The Beastie Bunch: Ten Little Beasties by Rebecca and Ed Emberley

Up to ten and back again is the premise of this latest collaboration between father-and-daughter duo Ed and Rebecca Emberley. In the familiar cadence and set to the well-known tune for "Ten Little Indians," the text simply counts up and down the weird and wacky beasties, but the illustrations are something else.

Using bright page backgrounds in glowing colors--turquoise, gold, lemon yellow, chartreuse, violet, and orange, to name a few--in their newest, Ten Little Beasties (Roaring Brook Press, 2011) the Emberleys come up with highly original critters, executed primarily in black and white, with a few color accents here and there. These accents are not necessary to differentiate the monsters, however, because each is unique in shape, size, and details, one with a central horn, several with tails, with varying numbers of eyes, and most with indescribable protuberances from different body parts. As the count goes up to ten, all cavort across the page, never in the same place, as the pages are turned.

10 LITTLE BEASTIES DANCING!

But what goes up must come down, and as the Emberleys begin the countdown, something seems to be diminishing the beasties' numbers. and there's a bit of a surprise when the last surviving beastie appears on the final page.

Ever since Ed Emberley's creative illustrations copped a Caldecott back in 1968 for Drummer Hoff, his work has consistently continued to be in the avant garde of children's illustration. His popular picture books, such as Go Away, Big Green Monster!, and his recent collaborations with author-illustrator Rebecca, There Was An Old Monster! and last year's If You're A Monster And You Know It, have a rhythmic verve and original use of media that is truly unique. Ten Little Beasties is also a fun preschool counting book and song, and the music for the song, performed by another Emberley, Rebecca's daughter Adrian, is available online.

Tiara Trade: The VERY Fairy Princess Takes the Stage by Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton

HI! I'M GERALDINE. I'M A VERY FAIRY PRINCESS.

I KNOW I'M A FAIRY PRINCESS BECAUSE I FEEL IT INSIDE.

A SPARKLY FEELING OF JUST KNOWING IN MY HEART.

Gerry makes sure that she lives up to the standard of being regal--wearing full, twirly skirts, wings, and a crown whenever she can--and (noblesse oblige)! helping others solve problems whenever and wherever they occur.

But Gerry's sparkly feeling is threatened when her ballet teacher Madame Danielle overlooks her obvious qualifications (and fairy princess accessories) and chooses her classmate Tiffany to play the title role in The Crystal Princess. And to add insult to injury, Gerry is assigned the totally embarrassing role as Court Jester, complete with baggy, jingly costume, silly shoes with curled-up toes, and an outrageous three-pointed hat with bells. And there are no sparkles anywhere!

Gerry' parents point out that everyone has an important role to play and that she looks adorable in her costume, but Gerry's mirror is no magic mirror, and she knows she looks ridiculous. And worst of all, she looks like a BOY!

Summoning all her princessy dignity, though, Gerry drags through rehearsals, learning her part and doing her best to be a good Jester while suffering as she sees Tiffany trying out her shimmery princess gown and glittering tiara. Gerry consoles herself as she dresses for the big performance by concealing her own sparkly crown under her silly cap of bells.

At least she's still a princess inside.

Then comes the big night. Gerry has to admit that Tiffany looks the part, gorgeous in her glamorous costume, a ballet princess who deserves the hand of the prince in the final wedding scene. But then, disaster strikes:

THE PRINCE IS WAITING FOR HER.

HE LIFTS HER VEIL, AND TIFFANY'S SHINY CRYSTAL TIARA TOPPLES RIGHT OFF HER HEAD. THEN PRINCE RAMONE ACCIDENTALLY STEPS ON IT.

EVERYONE GASPS.

MADAME DANIELLE IS HORRIFIED. THEN SHE LOOKS RIGHT AT ME.

TIFFANY LOOKS SO SAD.... AND A CRYSTAL PRINCESS REALLY NEEDS TO SPARKLE!

And, of course, Geraldine knows just where to find a replacement tiara, and graciously, as a true princess would, she takes her own from under her silly cap and places it on Tiffany's head, saving the show and bringing down the house.

