Mild monster exposure for kids just dipping their toes in creepy.
Following Ghost Attack (2017), a new spooky encounter triggers Alex’s allergies.
White Alex is on the verge of setting a new kickball home-run record. But there’s a new (exceptionally pale) recess monitor that the kids nickname Gloomy Girl, and suddenly Alex can’t stop sneezing—explosions so big they don’t just impede his kickball game, but also bring on massive, sequential humiliations. Field day is coming up, and Alex’s plan to win a trophy with his kickball skills is jeopardized by his allergies. His white cousin Sarah attempts to talk to the monitor to straighten things out only to learn that Gloomy Girl can speak directly into minds and controls an army of rats. The cousins consult The Big Book of Monsters and follow up with internet research (there’s a savvy subplot on how to evaluate online sources), determining that she’s a vampire capable of being outside on cloudy days. But they need to solve the allergy fast—Alex’s parents want to come watch field day, and if his allergist mother sees him sneezing she could pull him from all sports. Lubar’s second in his horror-lite chapter-book series features a likable protagonist whose loopy problem is, though exaggerated, similar enough to real-world ones suffered by many kids to make him easy to connect to. The agreeably zany plot winds its way to a conclusion that even includes reconciliation with a school bully.
Mild monster exposure for kids just dipping their toes in creepy. (Fantasy. 6-9)Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-545-87349-9
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Fiber artists beware! Unnerving artistry and reality TV mix and meld in this fantastic cautionary tale.
Obsession claims an unlikely victim when a young mole gives absolutely everything for a chance at glitz and glory.
Nine-year-old Winona Mole is passionate about crocheting. Her favorite television program is an Is It Cake?–like show called Yarn Is Everything!, in which contestants create realistic replicas of objects through stitch alone. After a trip to a woolen arts museum, Winona sees the mysterious Spirit Hook, rumored to bestow powers “upon those willing to pay the price.” Later, Winona finds a seeming replica of that same crochet hook in her bag. Suddenly, her skills accelerate fantastically. Yet when she gets a chance to compete on Yarn Is Everything!, what starts as a passion turns into something darker. Reynolds walks that thin line between kid-appropriate and chilling with an aplomb worthy of his Twilight Zone influences. Winona’s descent into unhealthy fixation is matched by Brown’s telltale yarn fragments, trailing eerily from objects that should not be yarn-based. Crafters may find it odd that Reynolds opted for crocheting, not the more common knitting, as Winona’s métier. Even so, this lends the usual homey arts an effective creepiness, even as the increasing ridiculousness of the crocheted objects makes it sublimely silly as well.
Fiber artists beware! Unnerving artistry and reality TV mix and meld in this fantastic cautionary tale. (Chapter book. 6-9)Pub Date: July 14, 2026
ISBN: 9781665961141
Page Count: 104
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 4, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2026
Disconcerting and possibly deadly dealings are afoot; certain to charm younger fans of the macabre.
In the latest installment of the delightfully disturbing chapter-book series, the mundane once more takes on supernatural qualities, this time in the form of veggies.
With this follow-up to Troubling Tonsils! (2025), our host, Jasper Rabbit, once more channels Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling. As Jasper narrates, we meet our heroes: fourth graders Thaddeus Badger and Oliver Possum, who love nothing more than eating junk food, particularly the hamburgers at Hurt-A-Burger (a mildly brilliant corporate name on the author’s part). When Oliver’s parents trick the two into a dinner of salads at their favorite fast-food joint, Thaddeus feels betrayed, but Oliver experiences something a little more dire. Soon after, Oliver starts acting strangely, and his parents begin behaving even more oddly. What’s going on? And does it have anything to do with the full moon? Tone is the true star of the show in this series; the mystery unspools thanks to the buildup of unnerving moments. Reynolds combines suspense with a keen ability to artistically frame both sunny innocent sequences and those rich with dark foreboding. Notably, this is no morality tale about eating your vegetables—this tale is fully on the side of its child readers. Brown’s black-and-white images, punctuated with eerie pops of green, heighten both horrifying and comedic moments.
Disconcerting and possibly deadly dealings are afoot; certain to charm younger fans of the macabre. (Chapter book. 6-9)Pub Date: Feb. 3, 2026
ISBN: 9781665961110
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2025
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