Demolition Derby:Monster Trucks by Anika Dean

ON A SPOOKY SPEEDWAY MONSTER TRUCKS GROAN!

The assembled mummies, witches and assorted spirits assemble in the stands, ready for the race!

FRANKENTRUCK IS FIRST TO ARRIVE.

WITH A JUMP FROM HIS CABLE, HE'S ALIVE!

Soon the rest of the exotic entries appear at the starting line--Werewolf Truck growls up to the line; VampireTruck alights with a green glow; and then the shrouded GhostTruck floats down into his position with a rattle of his drive chain. Of course, VampireTruck has to siphon some fuel from his competitors' tanks before he's ready to roll. At last they're ready to rev, roarin' to race!

And they're off, each one cruisin' for a bruisin'. (They're monsters, after all!) It looks like the, er, spirited fans are in for a monster demolition crash-and-mashup derby, as the monster trucks clang and bang their way around the track. It's not a pretty sight, which is just what the spectators prefer. The crowd roars.

And then there's an unexpected late entry.

OUT OF THE PIT...
WITH A PUTT AND A TOOT,

COMES A LITTLE BLUE BUS
LOOKING PERKY AND CUTE.

Can a indisputably cutesy VW bus beat the big boys to the finish line? Does she have a few frightful tricks up her tailpipe to beat out the big, bad boys on the way to the checkered flag?

Anika Dean's newest, Monster Trucks (Harper, 2016), has just the right dynamic duo--motor racing and monsters--to please young gearheads and Halloween horror fans alike. Her rhyming couplets add plenty of horsepower to the narration, and artist Nate Wragg's surrealistic cartoon-infused illustrations add the spooky-styled atmosphere to please motorhead and monster fans alike during the scary season soon to come. “Nate Wragg creates some wicked vehicular hybrids...and eerie green skies and yellow moonlight set the stage for full-throttle Halloween fun.” says Publishers Weekly's starred review.