In this second book in the series, Julie Andrews' and Emma Hamilton's just published The Very Fairy Princess Takes the Stage(Little, Brown, 2011) has everything for fans of ballet and princess stories--appropriately pastel pictures by noted illustrator Christine Davenier and a modern princess heroine who knows just how to be as gracious as a real royal.

For a dramatic pair, read this one with Ian Falconer's hilarious Olivia Acts Out, in which Olivia hams it up and steals the show as Cow #3.

Up And At Ya!: Silly Ghosts: A Haunted Pop-up Book by Janet Lawler

SILLY GHOSTS POP UP OUT OF THE NIGHT.

WHATEVER ARE THEY SEARCHING FOR?

Well, what all ghosts want on Halloween night! Midnight feasts, furry beasts to spook, a candle-lit party with lots of creepy games, and most of all, special kids to join them in Halloween treats and tricks.

And that's what these outrageous ghosts will get whenever any kid opens this book and activates the large and clever double-page pop-up spreads that designers Janet Lawler, Ana Chambers, and Yevgeniya Yeretskaya have dreamed up in their Silly Ghosts a Haunted Pop-up Book (Jumping Jack Press, 2011). There's also pull-tab fun which the creators have engineered into this charming little book., as the ghosts "blow" out the flickering candles on a candelabra, leaving wispy smoke trails behind, or a mischievous dog who turns over a treat bag to spill its candy all over the floor. There is also delightfully frightful wordplay in the funny, punny tombstones which abound in the illustrations, with such inscriptions as Rustin Peace, Moe R. Bid, Will B. Back, and I. M. Dead throughout.

More fun than a barrel of monkeys, this Halloween pop-up fills the trick-or-treat bag for holiday fun.

Boo Book: Never Kick a Ghost and Other Silly Chillers by Judy Sierra

HERE LIES THE BODY
OF ANNA, OUR SISTER.
SHE WAS JUST FINE
UNTIL A VAMPIRE KISSED HER.

.
Judy Sierra's newest I-Can-Read book, Never Kick a Ghost and Other Silly Chillers (I Can Read Book 2)(Harper, 2011) offers the early reader a a potpourri of funny/scary stories, a spooky clapping game, and some very funny graveyard inscriptions suitable for the scary season storytime, campouts, or sleepovers where tales of ghosts and goblins are required reading.

The stories include "The Skeleton Bride," an abridged version of the folktale in which a bridal party (in this case newlyweds Blackbeard the Pirate and South Sea Sue) inexplicably decide to play hide-and-seek aboard ship. Sue conceals herself inside a sea trunk which accidentally locks as she closes the lid. An attack from an enemy buccaneer ship begins and Sue and trunk sink overboard, only to be found long after by a treasure diver and opened to reveal a skeletal Sue still in bridal dress. Other stories are likewise recycled appropriately moldy oldies, "Never Kick A Ghost" and "The Big Slobbery Monster." Pasquale Constantin provides the illustrations of ghosts and skeletons in a not-too-spooky style and this inexpensive little paperback offers fun along with a bit of beginning reading practice.

Be sure to pair this one with Alvin Schwartz's classic In a Dark, Dark Room and Other Scary Stories (I Can Read! Reading 2) for an incomparable collage of spooky lore for the youngest independent readers.

Boo! Who's At the Door? by David Mead

RING THE DOORBELL--IF YOU DARE!

Trick-or-treating, that time-honored tradition of English speaking peoples, goes back to ancient times, with its current form rooted in the early Christian church when people celebrating All Saints' Day believed that the shades of their ancestors, good or not-so-good, could be expected to visit.

Trying to protect themselves from those not-so-sweet spirits, folks lit bonfires and dressed in scary garb themselves to frighten the bad ones away. The evening before this holy day, All Hallow's Eve, slowly evolved into Hallowe'en, a night of fun for kids, but retained its tradition of going about in disguise with at least the hint of tricks for stingy, Scroogy neighbors from the visiting "spirits."

All these jolly goings-on are fun for "big" kids, for whom hordes of children in strange dress at the door pose no threat, only possibilities for treats in their own little bags, but for the youngest, it can be an strange and overwhelming experience.

David Mead's and Ron Berry's just published little shaped board book, Who's at the Door? (Picture Books Activity Books E) (SmartKidz Media/Ideals, 2011) offers a bit of conditioning therapy for toddlers to introduce them to the whole Halloween event.

