The book is brilliant in its confirmation of an essential truth of childhood, but that doesn’t make it any less unsettling,...
A lad is tormented by existential boojums every night in this comically eerie variation on a common bedtime trope.
No sooner do his parents bid him sweet dreams and switch off the light than the ceiling becomes “a black hole…black and infinite”—through which float small creatures of diverse shape who stand around his bed and stare at him fixedly. At last, the arrival of a slit-eyed blot that reaches out with twiggy tentacles and whispers, “I am what there is before there is anything there,” sends him pelting toward the parental bedroom. “It’s just your imagination,” soothes his mother, oblivious to the creature that floats into view on the last page. Liniers depicts the grown-ups from neck down to create a child-level perspective, but his dot-eyed, angst-ridden protagonist could be any age. Heavily crosshatched shadows and nighttime visitors with mildly grotesque features add appropriately spooky notes. Snuggling between parents (“But this is the last time”) banishes those boogeymen, right? Wrong.
The book is brilliant in its confirmation of an essential truth of childhood, but that doesn’t make it any less unsettling, though possibly more for adult readers than for children . (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-55498-385-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Groundwood
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A warmly reassuring tale for those who prefer their scares on the lighter side.
Bash is back for another session of Scare School.
This second series installment sees the young ghost tasked with completing a group project that requires him to learn about a terrifying place in or around the school. Bash is assigned to work with Wes, a shy but gentle and artistic werewolf, and Vicky and Vlad, two prickly vampires. The group decides to research the spooky forest. Bash is nervous about exploring the forest; plus, he must contend with teammates who don’t pull their own weight (Vicky and Vlad goof off in the gym while Bash and Wes wait for them in the library). But Bash eventually finds a way to confront his fears as he and the others complete their project. Despite the premise, this tale’s more sweet than spooky. Endearing Bash frets about new experiences but proves eager to jump in. He has a delightful, supportive friend in his roommate, Itsy the spider; her tiny knitted socks are an especially charming detail. The characters’ realization that fear can sometimes hold us back will resonate with readers. The plot moves at a steady clip, while stick figure illustrations and comic panels break up the text, giving the tale an appealing, Wimpy Kid–esque vibe.
A warmly reassuring tale for those who prefer their scares on the lighter side. (Fiction. 6-8)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781665922128
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Ghostly fun for the gentlest of readers.
Newly arrived with his parents in seemingly quiet Kersville, an anxious young Latine boy discovers that his new house isn’t quite as normal and boring as he’d hoped.
This graphic reboot of the opener to a proliferating series of early chapter books dispenses with most of the explication but sticks closely to the original’s plotline and dialogue. Hardly has Andres Miedoso—who shares a name with the tale’s author—had time to unpack before a flurry of weird noises and events sends him hurrying over to consult with his grinning, brown-skinned new neighbor, who earlier handed him a business card provocatively labeled “Desmond Cole, Ghost Patrol.” Yes, there’s a ghost in Andres’ house—a jagged, seething cloud of ectoplasm that makes a terrifying first impression…but then gleefully chows down on some unfortunate lasagna and, after paying the gastric price, admits to being a sad, lonely specter searching for a permanent home. By the end, all three have bonded, Andres has a card of his own, and the stage is set for further supernatural exploits. The illustrations are closely based on those in the book’s antecedent, with the addition of bright colors that nicely show off Desmond’s big personality—and the massive green sliming Andres gets when the ghost upchucks all over him. The chills are, if anything, even lighter than the original’s, and the fresh format may draw some new fans.
Ghostly fun for the gentlest of readers. (Graphic ghost fantasy. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 27, 2026
ISBN: 9798347100811
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
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