Book shelf

— Check out these great new books with Halloween themes:

Little Spider (Chronicle Books, $6.95; ages infant-2)

With Little Spider, babies get a chunky board book and a finger puppet, which is firmly attached to the book and pokes through die-cut holes in the pages. Designed by Wendy Lui and featuring illustrations by Klaartje van der Put, this book shows little ones how fun reading can be.

Tucker's Spooky Halloween

(Candlewick Press, $7.99; ages 2-4)

Tucker, a small but energetic white dog, can't find a scaryenough costume, until he looks in a most unlikely place. Author/ illustrator Leslie McGuirktells a humorous tale that will ring true to many young trickor-treaters and their parents. This large-size board book isperfect for sharing in a readaloud session.

Mercy Watson: Princess in Disguise

(Candlewick Press, $12.99; ages 5-8)

Mercy Watson, that buttered-toast-loving pig, is back in her fourth adventure for readers just beginning to tackle chapter books. Mercy reluctantly consents to be dressed up as a princess in exchange for Halloween treats. As usual, however, things don't quite work out as planned in this humorous tale by Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo. The brilliantly colored illustrations by Chris Van Dusen pack a comical punch, especially the scenes of Mercy decked out in her pink princess costume.

Three Little Ghosties

(Bloomsbury, $16.95; ages 4-7)

A trio of young ghosts have a great time scaring people. But, asauthor Pippa Goodhart shows, the ghosts get a scare themselves when a brave little boy turns the tables on them. Goodhart's silly rhyming text- "Three little ghosties/ Sat on their posties/ Eating burnt toasties/ Telling big boasties" - will provoke laughs from readers, while the mixed media illustrations by Anna Laura Cantone add a wonderfully zany touch.

Vampire Island

(Putnam, $14.99; ages 8-12)

Author Adele Griffin offers readers an amusing look at a most unusual family. The Livingstones are vampire-fruit bat hybrids who were forced to leave the Old World and adjust to a new way of life in Manhattan as pseudo-humans. Griffin tells the story through the family's three children - Lexie, the oldest and a poet, Maddy, a rebel with a difficult-to-hide vampire lust for blood, and Hudson, who still flies through the skies in the early morning. While the Livingstones have odd habits, they still have to cope with such common kid concerns as difficult classmates and misplaced crushes. Griffin has written a quirky but appealing story that begs for a sequel.

The Restless Dead

(Candlewick Press, $16.99; ages 12-up)

Teens who love horror stories will delight in The Restless Dead. Edited by Deborah Noyes, this spine-tingling collection features original stories by some of today's best young adult authors, including M.T. Anderson, Holly Black and Annette Curtis Klause.

Family, Pages 37 on 10/24/2007

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