A New Way to Say Boo: Boo! Haiku by Deanna Caswell

HERE'S A SPOOKY HAIKU
JUST OR YOU:

BROOM AGAINST THE MOON.

POINTED HAT AT THE WINDOW.

HAIR-RAISING CACKLE.

CAN YOU GUESS WHO... FROM THIS HAIKU?

Ho-Hum Halloween? Same old humdrum happenings? Uninspired by the usual suspects in your scary season tales?

Not in this clever new way to say BOO! Just see what a haiku or two can do for that hoary old holiday!

With Halloween poetry boasting little more than variations on "Five Little Pumpkins," poet Deanna Caswell and popular illustrator Bob Shea combine their talents in this never-seen-for-Halloween collection of haiku poems, Boo! Haiku (Abrams Appleseed, 2016). Never fear, all of the usual crew of characters has their own haiku--your cackling witch, black bat, grinning Jack, and the rest, but in a haiku, it's way to say BOO that feels really new. Woohoo!

Kids will easily guess WHO each haiku describes: Eight legs in a web? Check! A straw man standing guard? Check!

AN ORANGE PORCH PAL.

SCOOP FOR PIE AND ROAST ITS SEEDS.

A CANDLE GRIN.

The haiku form lends itself well to these poetic riddles, and youngsters will joyfully recognize their old Halloween friends out for some fun, especially when the real stars of the show knock on each door, seeking treats. Artist Bob Shea is the master of the simple, iconic comic illustration style, setting vivid shapes against sharp contrasting backgrounds. Each right-hand page poses the haiku question, requiring a suspenseful turn of the page for the treat of the right answer, and the visual fun continues right down to his jolly repeat pattern of jack-o' lanterns, candy corn, and little ghosts on the book's endpapers.

Rollicking poetic riddles, evocative descriptions of scary characters, all set against Shea's vigorous and effervescent illustrations, give the old theme a brand-new look. Happy Haiku Halloween To You!