Freaky Freebies: Printable Activities from 'Vunce Upon a Time'

Aaron Burgess — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 15:04:00 GMT

Leave it to Olive, the Other Reindeer creator J.otto Seibold to conjure up a blood-sucking undead character we'd actually want to cuddle up with this Halloween. Okay, that's not entirely true about the blood-sucking stuff: See, Dagmar the vampire is actually a shy, people-fearing vegetarian, and his real weakness isn't A, B or O-positive; it's more like Almond Joy, Butterfinger and Oompas. In Seibold and Siobhan Vivian's delightful new book, Vunce Upon a Time, the candy-crazed cutie has to overcome his fear of the living to score big as a trick-or-treater.

Chronicle Kids, Vunce Upon a Time's publisher, has rolled out some Halloween-friendly treats of its own to celebrate the book, and we're happy to report that you don't need to make a donation, blood or otherwise, to enjoy 'em. Each is a printable PDF, and when you put everything together you've even got the ingredients for a party.

Check out the "Vunce in a Lifetime Halloween Adventure" site for the full-color experience, or grab the whole lot via the links below. Happy crafting, and a totally premature Happy Halloween to all!

Turn Into a Vampire in 6 Easy Steps

Vampire Jack-O-Lantern Pattern

Face Painting Template

Bat Ear Pattern

Sticker Sheets

Coloring Sheets

Spiderweb Pumpkin Ginger Cupcakes Recipe

Caramel Apples and Roasted Pumpkin Seeds Recipes

Olive, the Other Reindeer Revisited in Pop-Up and Calendar Form

Aaron Burgess — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 20:02:00 GMT

From a purist's perspective, there's really no improving on Vivian Walsh's 1997 book Olive, the Other Reindeer: Cute: Jack Russell Terrier named Olive mishears a Christmas carol, heads to the North Pole to find her calling as the "the other reindeer," confuses Santa's crew in the process, and eventually proves herself a valuable asset to both the team and holiday lore. (The movie is another story.)

Olive, the Other Reindeer: Deluxe Edition ($19.95) brings to life Walsh's story via pop-up versions of J.otto Siebold's wonderful artwork. For the most part, the pop-ups aren't mind-blowers: The simple lift-the-flaps and pull-out tabs don't really add to or take away from the story; they're just sort of... there. The scratch-and-sniff pages (mmm, gingerbread...) and book-closing Santa's-castle pop-up, on the other hand, are truly awesome, and kids will find them worth the price of admission alone.

If you're looking for a way to keep the magic going, Seibold's Olive the Other Reindeer Pop-Up Advent Calendar ($9.95, above) expands on the book's grand finale in just the right ways, with a deluxe pop-up version of Santa's castle and 24 punch-out figures that children can place around it.

droolicious : j.otto seibold

Freaky Freebies: Printable Activities from 'Vunce Upon a Time'

Olive, the Other Reindeer Revisited in Pop-Up and Calendar Form