Pumpkin Orange, Pumpkin Round

PreS–After visiting a pumpkin patch, a pair of cats and their kittens pick pumpkins and take them home with them. Once home, they make jack-o’-lanterns, with the parent cats helping their children carve their pumpkins. The kittens then get ready for Halloween, putting on costumes, and the whole crew goes trick-or-treating together before returning home, hearing a bedtime story, and going to sleep. While not groundbreaking, this is a pleasant and suitable Halloween-themed picture book. The rhymes are short and rhythmic, although there are a couple of clunkers, such as the unfortunate attempt to rhyme “chum” with “mom.” Despite a few uneven rhymes, the repetition and simplicity of the text make this an appealing choice for group-sharing during storytime. The art, created with colored pencil and acrylic glaze on watercolor paper, is warm and fuzzy, providing a safe, not-so-scary depiction of Halloween that is appropriate for young listeners. The book concludes with instructions on how children can carve their own jack-o’-lanterns, emphasizing the need for an adult helper.