Book Review: Halloween

Halloween is a holiday that many kids in America (and increasingly around the world) know about, but if you want to approach learning about Halloween as part of fall traditions, Halloween by Nancy Dickmann is a nice addition to your Halloween library.

Illustrated by Laura Borio, the book tells the story of Luna and her family as they celebrate fall and get ready for Halloween. They go to the pumpkin patch, make decorations and costumes and decorate pumpkins (one of which looks like a sugar skull so you can tie this book to Dia de Los Muertos as well).

The family throws a party with special snacks like candy apples and hot dog mummies, and they take part in a trunk or treat activity as well as traditional door to door trick or treating. (Spoiler alert: Luna’s view on candy corn may be a little controversial.)

The book emphasizes that Halloween is about creativity (and candy) not really scary stuff.

And while it’s not part of the main story, there is a section in the back about traditions that lead to our modern day Halloween celebrations, such as the Celtic festival of Samhain, the Catholic All Saints and All Souls’ days. It also talks about Halloween traditions like carving pumpkins, wearing costumes and trick or treating.

It also touches on Dia de Los Muertos, the Hungry Ghost Festival in China and other parts of Asia, Pitru Paksha (a Hindu celebration when ancestors are said to visit earth) and the Japanese Obon festival.

There are instructions for making a pumpkin pinata, frozen banana “ghost pops” and a couple of ways to make spider webs. There’s also a little quiz at the back.

This is a great book for an overview of what people do on and around Halloween for students who might not have that tradition, or as a way to talk about what their families do in the fall, regardless of whether they celebrate Halloween. You can also use it to get into a “best candy” debate.

About the book: 48 pages, hardcover. Published 2025 by words & pictures. Suggested retail price $14.99.

As if Diwali weren’t colorful and fun enough, The Festival of Lights: A Lift-the-flap Diwali Celebration by Namita Moolani Mehra, illustrated by Darshika Varm, makes it even more fun to read about with flaps and things to lift and pull to see more information or details in the illustrations.

The book is a story about a family getting ready for Diwali and what happens on the different days of the five-day celebration. There’s cleaning, shopping, crafting, food preparation and getting the home altar ready for the big day.

It covers decorating the outside of the house with rangoli, diyas and lanterns, buying sweets to share with family and friends, the sights and scents of the mandir (home temple), getting dressed up in new fancy clothes, the story of Diwali and celebrations with relatives.

Flaps (there are more than 140 in all) give you vocabulary words for different foods and definitions, as well as fun things like what’s inside the shopping basket or where the cat is hanging out. They also help illuminate the story of Diwali, which is the triumph of good over evil as Lord Ram defeated the demon Ravana to save his wife, Sita.

This pretty and colorful book helps kids understand what Diwali is and how it is celebrated, regardless of whether they practice it at home. This would be a nice book to keep in a classroom (it’s rated for kids ages 3-7) or to have at home to teach kids about Diwali even if it’s not something you celebrate. Where I live there are a lot of people from India so we are probably exposed to Diwali more than some other regions of America, but it’s a nice holiday to know about wherever you live.

Combine with the book Diwali and check out some fun lantern crafts and printables for kids to round out your experience.

About the book: 24 pages, hardcover, published 2025 by Wide Eyed Editions. Suggested retail prices $22.99.

Have you read?

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