Cookie Boo by Ruth Paul was sitting on my desk in the to-be-filed with other reader copies of the picture book persuasion. I saw the shiny Halloween themed cover and knew I had to find what was inside. Due out in July 2020, this Halloween book is going to be a big treat with the little monsters in your life. The rhyming text and the fun, bright illustrations grab you from the first page. Howl along with a gang of cookies out and about on a spooky night as they meet up with witches’ cats, scare up fun with a doggy by the door and scare (and get scared by) one special little monster friend.
There are a few holes in the plot for the adult reader, but if you can get pass the parts like the cookies hide in the cookie tin to be safe, you will enjoy right along with the child or children you are reading with. This could make a great one-on-one read or for a group setting. There is a lot to see in the illustrations, but they are not overly crowded. There are children (or are they?) having a fun Halloween night, all the usual costumes are seen, sprinkles on the ghost cookie, and some interesting Halloween candy the monster shows his parental figure at the end.
While everything is simple, there is nothing simplistic about it. There are things you can do on the page that are probably not meant by the author. Such as count the cookies (though you are told there are seven) or count the fireflies. What are the cookie shapes? What letter do they start with? And more. Just use your imagination. (This is a trick I learned while babysitting young-ones, make the book more than what it seems at first).
Part gingerbread story and all Halloween fun, this book will be a must have for your holiday reading.
