A Special Halloween Celebration…with Books!

Halloween is right around the corner! This week in the Bluestocking Salon, we’re sharing a sweet anecdote from Bas Bleu editor AG that reminds us of the extra magic books can bring to special holidays…especially for the youngest of bookworms!

To say that my husband, Ryan, is into Halloween would be an understatement. Every October at our house involves countless bags of cobwebs, multiple jack-o-lantern carving sessions, new additions to our talking-ghoul collection, the latest trends in spooky lights, and many screams from me due his affinity for “Halloween pranks.” One of our favorite traditions every year is taking out our ever-growing stash of Halloween-themed picture books—including Gus Is a Mexican Ghost, Biscuit’s Halloween, Hallo-Wiener, and not one but two Berenstain Bears titles—for Rocky (age 3), Millie (5), and Ryan (38) to enjoy at bedtime.

This year, our favorite spooky books got a wider audience when Ryan landed a coveted spot as the “Mystery Reader” at Rocky’s wonderful preschool. Rocky knew his dad was coming to school, but we told him it was a surprise for his friends. That morning he immediately told all of his classmates that his daddy was coming and it was a “BIG SECRET!” So while the kids might have been anticipating a visit from Mr. Ryan, no one expected Gandalf the Grey, from J. R. R. Tolkien’s literary classic The Lord of the Rings, to show up at school! Ryan, in full wizard regalia, arrived with a stack of special Halloween books, to the delight of most of the kids and teachers. (One tearful little friend wasn’t so sure about the costume!)

Rocky was so proud to have his dad there, and the kids were enchanted with the books and with the wizard’s various voices for witches, goblins, and zombies.