There's a pumpkin-shaped doorbell button to push for every page, which produces a very satisfying ding dong, followed by the voices of merry children chorusing "Trick or Treat!" Each double page spread, showing the interior of a living room, brings a new "door," a flap that can be opened to reveal some conventionally costumed kids on the porch, holding out their little plastic pumpkins.

DING DONG! IT'S A PATCH-EYED PIRATE!
WHAT COULD THIS MEAN?
HEY, WAIT A MINUTE! TONIGHT IS HALLOWEEN!

Clever design and illustrations by Chris Sharp give plenty of visual humor to each page: a variety of spooks pass by outside the window and there's a goldfish in a bowl by the window who reacts, a la the fish inThe Cat in the Hat, to each of these costumed creatures. For kids too young to "get" the whole tradition and too little to venture out on that night, this little board book is a good introduction to this holiday's rich traditions.

It's That Time Again: National Book Award Finalists Are Named

The finalists in the prestigious National Book Awards for young people's literature have been announced, accompanied by more than the usual drama produced by an unprecedented comedy of errors.

Franny Billingsley, Chime. (Dial Books, an imprint of Penguin Group USA, Inc.)

Debby Dahl Edwardson, My Name Is Not Easy. (Marshall Cavendish)

Thanhha Lai, Inside Out and Back Again. (Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers)

Albert Marrin, Flesh and Blood So Cheap: The Triangle Fire and Its Legacy (Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books) .

Gary D. Schmidt, Okay for Now. (Clarion Books, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) (See my prepublication review here.

The drama occurred when there was an error in reporting one of the titles. Apparently the name of the book Chime by Franny Billingsley was misunderstood, resulting in the pre-announcement notification of Lauren Myracle as a finalist for her highly-reviewed book Shine (Amulet Books, 2011). For three days Myracle, a notable writer of young adult fiction, had to keep what she thought was biggest news of her career a secret until the formal announcement. Shortly after her book was publicly announced as one of five finalists in her division, word spread that Billingsley's book was the intended honoree. Myracle deserves my unofficial Literary Good Sport Award of the Year for her grace in dealing with this disappointment, even declining a short-lived (and then withdrawn) offer to be included in what would then be six finalists! Lauren Myracle proved herself a real winner in this altogether strange course of events.

The 2011 winners in all classes--Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, and Young People's Literature--will be announced at the gala awards dinner, hosted by John Lithgow, on November 16. I will report the results at that time.

Boo! How to Draw a Happy Witch and 99 Things That Go Bump in the Night by Joy Sikorski

Little Man, an adventurous cat, takes a moonlit stroll through the woods and finds many things--a crow and its alter ego, a scarecrow, Jack-o'Lanterns, ghostly trick-or-treaters, a snail, and, as promised, a Happy Witch. These and many more characters of the night are illustrated, in step-by-step line drawings, for young artists to copy, and even Little Man the cat gets his turn to be the artists' model.

Drawing books aimed at the Halloween season are few and far between, and Joy Sikorski's and husband Nick Sunday's just published How to Draw a Happy Witch and 99 Things That Go Bump in the Night (Sterling, 2011) temporarily has the September market all to themselves. Their drawing lessons, done in about ten steps for each figure, follow Little Man's wanderings, and as promised provide 99 subjects for their sketchy cartoon lessons. Most of these figures are not all all scary--a bird, chipmunk, porcupine--in the spooky sense, but for kids who love to draw and need just a few lines to get them going, this little spiral-bound book might provide the inspiration.

For children who yearn to learn the art of sketching seriously spooky creatures of the dark, however, the go-to guide is still Lee J. Ames' classic Draw 50 Monsters: The Step-by-Step Way to Draw Creeps, Superheroes, Demons, Dragons, Nerds, Dirts, Ghouls, Giants, Vampires, Zombies, and Other Curiosa, one of his beloved Draw 50 series, which will keep most any art-loving kid busy until, oh, Memorial Day at least!

Best Friend - Always: Bone Dog by Eric Rohman

Elly has been Gus's dog and best friend as far back as he can remember. But, as Elly points out one beautiful autumn evening, dogs don't live forever.

"I'm an old dog and I won't be around much longer.

But no matter what happens, I'll always be with you."

