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THE HALLOWEEN PUMPKIN SMASHER by Judith St. George

THE HALLOWEEN PUMPKIN SMASHER

By

Pub Date: Oct. 4th, 1978
Publisher: Putnam

The Meanest Man on Grove Street,"" ""The Maple Street Gang,"" and the inept driver of ""The Blue and Gold Model T Ford Touring Car"": the titles of St. George's first three chapters are also a roster of those whom narrator Mary Grace Ports and her imaginary friend Nellie suspect of smashing several of the neighbors' jack-o'lanterns. But heart-pounding investigation--in a spooky deserted house, a barn (where the tough Maple St. boys are spied smoking cornsilk), and Mr. Simpson's speeding car--acquits all the suspects; and in chapter four, slyly called ""The Pumpkin Smasher,"" Mary Grace bravely climbs to her own tree house and finds the real culprit, a raccoon. The mystery is never strong or scary enough for a rousing Halloween story hour, and the device of the imaginary playmate adds only a functional utility; but Margot Tomes brings out the best in St. George's agreeable, sprightly style, and together they provide a satisfactory mix of droll humor and old-fashioned Halloween atmosphere.