Readers of this blog know that I love books. Considering that most of the movies Walt Disney made during his life were stories that came from books I have to believe he was also a reader. I also love Halloween. So I was thrilled when Neil Gaiman, author of Coraline and many other popular books, promoted the idea of giving someone a spooky book for Halloween. He calls it All Hallows Read.
Go to the All Hallows Read website and watch Neil explain the program. It is a funny video that he filmed in a graveyard. At this website there are also extras that you can print, like bookmarks, cards, and an illustrated minibook of The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe. Awesome!
I don’t think books will ever replace candy as the most popular Halloween treat, but giving a spooky book to a child or adult in your life would be a great way to celebrate the season. And for me, if someone had given me a cool bookmark during my trick or treating days I would have considered it a real treat. Happiness squared.
Goofy Books: When I worked as the children’s book specialist at Borders Books (R.I.P.) I loved selling books at Halloween. There are an amazing variety of Halloween books and many of them are so good that I would recommend them for children or adults. Below I have listed some of my favorites. Clicking on the picture will take you to Amazon which helps support A Goofy Idea, but you can find many of them at your favorite used book store, too. Buy a book!
Boris and Bella is my favorite kids Halloween Book. Boris is a neat freak, Bella is a messy lady, and they are neighbors. As you can guess they don’t like each other. Can anything make them friends?
Is Miss Fiona a witch? No one is sure, but they aren’t missing out on getting a piece of her pumpkin pie. This book has wonderful rhymes and leaves it up to the reader to decide if Miss Fiona is a witch or just a batty old lady.
Ray Bradbury has many connections to the Disney universe, but even if he did not I would recommend this book. Three boys go on a Halloween adventure through time and as they try to not get killed they learn about the history of this spooky holiday. It’s not all candy and costumes!
Since Neil Gaiman is promoting All Hallow’s Read I thought it would be fun to include one of his books. The Graveyard Book won the Newberry Award for children’s literature and it was well deserved. This unusual book tells the story of a boy who grows up in a graveyard. It is sometimes disturbing, sometimes profound, and definitely a must read for Halloween.