Halloween Day (Trophy Picture Books) [Hardcover]

Anne Rockwell (Author), Lizzy Rockwell (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 2 and up | Grade Level: P and up | Series: Trophy Picture Books

Mrs. Madoff’s class is back for Halloween Day! Jessica is a superhero. Pablo is a pumpkin. And Evan is an astronaut. the ten students are just learning how to express themselves, and their Halloween costumes say a lot about who they are. Mother-and-daughter team Anne and Lizzy Rockwell capture a holiday every child loves in this early picture-book companion to Show & Tell Day. And be sure to look out in upcoming seasons for another exciting book about Mrs. Madoff’s class: Visitors’ Day.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 2. A story that begins with a class Halloween parade and ends with a party complete with pumpkin cupcakes and one of the teachers in a fairy-godmother costume. In between are double-page spreads that show individual children in their costumes on the left and an illustration of the costume in progress or its inspiration on the right. For example, Jessica is Comet Queen just like the television show, while Evan wears an astronaut suit that he made in the kitchen with his father. While the pictures are flat and at times lacking in energy, this title is still a worthy celebration of a favorite holiday that is just right for young listeners. The male preschool teacher is great as is the multicultural class that's reflective of today's society.?Pamela K. Bomboy, Chesterfield County Public Schools, VA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

A story about Mrs. Madoff's ten schoolchildren, all decked out in their Halloween costumes. Readers glimpse each child twice, once in costume and once at the scene of the costume under construction, or at the source of its inspiration. The text is simple and declarative--``I'll bet the big orange pumpkin is really Pablo. Yes, I'm sure it is. Those look like Pablo's new sneakers''--and the sweet watercolor illustrations are full of smiles and good cheer. Mrs. Madoff's classroom is a charmed place--secure, harmonious, benevolent--if somewhat cloying. Some readers will think it's a real stretch that the children don't recognize their teacher in costume; repeat visits to this book will probably depend on the appeal of the snappy artwork. (Picture book. 2-5) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 2 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (August 22, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060275677
• ISBN-13: 978-0060275679
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 9.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,871,258 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Halloween Day (Trophy Picture Books), July 28, 2010

By 

Anna M. Ligtenberg "AnnaLovesBooks" (Chicago) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Halloween Day (Trophy Picture Books) (Hardcover)

ISBN 0060275677 - My run of Halloween books for kids continues and I consider myself a very happy reviewer. Halloween books are some of the most fun and creative holiday books for kids and finding great ones is wonderful. The cover image and the title of this book are so simple and straightforward that I worried about finding a really boring book, but it turns out that sometimes simple is just... simple!

A young student narrates the story, introducing her classmates one at a time, as she guesses who is in which costume. The costumes range from basic to elaborate and the narrator has a kind word to say about each of them. On the left-hand page, she says the person who is in the costume and on the facing page, there is an illustration of that child at the moment when he/she was inspired. Accompanied by a mysterious fairy godmother, the children have a Halloween parade before snack time back in their classroom. There, their fairy godmother magically makes cupcakes appear, then reveals herself to be none other than their teacher.

There's not exactly a story here to criticize, which would normally be a criticism on its own. Instead, the lack of an actual storyline works all right here, a bit like how not having classes in school works on Halloween. It's Halloween and we're just here to look at the costumes and have candy, right? Anne Rockwell's text is simple for beginning readers and the illustrations, by Lizzy Rockwell, are adorable, filled with fun details. This is a good book for those days when you're trying to get your own child to choose what they want to be for Halloween, allowing them to see what inspired the children in the story to make the choices they did.

- AnnaLovesBooks

5.0 out of 5 stars Our Family's Favorite, October 22, 2008

By 

Christina (Chevy Chase, MD USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Halloween Day (Paperback)

This is a great book. It's been spot-on perfect for all three of my very different kids, two boys and a girl, who now range from 12 to 5. Each of them would give it 5 stars.

This book explains how the ten kids in one class decide on costumes for Halloween, and it shows some of them preparing (making or buying their costumes). The reader has to figure out the inspiration for each costume from the pictures; the text is from the point of view of one little girl commenting (in a very kind way) on everyone's choice of costume. I think what my kids like so much is that the way the class celebrates Halloween is very much the way they always have in school, and they are able to discover new details (e.g. the teacher looking through the window and finding her own Halloween costume on one page) the more times they read the book.

It's still a go-to favorite for my 5 year old, so we've been reading this one for nine years and counting. Thanks, Anne Rockwell!

5.0 out of 5 stars A special day at school on Halloween, September 23, 2007

By 

KSL "emma-and-me" (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Halloween Day (Paperback)

It's Halloween day and what a magical day it is for the students. It's that one day a year where they dress up in costume and go to school. It's the magic of figuring out who is who under that costume and seeing that child's current passion at this stage in their lives!

The book starts out with a little girl adjusting her black cat ears in her hair and thinks to herself how excited she is about wearing her halloween costume to school. What will her classmates have choosen to wear on this day? On the next page it shows her class lining up for their costume parade around the school and how some of us look beautiful and scary, but how everyone looks great. The book goes on to show how certain children in her class went about picking out their costume and even shows their teacher Mrs. Madoff spying her costume she will wear.. but you really have to look!

I remember the excitement of going to school dressed up in my mostly home made & purchased halloween costume. How we all loved to parade around the school showing each other our costumes and best of all the party that ended the day! I love that the author choose to have children of different nationalities in the class, so that your child might identify with one of them.... hey mom that looks like me or I love dressing up as......, what a wonderful book to share with your child.