They sat together in the moonlight. Then Elly said, "A promise made under a full moon cannot be broken."

And then Elly is gone, and as the leaves begin to fall, Gus is lost without her. Sadly he pulls on his old skeleton costume, grabs his treat bag, and heads out with the others for trick or treating. But Gus can't really get into the spirit of fun, and before long he finds himself with a candy-filled bag heading for home through the graveyard.

Just as Gus looks around and realizes that he'd rather be somewhere else, he is suddenly surrounded by a ring of dancing skeletons--and they are NOT kids in old Halloween costumes. They are the real deal, clacking bones and all.

"Come along now" said a skeleton. "It's Halloween, and you know what that means."

"But I'm not a skeleton. I'm a boy," said Gus.

"Numbskull!" said another skeleton. "You have got guts, boy. But not for long! Bone appetit!"

The skeletons begin to dance around Gus ominously. But then the moon breaks through the clouds.

WOOF!

"Elly!" cried Gus.

Elly barked and growled. It gave Gus an idea. He joined in, and boy and dog howled into the night.

The skeletons stopped dead in their tracks.

"Woof? Dogs? Real-life dogs?"

A gang of Elly's friends appear, and the skeletons exit, page left, with the dogs in full chase. Apparently, it doesn't go well for the bony ones. Dogs like nothing better than bones, and a proud little dachshund soon trots by, a giant bone happily in his mouth.

Gus and Elly once more sit together under the moon.

"Will I see you again," Gus asks.

"A promise made under the moon cannot be broken," says Elly. With that she disappeared into the night."

Caldecott winner Eric Rohman's newest, Bone Dog (Roaring Brook, 2011) is a funny-sad little ghost story illuminated by the idea that friendship never dies. With clever wordplay badinage from his bony bad guys and his trademark prints executed in somber but soothing palette, this little fantasy is less spooky than reassuring, a story for the scary season that will be remembered whenever the night is dark and the moon is full.

Halloween Sleepover Helper: 10 Not-Too-Scary Movies

So you've sweetly signed up to host a Halloween sleepover at your house and you're wondering what cool-down entertainment you can call on to settle the kids down, not scare them into pulling an all-nighter. What movies are suitable for the preschool-primary set and which ones are fine for middle elementary and middle schoolers?

Common Sense Media has it own top ten suggestions for this age group:

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-lists/scary-halloween-movies-not-too-scary?utm_source=newsletter10.13.11&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=feature2

Common Sense also offers some classic films that have known (and not-so-known) scary segments that might trigger fears in some kids. Most of us remember some of these scenes in beloved movies--the Evil Queen's terrifying huntsman who pursues Snow White and then has a change of heart just in time, the scary forest fire and loss of his mother in Bambi. Are there some other movies to consider before you pop them in the DVD player?

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/new/watch-out-lovable-movies-surprisingly-scary-scenes

Have a HAPPY Halloween!

Boo! Little Goblins Ten by Pamela Jane

OVER IN THE FOREST
WHERE THE TREES HIDE THE SUN,
LIVED AN OLD MOTHER MONSTER
AND HER LITTLE MONSTER ONE.

"SCARE!" SAID THE MOMMY.
"I SCARE!" SAID THE ONE.
SO HE SCARED AND HE SCRAMBLED
WHERE THE TREES HID THE SUN.

What do mommy creepy creatures teach their little ones as Halloween approaches? Well, they teach them what they know best, how to be rightfully frightful.

In this new October classic, drawing on the well-known nursery song Over in the Meadow, made famous by Ezra Jack Keats, Pamela Jane creates a worthy successor for the fall season, Little Goblins Ten. (Harper, 2011). Worthily paired with illustrator Jane Manning, Jane provides catchy alliterated or rhymed verbs to the jolly versification of the original, and gives this old form new life:

"CACKLE!" SAID THE MOTHER WITCH.
"WE CACKLE," SAID THE SIX.
AND THEY CROWED AND THEY CACKLED
IN A HOVEL MADE OF STICKS.

Zombies stare, bats swoop, werewolves howl and growl, and ghosties haunt, and all polish up their acts, getting in the groove for their upcoming performances on that eerie eve:

"TRICK OR TREAT?" SAID THE MOMMY.
"TREAT!" SAID THE ONE.
SO THEY SKIPPED OFF TOGETHER
FOR SOME HALLOWEEN FUN.

