Tucker's Spooky Halloween by Leslie Mcguirk
 A sweet little board book, Tucker's Spooky Halloween (Candlewick) is the story of a small dog who's determined to dress as something scary for Halloween – even though his owner has other ideas. The flat drawings and simplistic stories of the Tucker series don't break any new ground, but the littlest readers will love watching the silly puppy wrap himself in toilet paper, in an attempt to look like a mummy. Ages: Baby to Preschool.
Aaaarrgghh! Spider! (Paperback Edition) by Lydia Monks
 Aaaarrgghh! Spider! (Houghton Mifflin) reveals that those icky web-slinging Halloween icons just want to be loved. Kids both bug-obsessed and arachnophobic will delight in this story (new in paperback) about a spider who aspires to be a family pet – but when he shows up in the family's bathtub (to demonstrate how clean he is) or catches a fly at the dinner table (to show that he can feed himself), the family screams "Aaaarrgghh! Spider!" and kicks him to the curb. Eventually, the spider's artistic webs win the family over – but their squeamishness is here to stay. Cartoonish illustrations and friendly repetition make this a good choice for small readers. Ages: 4-8.
Sarah's Little Ghosts by Thierry Robberecht, illustrated by Philippe Goossens
 An unusual (and not at all scary) ghost story, Sarah's Little Ghosts (Clarion) is an enchantingly illustrated morality tale. The book begins with a little girl breaking her mother's necklace, then lying about it – but when she lies, a little ghost pops out of her mouth. The ghost is cute but mischievous, and Sarah's continual cover-ups result in more and more ghosts popping out, until she eventually makes them disappear – by telling the truth. If Sarah's family looks vaguely European, it's because the authors are from Belgium. Their earth-toned color palate is a warm change from the primary colors and pastels of many American children's books. Ages: 4-8.
The Crow: A Not-So-Scary Story by Alison Paul
 Though The Crow (Houghton Mifflin) is subtitled A Not-So-Scary Story, this kid-friendly riff on Poe's "The Raven" is decidedly creepy – and may be too intense for its intended audience. A little boy spies on a crow outside his window and imagines the bird to be all kinds of foreboding figures: a robber, a pirate, a diabolical king. Finally, the boy gets up the courage to shoo the visitor away – and realizes the crow was probably just as scared of him as he was of it. The collaged illustrations are striking and inventive, but damn, that crow looks menacing. And the text is a little obtuse; you may end up skipping rhymes like "He starts summoning stars/from past Pluto and Mars/and wrestles them onto his robe" and saying "See? The crow looks like a wizard!" Ages: 4-8.
The Mysteries of Harris Burdick: Portfolio Edition by Chris Van Allsburg  A modern-day classic, The Mysteries of Harris Burdick (Houghton Mifflin) is a perfectly eerie Halloween read. The book is a collection of fourteen one-line stories, each accompanied by a gorgeous black-and-white illustration in Chris Van Allsburg's signature style. The stories are unconnected; every one is a self-contained, unsolvable mystery. For example, here's the full text of a story called Mr. Linden's Library: "He had warned her about the book. Now it was too late." The picture shows a sleeping girl beside an open book, its pages just beginning to sprout green tendrils. Older children will love speculating on the open-ended possibilities (What's happening to the book? Who is Mr. Linden, anyway?) and they'll get a thrill from the slightly sinister, Twilight Zone feel of it all. The newly re-released Portfolio Edition contains oversized prints of every mystery – perfect for display, or for endless pondering. Ages: 6 and up.
The Halloween DVD Round-Up
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