Pumpkinheads

A cute, albeit mildly underwhelming, story about high school crushes taking their chances before it's to late. Josiah and Deja have worked at the "world's best" pumpkin patch for the past three falls. They're super tight seasonal friends but that's all about to end. They're both seniors and they know that this is their last night working at their favorite place. Deja is nostalgic about the food that she'll miss and she's also convinced that Josiah has to talk to his crush, fudge girl or he'll regret it for the rest of his life. Deja convinces Josiah that they need to make their last night count and they are going to run all over this pumpkin patch seeking out the best food, sights, sounds, and of course, the infamous fudge girl. This book is very atmospheric and it makes you want fall, pumpkins, scarecrows, kettle corn, and  corn mazes RIGHT NOW. Also, maybe a pumpkin spice coffee or two as well. Cute, and amazingly well drawn, this little romantic graphic novel is sure to be a hit with teens.

Hocus Pocus and the All New Sequel

I had higher hopes for this, but it wasn't the worst. I know that's not much of a selling point, but it's hard to follow up the movie. The movie is just so perfect that any follow up will fall under intense scrutiny. The first half of this book was completely redundant, it's rehashing of the movie, frame by frame. Skip ahead to part two where the story actually begins. Poppy is Max and Allison's daughter. Her whole life she's heard about the horror of the Sanderson sisters and the evils of Halloween but she's never really believed her family. Would you? It's just too insane. So on Halloween she and her two good friends (one of which she has a HUGE crush on)  decide to get into some mischief and break into the Sanderson house. It's not like magic is real, it's just a bunch of hocus pocus! What could go wrong on the blood moon, twenty five years after her parent's killed the witches? The answer is a lot.

The Halloween Tree

Hands down the greatest Halloween book ever. It always holds up, ALWAYS. Nothing gets me in the Halloween mood more than this classic. It's written with such imagination, prose, and imagery that it sucks the reader right in and takes them on the same incredible journey that 8 young boys go on one Hallows Eve. The creepy and mysterious Moundshroud takes the young boys on a journey back in time to relive Halloween in all it's variations, celebrations and changes. To Egypt, Ireland, England, France, AND Mexico; they journey on the scariest night of the year to save their missing friend Pip and to discover the true meaning of Halloween. No one can weave a tale like Ray Bradbury can and make you feel the breeze in the trees, see the jack o lanterns swaying, and smell the pies cooking. Even the movie adaptation is a classic. I can't wait to share this book with my future children (as of yet unborn and unplanned).

Halloween: An American Holiday, An American Tradition

I'm not gonna lie, when I first picked up this book I was a little skeptical . I'd read "The Halloween Tree" by Ray Bradbury, I knew all their was to know about the history of Halloween, how could their possibly be any more to the story? Well, that's where I was wrong. Author, Lesley Pratt Bannatyne, painstaking researches the origins of traditions, feast days, and folk lore going all the way back to the Celts, Druids, and Romans. Even though the title of this book boasts the "American History," Bannatyne does her research and takes the reader all the way back to Europe to get a glimpse of the first origins. She then talks about how it was meshed with other cultures and religions (the Roman Empire, Christianity, etc.) through the centuries and how it finally was celebrated on October 31 (November 1 is All Saint's Day or Hallow's Day, so October 31 is Hallows Eve). Once it was joined with Scottish and Irish traditions, it started to more closely resemble the holiday we celebrate now: costumes to blend in with the dead, begging for food door to door, carrying turnip lanterns (pumpkins were a new favorite when they came to America), and playing pranks or tricks on one another (picked up from Guy Fawkes Day). Once the immigrants brought their traditions to the United States, things escalated and by the late nineteenth century, ladies magazines were producing articles on how to throw the best Halloween parties. When the Halloween tradition came to America, it lost a lot of the "communion with the dead" aspects. The Victorian age simply turned it into another reason to party.

Overall, it was a fascinating read. I learned soo much about one of my favorite holidays and I definitely appreciate it even more, knowing the rich history behind the traditions. A must read for any fan of Halloween or things that go bump in the night. It's filled with great poetry, pictures, and drawings to go along with the history. I do wish there had been more about the Day of the Dead and the evolution of costumes (how did they get so slutty?!), but hey, this book is 25 years old, I understand :)