Publishers Weekly gives this one ten cackles, too, adding "... Trust the team of Jane and Manning to conjure up an impressive new vision in time for Halloween."

Showtime! Zoozical by Judy Sierra and Marc Brown

OWLS DID NOT GIVE A HOOT.
PANDAS QUIT BEING CUTE.
EVEN PENGUINS WERE SURLY.
WHEN THE ZOO GATES CLOSED EARLY!

It's wintertime and the critters at the Springfield Zoo have cabin fever. Twilight comes early, and the chilly weather keeps the sunny tropical animals inside. It's dreary at the zoo without the antics of those comical humans to amuse the critters inside. The penguins are peevish and the dingos are down in the mouth.

But there are two young critters who won't let the doldrums get them down. Little Hippo and Little Kanga have too much energy to let the winter solstice pilfer their panache, and suddenly they come up with an idea. Let's put on a show!

IT WAS SIMPLY AMAZING WHAT THE TWO FRIENDS COULD DO
WHEN THEY TAPPED AND THEY RAPPED AND THEY TWIRLED THEIR FEET.
ALL THE ANIMALS ROCKED TO THE HIP-AROO BEAT.

"WOO-HOO!" CRIED THE YOUNG KANGA.
"WE'RE SO-O-O-O MUSICAL!"
"COOL!" SAID THE HIPPO.
"LET'S PUT ON A ZOOZICAL!"

Suddenly everyone wants to get into the act. Bunnies sing "If you're hoppy and you know it...," those be-quilled hoofers break into "Oh, my darling Porcupine!" and the giraffes break into "It's a tall world after all...." Others animals shine with their own talents--monkey become tumblers and flamingos become flying aerial artists, and soon the humans return to the zoo to watch the show, with the "Zoo Hokey Pokey" as the grand finale.

WHEN TIGERS DON'T BITE,
WHEN THE DOLDRUMS TAKE FLIGHT,
ON A MAGICAL MUSICAL ZOOZICAL NIGHT.

The best-selling duo of Judy Sierra and Marc Brown (Wild About Books (Irma S and James H Black Honor for Excellence in Children's Literature (Awards)) bring back their critter crew in their latest collaboration, ZooZical (Knopf, 2011), one which sets favorite children's songs to a zoo theme and gets everyone out of their own doldrums. Sierra's simple but catchy rhymes and Marc Brown's cheery critters are as much fun as ever in this antidote to the drearies.

As Publisher's Weekly points out, "Teens have Glee, tweens have High School Musical, and with this snappy follow-up to Wild About Books younger siblings can delight in the joy of putting on a show."

Bwaa-Ha-Ha! Halloween Howlers by Michael Tertelbaum

KNOCK KNOCK!
WHO'S THERE?
HOWL.
HOWL WHO?
HOWL I KEEP FROM LAUGHING IF YOU KEEP TELLING THESE DUMB JOKES?

Some grownups love knock-knocks and some hate 'em, but most kids old enough to "get" a pun adore the genre. And thankfully for this Halloween, here comes a brand-new collection, Halloween Howlers: Frightfully Funny Knock-Knock Jokes (Harper Festival, 2011), written by Michael Tertelbaum and illustrated in jolly cartoon style by Jannie Ho.

Tertelbaum provides a frame story for this collection, recapitulating a trick-or-treat expedition by a couple of kids, beginning with the "Home Scene" as the kids get into their gear and the "Street Scene" as they mix and mingle with the other costumed kids:

KNOCK KNOCK!
WHO'S THERE?
ZOMBIE.
ZOMBIE WHO?
ZOMBIE AFRAID! IT'S JUST A COSTUME!

Their venture soon takes them to the local haunted house, where the setting is bury scary:

KNOCK KNOCK!
WHO'S THERE?
DISPLACE.
DISPLACE WHO?
DISPLACE IS A WRECK!

The two trick-or-treaters go on to make the party scene, where they play the usual games and eat the usual treats, and finally loaded down with their boo-tiful boo-ty, they think about calling it a night.

KNOCK KNOCK!
WHO'S THERE?
HORROR!
HORROR WHO?
HORROR YOU GONNA CARRY ALL THAT CANDY?

