Over My Dead Body: 43 Old Cemetery Road Book Two

By Kate Klise

Illustrated by M. Sarah Klise (the author's sister)

A ghost story with a dose of comedy and written in a diary/letter format....who can resist? Author Ignatius B. Grumply, eleven-year-old Seymour Hope, and ghost Olive C. Spence are great friends, contentedly living together at 43 Old Cemetery Road. Then one day, Grumply gets a letter from Dick Tater, director of an organization for the “Safety & Protection of Our Kids & Youth,” who claims that Seymour cannot live at the mansion “without the benefit of his parents.” Mr. Tater commits Grumply to an insane asylum, sends Seymour to an orphanage, and announces plans to exhume Olive's body. Luckily, this tight-knit trio isn't so easily broken up and they have quite a Halloween surpise in store for Tater. This book is a sequel, but it easily stands on its own as the first book is summed up in the first pages of this one. My favorite part is the jokes presented the form of people's names such as Mr. Ike N. Openitt (get it? I can open it) :) A super fun read.....whether its Halloween or not!!

The Case of the Case of the Mistaken Identity: The Brixton Brothers #1

By Mac Barnett

Illustrations by Adam Rex

Action, adventure, and humor...what more can you ask for in a book? It all starts here: the thrilling story of Steve Brixton's first case. Steve Brixton is not a detective, but no one believes him. After all, if he’s not a detective, why is he disguising himself as a sailor, getting kidnapped by an elite fighting force of librarians, and searching for a missing quilt embroidered with secret messages? This story is extremely fast-paced and funny; it would make a fantastic read-aloud. The accompanying illustrations make the story even funnier.

Red Ted and the Lost Things

By Michael Rosen

Illustrated by Joel Stewart

A stuffed bear named Red Ted finds himself in a train station’s gloomy Place for Lost Things. A crocodile tells him, “I’ve been here a very long time, and no one has ever come to find me.” But Red Ted is determined to make it back to his owner, Stevie. “I know!” he says. “I’ll get out of here and find her myself!” Red Ted and his new crocodile friend embark on a huge adventure as they navigate themselves through a train station, a city, and a rainstorm. Along the way they pick up a new friend, a cat, and together they find their way. Though this is a picture book, it is written in a graphic novel format resembling a really long comic strip.

Never Smile at a Monkey

By Steve Jenkins

I love great non-fiction books for kids. This non-fiction book reads like a picture book as it is filled with great illustrations and little text. Each page has a headline that begins with "never", such as "Never swim with a squid." The remaining text fills us in on the details regarding why we should never swim with a squid (because it can whip its tentacles around a victim and tear out chunks of flesh with a sharp, parrot-like beak). The surprise element in this book is that all 17 warnings are regarding animals that we might consider harmless like cubs, catapillers, and kangaroos. If, after reading the book, you are curious to know more about any of the featured creatures, there is more detailed information about each accompanied by more great illustrations.