both the wolf and the witch leave the farm with, respectively, visions of a Gritch hamburger and a Wolf sandwich dancing in their heads. And in the heads of the piggies? …a neener neener here. And a neener neener there. Here a neener…

Piggie Pie!
Written by Margie Palatini
Illustrated by Howard Fine
Accelerated Reader RL 2.5

• Piggie Pie! at Amazon
• About Margie Palatini

The Ghost-Eye Tree-Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault

All of us are very lucky that Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault first created The Ghost-Eye Tree as a reader’s theater piece. This makes it the perfect read-aloud for our Halloween or our “Why do kids love scary books so much?” needs. A mother, who, by the way, desperately needs to work on her think-ahead skills, sends her son and daughter to town to get a bucket of milk. (We must not be in Kansas anymore. Bucket of milk?) Halfway to Mr. Cowlander’s is the very frightening “ghost-eye tree…feared by all…the great and the small…” The by-play between the older sister and her brother is, well, very brother and sister-y: “Come on fraidy cat! Don’t hang back!” “I’m not hangin’ back, I’m getting my hat.” “Your dumb hat…” There are barely heard mutterings from the brother expressing his true fears just begging to be read softly and with trepidation. The illustrations by Ted Rand complete this atmospheric gift to us. “There’s nothing here, nothing to fear…” (Boo!)

The Ghost-Eye Tree
Written by Bill Martin,Jr./John Archambault
Illustrated by Ted Rand
Grades K-3

• The Ghost-Eye Tree at Amazon
• Bill Martin, Jr.

Night in the Barn-Faye Gibbons August 14, 2007

In the childhood adventure, Night in the Barn by Faye Gibbons, two brothers and their city cousins decide to spend the night in a barn. The oldest brother (“Bet you’re afraid…” So you ready?”) pushes the younger (“S-sure.”) to act braver than he really feels. So the adventure begins. This book is oozing with atmosphere from the dark and beautiful illustrations by Erick Ingraham to the “rustle…rustle” of the unknown and the “Oooooo” of the wind. When I read the book to students, they get completely caught up in the images and language and experience a little fearful anticipation. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard “Ah, I knew that was gonna happen.” and this, usually, from students who sat there mesmerized throughout the whole story. The ending is great fun and, well, thank you, Faye. Erick and, of course, Amos.

Night in the Barn
Written by Faye Gibbons
Illustrated by Erick Ingraham
Accelerated Reader RL 3.2

• Night in the Barn at Amazon
• Faye Gibbons-Biography