We've always been pretty old-fashioned about Halloween. As a child, my dad was the pumpkin carver, working with us out in the backyard on our old picnic table. We children were the designers. As a mom, the fun continued, as I'd glimpse those faraway looks in my own children's eyes, and catch snippets of their conversations with each other about what they wanted to dress up as, and what kind of creations they were going to challenge their dad with carving for them. It was all about fun and imagination, with a lot of anticipation and excitement thrown in.
Something about going out in the dark of night and seeing all the illuminated neighborhood windows and Jack O'lanterns was - though cozy on the one hand - a bit mischievous and unfamiliar, so we didn't encourage goblin, witch, or gruesome costumes -- just walking around our dark neighborhoods was spooky enough!
Which brings to mind a mesmerizing book by a very talented lady: THE CAT AT NIGHT
, by Dahlov Ipcar. In this story, we get to spend an evening watching a cat stroll around after dark. Cats can see in the dark and that's when they like to go exploring! The pages alternate between almost total darkness, with only silhouettes of the things the cat is passing by, followed by the same scenes in full color that show what is visible to the cat. He meets other cats before the dawn finally comes, when he must finally leave them and go back to the farmhouse. He's greeted by the farmer's wife and given milk. Then he curls up to go to sleep...
And the farmer says, "What a lazy cat.
He sleeps all night and he sleeps all day, too!"
But the cat doesn't hear him. He is dreaming
about all his adventures in the long, wonderful, dark night.
, in which there is a running battle between a farmer and his wife and the mischievous animals who plunder their fields. The story is told in rollicking verse, with the distinctive illustrations of Dahlov Ipcar bringing the verse to life. 
To read more about Dahlov Ipcar and see her other books and artwork, click here .
: Aslan with Susan and Lucy
, 
). 
(which have sold over 100 million copies) and will forever be linked with those seven stories...but she also illustrated over 100 other books, many of which - in her later career - were of a religious theme.
(This book is out of print - beautiful illustrations!)
by Marjorie Priceman. The world becomes a young girl's grocery store, as she goes on a global journey to find ingredients for an apple pie. (And yes, there's a recipe at the back of the book!) Ages 4-8.
Ages 4-8.)
, by Margaret Wise Brown, with adorable illustrations by 
by Edward Lear, illustrated by Jan Brett. "Edward Lear's nonsense poem about two unlikely sweethearts--an elegant owl and a beautiful cat--has found a perfect match in artist Jan Brett. She traveled to the Caribbean (the land where the Bong-tree grows, perhaps?) to research her illustrations as well as the settings, costume details, plants, and fish native to the area. Readers can follow an illustrated subplot of two yellow fish who also fall in love under the pea-green boat. A charming treatment of a classic children's poem." -Amazon Review. (Ages 3 to 7) 
