Los Gatos Black on Halloween

“Under October’s luna, full and bright, the monsters are throwing a ball in the Haunted Hall. Las brujas come on their broomsticks. Los Muertos rise from their coffins to join the fun. Los Esqueletos rattle their bones as they dance though the door. And the scariest creatures of all? Wait until you see them!”

This book is a little bit Halloween and a little bit Day of the Dead but mostly it is a whole lot of fun! The narration  is poetic and the illustrations are haunting with a traditional Mexican flair. I enjoy reading this book to different classes for Halloween because of the mix of Spanish and English words. Perhaps the text is a bit redundant but it never seems to bother the children. I prefer having both the English and Spanish words because I am not very good with Spanish!

“At medianoche midnight strikes-
The witching hour the werewolf likes.
The bloodhounds bay, los perros howl.
Beware! The wolfman’s on the prowl.”

This book won the Pura Belpré Award for both illustration and text. The Pura Belpré award is given annually to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth. I definitely agree Los Gatos Black on Halloween  has all that and more. The children love to see their favorite Halloween characters celebrating one of their favorite holidays.