There are plenty of moaning groaners and horrible howlers herein, and creepy critters and more jokes hide under the flaps which are well integrated into the illustrations, making this one an outing that will leave readers saying "Fangs for the funnies, folks," and hoping for more Halloween har-hars in their futures.

KNOCK KNOCK!
WHO'S THERE?
BOO!
BOO WHO?
DON'T CRY! HALLOWEEN WILL COME AGAIN NEXT YEAR!

Sing Along with Spooks: On the Thirteenth Night of Halloween by Guy Vasilovich

ON THE FIRST NIGHT OF HALLOWEEN

MY MOMMY GAVE TO ME

A BRIGHT SHINY SKELETON KEY.

And what does that magical skeleton key open for our little pigtailed gal during those last days of the scary season? Well, all sorts of those costumed critters and and creepy spook house icons to be expected on Halloween night.

There are three "baseball bats," the flying kind, of course, dressed in baseball caps, icky eyeballs, singing skulls and caroling corpses, werewolves wailin', witches witching, and to finish off the countdown of this creepy crew, thirteen thirsty vampires, all ready to par-TAY on the big day. This alliterative counting book comes all ready for a sing-along to the well-known tune to "The 12 Days of Christmas," so most kids can jump right in on the performance.

In his new The 13 Nights of Halloween, veteran animator Guy Vasilovich's quirky illustrations have a bit of the feeling of Gus Grimly's drawings in Neil Gaiman's The Dangerous Alphabet, a good pairing with this new book, both of them just spooky enough for a little frightful fun for those final days of October.

Ms. Jenkins Is Missing: Substitute Creacher by Chris Gall

ON A WINDY DAY IN LATE OCTOBER, MS. JENKINS' CLASS ARRIVED TO FIND A SURPRISE AT SCHOOL.

"SUBSTITUTE TEACHER TODAY!!" ANNOUNCED PEYTON.

The class is jubilant. The worst-behaved kids in class prep their provisions for the unfortunate sub. Paper airplanes are prepared; soppy snacks are pulled out of backpacks; and a box of tacks for the unfortunate teacher's seat is readied. Even the well-behaved students sit back and get ready to watch the show. And then....

"GOOD MORNING TO YOU! MY NAME IS MR. CREACHER.
MS. JENKINS HAS ASKED ME TO STEP IN AS TEACHER.

SHE CLAIMS THIS CLASS HAS GROWN OUT OF HAND."

Behind sweet Ms. Jenkins' desk is a creature of a teacher all right--green and scaly, with one giant cyclopsian eye in the center of his so-called face and a tentacled body stuffed into a sensible brown suit. And lest little Luke should plan to persist in his tack caper, Mr. Creacher's ugly head does a 180 to show off the array of bulging eyeballs in its backside.

This petrifying pedagogue wastes no time in launching into his own string of cautionary tales of misbehaving kids who thought they could game the system. There was Sarah, for example, whose sloppy desk grew so overstuffed that the subsequent explosion blew her away. Undeterred by Mr. Creacher's tales. though, Gavin and Amanda continue passing notes and pulling pranks right under his eye, so Creacher begins his grimmest story yet:

"AT LAST THERE WAS CHRIS, A MISCHIEVOUS SORT.
WITH A FONDNESS FOR THIEVING, I'M AFRAID TO REPORT.

BUT THEN HE STOLE CANDY FROM A MAGICAL GNOME.
NOW THE TRICK WAS ON CHRIS. HE COULD NEVER GO HOME."

"WHY?" WHISPERED PEYTON.

"'TILL HE REPAID HIS DEBT A CREACHER HE WOULD BE.
AND BY NOW YOU SHOULD NOTE, THAT MONSTER IS ME."

Not since Miss Viola Swamp reported for sub duty in Harry Allard's and James Marshall's classic, Miss Nelson Is Missing!, has a good class gone bad got its attitude adjusted with so many laughs along the way as in Chris Gall's comic tale for the upcoming scary season, Substitute Creacher (Little Brown, 2011).

In clever rhyming text and appropriately comic illustrations, this bunch of elementary miscreants get the substitute teacher they deserve with plenty of fun along the way. In the words of Booklist's critic, who gave the book a hard-to-earn starred review, this one is "a delicious little shocker of a picture book that ought to whip... crowd[s] of youngsters into a shrieking, laughing frenzy."

