Children's Halloween Notes

An array of books sets the tone for a night of thrills and chills, bringing back characters—no, not from the dead—from previous titles. You Read to Me, I'll Read to You: Very Short Scary Tales to Read Together by Mary Ann Hoberman, illus. by Michael Emberley, gathers witches, dinosaurs, goblins and ghouls. (Little, Brown/Tingley, $16.99 32p ages 3-6 ISBN 978-0-316-01733-6; Sept.)

Kate DiCamillo's porcine heroine returns in Mercy Watson: Princess in Disguise, illus. by Chris Van Dusen. Dressed in regal attire, Mercy inadvertently creates a Halloween parade when she chases her neighbor's cat, General Washington, up a tree. Minor calamities ensue, but once again all's well that ends with buttered toast. (Candlewick, $12.99 80p ages 6-8 ISBN 978-0-7636-3014-0; Sept.)

The ursine stars of The Three Bears' Christmas are back in The Three Bears' Halloween by Kathy Duval, illus. by Paul Meisel. The three bears help themselves to some treats in a seemingly empty house, while a certain golden-tressed fairy-tale heroine supplies the tricks. (Holiday, $16.95 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 978-0-8234-2032-2; Sept.)

Anxieties get aired in Happy Halloween, Stinky Face by Lisa McCourt, illus. by Cyd Moore, which brings back the titular worrywart and his comforting mother, who can trouble-shoot just about anything: “What if the candle in our jack-o'-lantern blows out? What if we accidentally walk into some big sticky cobwebs and get all tangled up?” (Scholastic/Cartwheel, $15.99 32p ages 4-8 ISBN 978-0-439-77977-7; Sept.)

Witches' Night Before Halloween by Lesley Pratt Bannatyne, illus. by Adrian Tans, riffs on Clement Clarke Moore's Christmas classic as visions of “moist, creeping things” replace sugarplums as dream fodder. (Pelican, $15.95 32p ages 5-8 ISBN 978-1-58980-485-2; Sept.)

Halloween board books give youngest readers their first taste of pumpkins, candy and costumes. Bob Staake (The Red Lemon) poses a riddle in This Is Not a Pumpkin. A gorgeous gourd sits against a white backdrop, but Staake insists that no matter what—“You can turn it sideways, you can even turn it upside down”—the object is not a pumpkin. Why? “Pumpkins don't smile or frown”—prepare for the reveal—“jack-o'-lanterns do.” (Little Simon, $6.99 32p ages 1-4 ISBN 978-1-4169-3353-3; Sept.)

Leslie McGuirk's strong-willed white pup wants a scary costume in Tucker's Spooky Halloween, but his owner saddles with him cutesy get-ups, outfitting him as a bumblebee, a hot dog and a cowboy. (Candlewick, $7.99 28p ages 2-5 ISBN 978-0-7636-3181-9; Sept.)

The latest Biscuit book by Alyssa Satin Capucilli, Biscuit's Pet & Play Halloween, illus. by Pat Schories, takes a tactile approach. Readers can feel the black “fur” of a cat costume and a scarecrow's rough appendages, among other sensations. (HarperCollins, $6.99 12p ages 2-6 ISBN 978-0-06-112833-2; Sept.)

In The Witches' Ball by David Steinberg, illus. by Liz Conrad, rhyming text (“Big witches, small witches, dropping like rain/In from Chicago, Morocco, and Spain”) and mixed-media spreads depict a cheerful coven dancing, whacking piñatas and feasting by the light of the moon. (Penguin/PSS!, $6.99 10p ages 3-6 ISBN 978-0-8431-2494-1; Sept.)

In celebration of the book's 35th anniversary, Knopf is reissuing The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury, illus. by Joseph Mugnaini, about eight trick-or-treaters who travel through time to find a missing friend. Both Bradbury's writing and Mugnaini's pen-and-ink illustrations are as haunting today as when they first appeared in 1972. (Knopf, $15.99 160p ages 10-up ISBN 978-0-394-82409-3; Sept.)

The activity kit Spooky Fun by Dominic Guard, illus. by Colin Howard, furnishes riddles and games—and a host of accessories. “Dragon's Blood,” 3D glasses, glow-in-the-dark creepy-crawlies and green goop are among the accoutrements included with the book. (Barron's, $19.99 ages 5-9 ISBN 978-0-7641-9342-2; Sept.)

Tell Me a Scary Story... but Not Too ScaryCarl Reiner, illus. by James Bennett. Little, Brown/Preiss, $7.99 ISBN 978-0-316-00260-8. Of Reiner's story about a mysterious neighbor, PW wrote, “Bennett doesn't pull any punches in his creepy images,” and concluded, “Gross-out enthusiasts will probably lap this up.” Audio CD included. Ages 3-6. (Sept.)

Pumpkin Heads! Wendell Minor. Scholastic, $6.99 ISBN 978-0-590-52138-3. Minor pairs straightforward text with sumptuous paintings that depict carved pumpkins—grinning, scowling and dressed as witches, cats, cowboys and more, against blustery fall backdrops. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)