It’s Friday! It’s Friday! The weekend awaits! 🙂
So what are y’all doing this weekend?
Apple picking? Visiting Granny? Washing the dog? Baking pumpkin-related items? Putting finishing touches on costumes? Making sure every flavor in the bag of fun-size candy is as delicious as the manufacturers purport them to be?
That was a test!
The correct answer is “writing my Halloweensie Contest entry!”
Anyone who answered correctly may have one of these 🙂 You have earned it! (And you’ll need it to give yourself time to write 🙂 )
Just a quick housekeeping item (since we’re on the subject of not doing any 🙂 ) which is that next Friday, October 28, there will be no PPBF because we will be all caught up in the excitement of the ongoing Halloweensie Contest which opens Thursday October 27!!! So instead of posting favorite picture books next week, we will enjoy reading all the contest entries!!! I seriously can’t wait!!! (PPBF will return on Friday November 11 – I think…!)
Now! Onto today’s Perfect Picture Book, just in time for Halloween 🙂
Title: The Spooky Wheels On The Bus
Written By: J. Elizabeth Mills
Illustrated By: Ben Mantle
Cartwheel Books, July 2010, fiction
Suitable For Ages: 3-5
Themes/Topics: holidays (halloween), concepts (counting)
Opening: “One spooky bus goes RATTLE and SHAKE,
RATTLE and SHAKE, RATTLE and SHAKE.
One spooky bus goes RATTLE and SHAKE
All through the town.”
Brief Synopsis: (From Amazon) “Count from One Spooky Bus up to Ten Goofy Ghosts as this Halloween ride races through town picking up a few unsuspecting passengers along the way.”
Links To Resources: Kids’ Halloween Crafts of all kinds!; Kid-friendly Halloween recipes; make up your own Wheels On The Bus song about Halloween, your birthday, or any other holiday!
Why I Like This Book: You can’t really go wrong with a fun Halloween-themed version of this popular song. Kids can enjoy it as a story, or sing along with it. In addition to being a story/song with an entertaining cast of Halloween characters, it is a counting book – great for youngest picture book enthusiasts. The art is bright and warm, colorful and inviting, showing witches and ghosts and spiders in a way that is friendly and engaging and not at all scary. The town looks like a cozy place to go trick-or-treating. All-around Halloween fun!
text copyright J. Elizabeth Mills 2010, illustration copyright Ben Mantle 2010
I hope you enjoy it as much as I do 🙂
For the complete list of books with resources, please visit Perfect Picture Books.
PPBF folks, please add your titles and post-specific links (and any other info you feel like filling out 🙂 ) to the form below so we can all come see what fabulous picture books you’ve chosen to share this week!
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!!! 🙂
Susanna Leonard Hill 
Halloween is coming too fast! I’m not ready. Glad you’re on the ball.
I am on the ball and in the treats, Wendy 🙂 What is it about those mixed bags of fun-sized candy I find so irresistible? Oh, yeah! CHOCOLATE 🙂
This sounds like a real winner with children. What fun. I lot the humorous illustrations!
The illustrations really make the book, Pat! And it is just a fun one for kids 🙂
Thanks for the Get Out of Vacuuming card, Susanna. I’ll definitely need it this weekend. I wish I’d thought of The Spooky Wheels on the Bus — so fun!
You’re welcome, Gabi! I hope you make good use of it! 🙂 And I know – sometimes you see a book and just smack yourself in the head with “why didn’t *I* think of that!!!”
Love, love this time of year!!! Can’t wait to read the Halloweensie stories.
Me too, Keila!!! Of course… I haven’t even given a second’s thought to writing my sample yet….!
I doubt I will be able to submit this year – but very much looking forward to reading the Halloweensie entries!
NOOOOO!! Say it ain’t so! The contest won’t be the same without you, Jules! (But I understand 🙂 Since at the rate I’m going I’m going to be reusing last year’s sample – too much to do!)
How come I don’t know this one? It sounds a classic!
I had the same reaction, Joanna! It’s been out for 6 years and I’d never seen it before!
Oh my goodness…I’d better get writing for Halloweensie! But I also want to post a PPBF…will someone please invent a 48 hour day! I won a picture book at a local indie book event and it is PERFECT for today.
Seriously…I don’t know how you do it, Susanna…great review and thank you for keeping the PPBF linky alive and well…it’s a tremendous resource for parents, teachers, AND writers. ;).
The linky may be alive and well, but the list itself is hopelessly behind! 🙂 Can’t wait to see what book you post, Vivian, and I guess we BOTH have to get to work on Halloweensie… I haven’t even THOUGHT about my sample!
What a cute Halloween book. Will pop back next week to read the entries. Have a great weekend!
Fun. I wish I’d thought of this. Thanks for sharing.
The illustrations are awesome! Really great colors in them!
What a fun choice for a Halloween read! Can’t wait to start reading the Halloweensie entries; I know that there will be many imaginative ones – what a treat!
I do like that get out of vacuuming card. Thank you! The spooky wheels sounds like a fun book. I love innovations on favourites like this. Children get to see how easy it is to use the structure to write one of their own. I have started work on my Halloweensie. I’m looking forward to participating.