Black Cats

PreS-Gr 2—This festive, informative series will help students get into the Halloween spirit. Colorful pages feature photographs of children in spooky costumes and rural autumn scenes. The texts evoke familiar images without using clichéd language (the word "boo!" is used sparingly). Celebrate offers a general overview of how people approach the holiday, describing parties, parades, and bobbing for apples. It also covers international celebrations, including the Irish custom of baking charms into bread and Canada's Halloween firework shows. Black Cats and Jack-o'-Lanterns provide historical background for familiar symbols. Children will be intrigued to learn that people used to carve turnips instead of pumpkins, and that black cats were thought to contain witches' spirits. In Safety, Peterson advises trick-or-treaters without ever slipping into a condescending tone. The voice throughout the series is celebratory and joyful. Each volume includes an activity.