by Robert Burleigh (Author) Wendell Minor (Illustrator)
A lively, rhythmic Halloween read aloud that follows a group of zombie pumpkins as they celebrate the season.
It's Halloween and the Zombie Pumpkin Parade is drawing near. Join Zipper-Toothed Zlumpkin, Drizzle-Mouthed Dumpkin, and the rest of their ghostly crew as the spooky-silly zombie pumpkins dance through the darkness, in celebration of the most bewitching night of the year!
With jaunty, rhyming verse and atmospheric watercolor paintings, this seasonal offering is just spooky enough to delight young children as well as just funny enough to send them into giggles.
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Just scary enough to please those looking for a mild fright, this story leads young readers on an annual Halloween romp of pumpkin-headed zombies. "Welcome to the Great Zombie Pumpkin Parade!" Burleigh brings out the silly side of the undead with rhymes: "Leaves swirl and tumble/ as day turns to night./ Zombies stumble/ Left and right," and alliteration: watch out for "Zipper-Toothed Zlumpkin," who is preceded by "Drizzle-Mouthed Dumpkin" and followed by "Slime-Faced Sumpkin." Minor's watercolor and gouache illustrations, which feature an emojilike range of zombie expressions, soften the spooky couplets. VERDICT A natural fit for Halloween-themed read alouds and activities.—Nora Clancy
Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission."Fear and fright!/ Brag and boast!/ On Halloween night/ who's got the most?" Following a spread showing a sun-kissed pumpkin patch at dusk, this Halloween extravaganza from collaborators Burleigh and Minor presents a parade of comically ugly, jack-o'-lantern-headed zombies lumbering across its pages. Rhyming lines introduce the figures: "First in line is/ Drizzle-Mouthed Drumpkin," who drools and carries a pitchfork; "Right behind is/ Zipper-Toothed Zumpkin," whose carved face sports one closed eye and a saw-toothed jaw. The humanoid beings, portrayed with tan hands, are clothed in ragged, alternatingly gray and black clothing that occasionally bears rust-hued traces. Marching across the handsome autumn countryside, the text asks readers to weigh in: "Who's the scariest?/ Creep and crawl!/ Who's the strangest/ of them all?" Though language warns readers to "beware, be wise!" the procession reads as more inviting accounting than genuine threat, especially as the parade winds down into a graveyard snooze. Ages 4-8. (Aug.)
Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.