FICTION

Mother Ghost: Nursery Rhymes for Little Monsters

by Rachel KOLAR
illus. by Roland Garrigue. 32p. Sleeping Bear. Jul. 2018. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9781585363926.
COPY ISBN
PreS-Gr 2—Traditional nursery rhymes are transformed into not-too-scary Halloween fun. An introductory poem invites readers to trick-or-treat and is followed by a collection including typical frightening fare like ghosts, witches, zombies, and skeletons. Mary's little lamb becomes a ghost ("Mary had a little ghost,/his face was white as cloud;/and everywhere that Mary went/he followed in his shroud.") and Miss Muffet, instead of being frightened by the spider, eats it for dessert. The rhymes scan well, making the poems perfect for reading aloud with a flashlight tucked under your chin. Garrigue's line drawings, primarily in shades of black, white, and purple, add just the right scary touch. The book contains, fittingly, 13 rhymes.
VERDICT A fun addition to public libraries' Halloween poetry collections and Mother Goose retellings.
Reviewed by Mary Kuehner, Arapahoe Library District, CO , Jul 01, 2018

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