Twister Time: Otis and the Tornado by Loren Long

LIFE WAS CALM ON THE FARM WHERE THE FRIENDLY LITTLE TRACTOR NAMED OTIS LIVED.

IT WAS SUMMER. THE SUN SHINED BRIGHT, THE BIRDS CHIRPED, AND AFTER ALL THE WORK WAS DONE, OTIS AND HIS FRIEND THE LITTLE CALF LIKED TO PLAY.

It is a pastoral paradise for Otis. He loves to do his daily work, and when quitting time on the farm comes around each afternoon, he and his friend chase each other around the meadow to the sound of Otis' cozy putt, puffety chuff. And when the two tire of play, they just sit quietly under a shady tree on the hillside overlooking Mud Pond. Little Calf is his best friend, but Otis is friends with all the farm animals and everyone gets along happily.

All except for one--the huge bull over the hill.

THE BULL WAS NOBODY'S FRIEND.

HE WAS KEPT IN A PEN IN A PASTURE ALL BY HIMSELF.

Snorting and snarling and trampling the field daisies beneath his feet, the bull is the bully of the farm, and none of the animals even venture near his pen. Even gentle Otis' friendly gestures are met with flared nostrils and a riveting roar, so frightful that even the gregarious Otis decides to give him a wide berth.

Then one day dark clouds roll in from the west, obscuring the summer sun, and Otis knows something is very wrong.

THERE WAS SOMETHING DIFFERENT ABOUT THE FARM THAT OTIS COULD FEEL IN HIS PIPES.

IT WAS COMPLETELY STILL. THE ONLY SOUND OTIS HEARD
WAS THE FARMER SHOUTING, "IT'S A TORNADO! IT'S COMING FAST! GET DOWN IN THE CELLAR!"

There's no time for the farmer's family to get the livestock to safety, but Otis knows just what to do. Quickly he unlatches the pasture gate and herds all his friends, even the geese, over the hill, past Mud Pond, and down under the banks of Mud Creek, the lowest part of the whole farm where they can be safe. Otis chuffs a sign of relief. Everyone is saved.

But, no! Otis hears a plaintive roar. It's the bull, still locked in his pen right out in the open, and even his strength can't break that sturdy gate. Otis knows that he is the only one who can help, the only one with the power to free the bull to find shelter with the rest of the animals.

It's a cliffhanger as Otis races through the approaching storm, flattens the gate with his powerful reverse gear, and frees his former foe.

OTIS SHOOK HIMSELF, GAVE THE BULL A FRIENDLY CHUFF, AND PEELED OUT.

THE TORNADO ROARED LIKE A FREIGHT TRAIN. OTIS AND THE BULL DIVED FOR COVER INTO MUD CREEK.

THE TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN, NARROWLY MISSING THEM ALL.

It's Otis the hero once more in Loren Long's latest tractor tale, Otis and the Tornado (Philomel, 2011). As in his 2009 best-seller, Otis, his text and retro-style illustrations evoke the nostalgic mood of such anthropomorphic mechanical heroes as Hardie Gramatky's Little Toot and Virginia Lee Burton's Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, proving that this cozy, comforting story with all its stormy suspense has the right stuff to reassure modern kids that the powers that be are there to take care of things when the going gets rough. The evergreen story of the machine imbued with the virtues of the human heart--empathy and courage--is still a good one to hear, then and now.

For Little Spooks: Spooky Boo-A Halloween Adventure by Lily Karr

WELCOME TO OUR HAPPY HAUNTED HOUSE.

WON'T YOU COME INSIDE?

WE WERE WAITING FOR YOU!

Even the youngest baby spooks will get to experience the fun of visiting a haunted house on Halloween in Lily Karr's new Spooky Boo! A Halloween Adventure (Scholastic, 2011).

Just inside the Spooky Boo house are skinny skeletons, who invite the visiting reader to look in their mirror, where they can see themselves tall and skinny, too! The trick mirrors embedded in the sturdy board pages also allow the viewers to see themselves as if they were wrapped as mummies and as green-faced monsters. There are Halloween critters behind each lift-the-flap door, window, and cupboard, and when the lights go out, there's some icky goo all stuck up in werewolf fur for a touch-and-feel thrill.

