Reviews for Boo!

The average rating for Boo! based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2020-10-04 00:00:00 Francesco Paolino Twenty-one witchy poems from author Jane Yolen are paired with colorful, humorous artwork from illustrator Elise Primavera in this Halloween picture-book. From The Magic House, which offers an examination of the Hansel and Gretel story, to Do Witches Have?, which asks whether witches have babies, the selections here deal with witches in many circumstances, from traditional to modern... Having enjoyed many books from both Yolen and Primavera, I was excited to track down Best Witches: Poems for Halloween. On the whole, I enjoyed it, although I thought the illustrations were far stronger than the text. The artwork was immensely appealing, managing to be both magical and humorous, with so many entertaining little details. I liked the idea of many of the poems, but often found them a little awkward in execution. I can only think of one poem I thought was quite good, The Warlock's Cat, which reads: "A shadow of a shadow Slipping in and out of night, With his claws and teeth like starshine Flickering on the edge of sight. He is blacker than a night wind, He is darker than a coal, For he's the outward casting Of his fearsome master's soul." This was probably the best of the lot, with striking imagery, a smooth execution, and a fascinating central idea (the cat as familiar). Tastes vary of course, so I'd still recommend this one to readers looking for collections of Halloween poetry for children. For my part, my stars are mostly for the ideas and images here, rather than the writing.

Review # 2 was written on 2019-09-28 00:00:00 David Ficocelli Three stars is the best I can do. The illustrations by Elise Primavera are good, and a few of the poems are good, but given Jane Yolen as author I expected much better. Many of the poems are long and dull. If I as an adult struggled to read them I doubt many children will bother.