![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
juushikaPart 2 of at least 3! This month's reading metrics are inflated as hell. Some real gems in this set, particularly Kohara's Ghosts in the House! and Muncaster's I Am a Witch's Cat, which I read back-to-back on a library trip and just adored. They're also really twee, so while both authors have plenty of other books I plan to hold off on reading them. I'm prone to wearing out on specific genres/tones, and the distinctive cutesy feel of these would certainly trigger than response. I'd rather preserve my memories of these books as they are now.
Title: The Pomegranate Witch
Author: Denise Doyen
Published: Chronicle Books, 2017
Rating: 2 of 5
Page Count: 35
Total Page Count: 333,055
Text Number: 1198
Read Because: some or another Best Halloween Picture Books list I can't refind, hardback borrowed from the Wilsonville Public Library
Review: I'm fond of narratives that knit together specific, disconnected inspirations, like the pomegranates + Halloween/haunted house/witch here—they can be so unique. Unfortunately, a lot of the uniqueness in this is buried under action sequences, which aren't to my taste and which, while Halloween-adjacent, lack atmosphere. The art is fine, the ending strong, the intent is certainly good. ...But a book written entirely in rhyme, particularly a kid's book which is intended to be read aloud, should scan better; there's a time for slant rhymes or maybe even missing beats, but not here.
While I'm nitpicking: this was published in 2017, so please give kids bike helmets and keep pet cats indoors; also the typesetting is too small.
Title: Ghosts in the House!
Author: Kazuno Kohara
Published: Roaring Brook Press, 2008
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 333,085
Text Number: 1199
Read Because: some or another Best Halloween Picture Books list I can't refind, hardback borrowed from the Wilsonville Public Library
Review: This isn't the world's most robust children's book, but everything it does it does exceptionally well. The tricolor illustrations are bold and cleverly achieved—I love the orange backdrops and the texture in the black and white. Most Halloweeny kid's lit loses momentum halfway through when it exchanges a creepy tone for a happy resolution, but this is distinctly spoopy instead of scary—a cute and witchy aesthetic that grows rather than dissolving as the book progresses, which makes for a strong finish. I want a ghost blankey! This is a sheer delight, and easily one of the best Halloween or Halloween-appropriate kid's books I've read.
Title: I Am a Witch's Cat
Author: Harriet Muncaster
Published: HarperCollins, 2014
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 333,115
Text Number: 1200
Read Because: some or another Best Halloween Picture Books list I can't refind, hardback borrowed from the Wilsonville Public Library
Review: This is beyond charming. The mixed media/diorama photos are unique—and while sometimes too sparse or disjointed, at their best they make for richly lit and cleverly detailed scenes. It's a great complement to the whimsy of the narrative, which is pure wish-fulfillment: the costumed "witch's cat" protagonist's play is enthusiastically embraced by the witch, her mother; their relationship is loving and playful, their lives gentle and cozy. It's the sort of book which makes me wonder if it reads as well to kids, because it feels like an idealized reflection of what childhood should be, and is twee as a result. But I'm not a child, so ultimately I just care that I loved this.
Title: What There Is Before There Is Anything There: A Scary Story
Author: Liniers
Translator: Elisa Amado
Published: Groundwood Books, 2007
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 25
Total Page Count: 333,140
Text Number: 1201
Read Because: from this list of scary picture books, hardback borrowed from the Wilsonville Public Library
Review: Certainly this answers my wish for fewer children's books that give up on their spookiness/horror for the sake of a happy resolution, because this resolves nothing—in fact nods towards resolution and then rejects it. Combined with the intriguing titular premise/entity whose magic lies in being inexplicable, this book is all concept and no movement or ending. The rounded art is surprisingly playful/spoopy rather than spooky, but the aggressive, dark crosshatching suits the content. I'd call this interesting rather successful; it's perhaps too ambitious for a picture book, but I'd love it in longer form or for an older audience.
Title: The Pomegranate Witch
Author: Denise Doyen
Published: Chronicle Books, 2017
Rating: 2 of 5
Page Count: 35
Total Page Count: 333,055
Text Number: 1198
Read Because: some or another Best Halloween Picture Books list I can't refind, hardback borrowed from the Wilsonville Public Library
Review: I'm fond of narratives that knit together specific, disconnected inspirations, like the pomegranates + Halloween/haunted house/witch here—they can be so unique. Unfortunately, a lot of the uniqueness in this is buried under action sequences, which aren't to my taste and which, while Halloween-adjacent, lack atmosphere. The art is fine, the ending strong, the intent is certainly good. ...But a book written entirely in rhyme, particularly a kid's book which is intended to be read aloud, should scan better; there's a time for slant rhymes or maybe even missing beats, but not here.
While I'm nitpicking: this was published in 2017, so please give kids bike helmets and keep pet cats indoors; also the typesetting is too small.
Title: Ghosts in the House!
Author: Kazuno Kohara
Published: Roaring Brook Press, 2008
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 333,085
Text Number: 1199
Read Because: some or another Best Halloween Picture Books list I can't refind, hardback borrowed from the Wilsonville Public Library
Review: This isn't the world's most robust children's book, but everything it does it does exceptionally well. The tricolor illustrations are bold and cleverly achieved—I love the orange backdrops and the texture in the black and white. Most Halloweeny kid's lit loses momentum halfway through when it exchanges a creepy tone for a happy resolution, but this is distinctly spoopy instead of scary—a cute and witchy aesthetic that grows rather than dissolving as the book progresses, which makes for a strong finish. I want a ghost blankey! This is a sheer delight, and easily one of the best Halloween or Halloween-appropriate kid's books I've read.
Title: I Am a Witch's Cat
Author: Harriet Muncaster
Published: HarperCollins, 2014
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 333,115
Text Number: 1200
Read Because: some or another Best Halloween Picture Books list I can't refind, hardback borrowed from the Wilsonville Public Library
Review: This is beyond charming. The mixed media/diorama photos are unique—and while sometimes too sparse or disjointed, at their best they make for richly lit and cleverly detailed scenes. It's a great complement to the whimsy of the narrative, which is pure wish-fulfillment: the costumed "witch's cat" protagonist's play is enthusiastically embraced by the witch, her mother; their relationship is loving and playful, their lives gentle and cozy. It's the sort of book which makes me wonder if it reads as well to kids, because it feels like an idealized reflection of what childhood should be, and is twee as a result. But I'm not a child, so ultimately I just care that I loved this.
Title: What There Is Before There Is Anything There: A Scary Story
Author: Liniers
Translator: Elisa Amado
Published: Groundwood Books, 2007
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 25
Total Page Count: 333,140
Text Number: 1201
Read Because: from this list of scary picture books, hardback borrowed from the Wilsonville Public Library
Review: Certainly this answers my wish for fewer children's books that give up on their spookiness/horror for the sake of a happy resolution, because this resolves nothing—in fact nods towards resolution and then rejects it. Combined with the intriguing titular premise/entity whose magic lies in being inexplicable, this book is all concept and no movement or ending. The rounded art is surprisingly playful/spoopy rather than spooky, but the aggressive, dark crosshatching suits the content. I'd call this interesting rather successful; it's perhaps too ambitious for a picture book, but I'd love it in longer form or for an older audience.
