Lynda Graham-Barber's abiding passions for writing and animals have intermingled for four-decades, as children's book editor, writing teacher, author of thirteen books, and animal rights advocate. The author, who holds an MFA in writing for children from Vermont College, lives in a small stone cottage, which she helped build, situated on 160 wooded acres in the Northeast Kingdom, Vermont, with her artist husband David and their rescued dog Biscuit.
*The last few months of the year I've been "superhero'ed" out, so I know I won't make my usual 200-book goal unless I get creative. And by that, I mean children's books. I'm a librarian, so it's good for me to have some kids' books in my repertoire, too, right? (Okay, I might be slightly cheating, but... some of the kids' books I've read, I've really enjoyed, so I'm actually glad for a reason to cheat, lol).*
Perfectly cute, but it didn’t really do anything to stand out. A fine Halloween read to enjoy with little kids.
I have loved this book since I was a child. This book would be great for Halloween and it does have interactive pieces to it-when Ben tries to say "boo" he says things like "moo, coo, who" instead.
Ben is a little ghost who still has to be able to say “Boo!” on the eve of Halloween.
He went to a forest, a meadow, and a long stone bridge, to practice to say “Boo!”. Ben would encounter an owl, a cow, and a dove who told Ben that ghosts do not say “whoo!”, “moo!”, or “coo!” and that the little ghost must say, “boo!”
My son and I have been reading together this book since he was about seven months old. It’s a small hard book that’s perfect for little hands.
There's also a nice little lesson at the end of the story: Practice makes the scariest “boo!”
Ben is a little ghost who can't say "Boo". He practices and practices but just can't get it right. The cow, owl, and dove all make fun of him for saying the wrong thing. However, when he meets the bat, Ben learns how to say Boo! He is then able to go out that night with his brothers and sisters to scare everyone just in time for Halloween!
Why is Ben sad? What is Ben's problem? Why is Ben going so far into the forest? What is Ben trying to say? Why? What is he saying? What animal says whooo? Can you show me a deep breath, and puff up your chest? What is Ben saying? What is he trying to say? What do cows say? Why is Ben sad? What is Ben doing when he learns he can say "boo"? Why does that bat leave trembling?
This is a story about a little ghost who is trying to learn to say "boo" in time for Halloween. He meets some animals who try to encourage him. This would be a good story for young readers around Halloween.