Reviews
There are so many incredible books available at the moment that it is impossible to read them all, no matter how hard I try! Here are my thoughts about some of the books I have read and how I think they could be used in school as well as Q and A sessions with authors and illustrators.
The Day Death Died/ The Last Day of October
Barrington Stoke are renowned for publishing highly engaging, accessible reads and these two are no exception! Hallowe’en might have been and gone this year, but these are scary stories to be enjoyed all year round.
Tanya Landman’s books are always enjoyable and in ‘The Day Death Died’, she has written an extremely engaging quick read which offers plenty to think about. When his mother becomes ill, Jack is devastated when Death comes to take her away and decides to fight back. Jack manages to get rid of Death, but then is horrified by the consequences.
In such a short book, Tanya Landman manages to create a very atmospheric and compelling story through really carefully chosen language and short, powerful sentences. Highly illustrated, it is a a story sure to provoke both thought and discussion, capture the interest of even the most reluctant reader and hopefully, lead them to other books!
‘The Last Day of October’ is a real spine-tingler of a tale! One Hallowe’en, three friends, Cody, Sean and Duri, decide to locate the ruins of the haunted McBride House, the scene of a tragic accident, deep in the woods. Finding the house turns out to be more terrifying than they could ever have imagined…
Brilliantly constructed, ‘The Last Day of October’ is a completely captivating, riveting read with a suitable haunting ending that will leave readers gasping! Although a relatively short story, each of the friends has a distinct personality. Cody is behind the plan to visit the McBride House, determined to lead his friends on this adventure; Sean is far more cautious, but unwilling to let the others down; Duri is tempted by the idea of sharing their findings with others. Their excitement about their spooky adventure is contagious and the atmospheric writing builds tension as they head off into the woods on their quest and the story reaches its chilling conclusion.
The perfect spooky story!
The Day Death Died
Tanya Landman, illustrated by Cinthya Alvarez
Barrington Stoke ISBN: 978-0008764890
The Last Day of October
Phil Hickes, illustrated by Oriol Vidal
Barrington Stoke ISBN: 978-0008748517
Giggling Ghosts!
In a busy town, when it’s quiet after dark, there is a house full of ghosts who are ready to scare! Sneaking and spinning, gliding and booooing are all great fun, but their favourite thing to do is giggle.
Perfect for sharing, ‘Giggling Ghosts’ offers a fun, interactive story time. Bouncy rhyming text encourages children to join in with the little ghosts as they have a great time stretching, tiptoeing, jiggling and wiggling, encouraging everyone to be active and interpret the ghosts movements in their own way.
Although obviously full of ghosts, this is not really a spooky story making it just right for sharing with younger children at Hallowe’en time. The illustrations are lovely, showing ‘cute’ little ghosts surrounded by sparkling dust as they glide around and even the pictures showing them peeking round gravestones are not frightening! Children are sure to quickly identify their own favourite amongst the ghosts and follow its adventure from picture to picture as each seems to have its own personality. They might enjoy thinking up names for each one!
Sweet, gentle and fun, this lovely book would make a wonderful story time and could easily be used to inspire lots of craft activities!
Giggling Ghosts!
Fiz Osborne, illustrated by Tim Budgen
Simon and Schuster ISBN: 978-1398535084
How to Scare a Mouse and Bear
It’s Hallowe’en and Bear is determined to give Mouse a fright. However, no matter what he tried Mouse sees through costume after costume until a mysterious monster knocks on the door…
Bear and Mouse are back for their fourth adventure in ‘How to Scare a Mouse and Bear’ and it is every bit as adorable as the previous titles!
Illustrations start the story before the text kicks in as Mouse is gathering pumpkins and squashes for carving into Hallowe’en lanterns, setting the scene for the spooky season. As Bear announces his intention to scare his friend, Mouse, feisty as ever, declares that he won’t be frightened. Challenge made, Bear appears in a series of Hallowe’en costumes, each mocked by Mouse. The text follows the usual Mouse and Bear book pattern, making it reassuringly familiar and perfect for children to join in with, predicting the rhyming words whilst laughing at Mouse’s responses. Children may well enjoy thinking of other costumes which Bear might try and creating their own responses from Mouse as he appears in them! Readers will delight in the moment where Mouse realises the monster at the door is not Bear and the fact that their scare leaves these two pals cuddled together behind a chair, united once more!
The illustrations are wonderful- big and bold against single colour backgrounds, perfect for little children to focus on and enjoy. The range of expressions on Mouse and Bear’s faces as the story progresses is impressive, offering plenty of moments to pause and wonder how each is feeling at different parts of the story. I have said this before, but I think children would love to make simple glove puppets of Mouse and Bear and use them to re-enact this or any of the stories or to create their own.
I hope there are many more Mouse and Bear books to come!
How to Scare a Mouse and Bear
Ross Collins
Nosy Crow ISBN: 978-1805135012
You can read my review of ‘We Disagree About this Tree’ here.
Spooky Poems Aloud
One grain of gritty midnight,
One iota of dust.
The figure spoke inside my head,
‘It’s time to join us.’
Just in time for the spooky season comes this suitably scary collection of poems from Joseph Coelho. ‘Spooky Poems Aloud’ is the fourth book in the ‘Poetry to Perform’ series and offers a perfectly pitched selection of poems to add some shivers to Hallowe’en!
Each of these twenty-five poems just cries out to be performed, encouraging children to explore the use of dynamics, tone and gesture to support their presentation, having great fun in the process. ‘On a Cold Whispering Night’ (which the quote above comes from) is perfect for whispering in spooky tones whilst the onomatopoeic refrain of ‘The Skeleton in the Basement’ might need a louder, sharper voice!
An introduction is added for each poem, giving suggestions not only for performance, but also tips for creating poems along the lines of those given. ‘It Woke Me From a Dream’ uses a repeating line to create a creepy atmosphere and the note suggest creating a poem in the same style. ‘The Grey Lady’ is a poem which uses the senses to describe something scary- another fun thing to try!
The book introduces children to a wonderful range of poetic styles and techniques- pantoum, villanelle, regna, tanka- enriching the reader’s experience and understanding of the wonders of poetry, making this an invaluable resource for teachers and interested adults as well as children. Full of appealing illustrations, ‘Spooky Poems Aloud’ is sure to encourage a love of poetry in everyone!
Spooky Poems Aloud
Joseph Coelho, illustrated by Daniel Gray-Barnett
Wide Eyed ISBN: 978-0711287396
You can read my review of ‘Courage Out Loud’ here.