It's an armchair excursion through the neighborhood haunted house, with just enough spooky touches to make this little book a Halloween adventure for the smallest little would-be spook!

Let's Make a Record!: 10 Little Pumpkins by Stacy Peterson

10 LITTLE PUMPKINS, SITTING ON A GATE.

"OH, MY!" SAID ONE. "IT'S GETTING LATE!"

It's the familiar nursery counting rhyme/song, expanded to a countdown from ten to none, in bouncy rhyme, with jolly illustrations by Stacy Peterson. But Record a Story: Ten Little Pumpkins (Publications International Kids, 2011) offers one twist that has appeal for grandparents, favorite aunts and uncles, or anyone who can't always be there to read this popular preschool concept book to a small child. Press the purple button, and voila', you can record your own performance of the story, done as a rhythmic verse or, if you are a daring diva, as a song to the familiar tune.

Instructions are played back to start off, and each page can be re-recorded until the performing artist is satisfied with the product. The recording can be also be locked in so it cannot be accidentally erased by little fingers. It sounds like a lot of fun, even for precocious readers who may want to record their own reading of the famous Halloween tale of ten pumpkins on their big night out.

Sha-ZOOM! The Astonishing Secret of Awesome Man by Michael Chabon

HI! I'M A SUPERHERO. MY NAME IS AWESOME MAN.

I CAN FLY AS HIGH AS A SATELLITE.
AND STRAIGHT AS AN ARROW.

OR THROUGH THE TIME BARRIER AND NOT GET DIZZY. OR FEEL NAUSEOUS. OR SMASH INTO THINGS.

EXCEPT ON PURPOSE.

What kid doesn't have a secret alter-ego, someone with awesome powers? When crunch time comes in real life, this kid has the aptly-named Awesome Man (because "I'm just basically awesome," he explains modestly) and a wonderdog sidekick, the Awesome Moskowitz. He has a megacool outfit, buff and brash in his black unitard, red-as-a-rocket swoopy cape and boots, and "a stylin' A" on his chest, his hair in a patent-leather pompadour with an emphatic cowlick. And he can shoot positron rays from his eyes.

CAN I TELL YOU SOMETHING? GIANT KILLER ROBOT JUST HATE THAT STUFF.

BUT MAYBE THE MOST AWESOME THING ABOUT ME IS MY SECRET IDENTITY. LISTEN CLOSELY, BECAUSE I'M GOING TO WHISPER IT. REAL LOW.

IN REAL LIFE I'M--UH, OH!

It's not easy being a superhero. There's not much time for self-revelation, because Professor Von Evil and the Flaming Eyeball are at it again and must be defeated by our indefatigable caped crusader, even if it takes a trip to the interior of the sun, where the Eyeball feels right at home. Then there's the Antimatter Slimebot to quash with a SKA-RUNCH in our hero's Ginormous Awesome Power Grip! It's a hard role to live up to. Even Awesome Man needs some down time!

THEN I MAKE A QUICK GETAWAY BACK TO THE FORTRESS OF AWESOME.

MY SECRET IDENTITY MOM IS WAITING FOR ME WITH A PLATE OF PLAIN OLD CHEDDAR CHEESE AND CRACKERS AND CHOCOLATE MILK. I'M SO HAPPY TO SEE HER, I THROW A POWER GRIP AROUND HER, TOO.

SHE SAYS IT FEELS AWESOME.

With Jake Parker on his team, providing the slick comic book-style cartoon illustrations, Michael Chabon's The Astonishing Secret of Awesome Man (Balzer & Bray, 2011) offers a kind of sublimation here, giving kids a story which plays out their fantasies of awesome power and awesome self control. Awesome Man is on top of things at all times, and who wouldn't want that power? But Chabon brings it home, as we see the little Clark Kent inside this superhero, repairing to his cozy bedroom inside his picket-fenced home to recharge his powers.

School Library Journal gives this one a super-duper thumbs up: “The depiction of a showdown between Awesome Man and his nemesis—the Flaming Eyeball—is priceless. Readers may notice that there’s a moral peeking out from Awesome Man’s cape, but they’ll still grab this story in their ‘ginormous Awesome Power Grip’ and not let go.” (starred review)