1, 2, BOO: A spooky counting book by Paul Howard
Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2019. ISBN: 9781526612052. Board book.
(Age: 3-5) Recommended. Themes: Halloween, Counting. Young children
will love this counting book with its funny illustrations and will
be happy to count along when it is read. Two little children go
trick-or-treating, finding all sorts of amazing things as they go
along, including 'one hairy, scary wolf, howling at the moon.
Aroooo!' and 'nine snazzy witch's cats, looking for some fun' until
they find 'Ten giant bags of treats. Let's eat them! Yum, yum yum'.
This is a variation on Howard's I
went trick-or-treating and its sturdy board structure
makes it perfect for younger children. The illustrations are very
humorous and not at all scary, as all the characters have happy
smiling faces. I loved the cute expressions on the faces of the
three green, friendly, smiley ghosts, complete with little hats and
even a bowtie, and the four dancing skeletons are a hoot. The brother
and sister decked out in their Halloween costumes are a treat to
follow as they have lots of fun encountering monster boogie kings,
smiley ghosts, silly skeletons, wizard's owls, creepy spiders, warty
toads, spook-wooky bats, witch's cats and giant bags of treats. The
multitude of amusing details beg for a closer look at the
illustrations and could result in children not only counting the
figures but examining the expressions on the children's faces and
what all the characters are doing on each page.
The rhymes and humour in 1, 2, Boo! make this a wonderful
book to share and great to read aloud. It is sure to become a firm
favourite to read before Halloween.
Pat Pledger