The Wheels on the Bus at Halloween

July 26, 2021
In Kieley’s energetic rendition of the favorite kids’ song, a bus ride looks decidedly different on Halloween night; holiday characters hop aboard the Spooky Town bus, with a big, purple, friendly-faced monster behind the wheel. As the route bypasses such sites as Haunted Mansion and Pumpkin Cottage, shown in a map at the book’s start, the lyrics take a Halloween turn: wide-mouthed ghosts on the bus go “Boo! Boo! Boo!” while pumpkins say “Trick or treat! Trick or treat! Trick or treat!” and anthropomorphic candies—including smiling candy corn—say “Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!” Busy, bright scenes bursting with passengers present opportunities for counting or color identification practice, too. Ages 3–7.

August 1, 2021
A Halloween-creature edition of the familiar tune "The Wheels on the Bus." On its way around town, the bus picks up a Halloween-themed cast of characters, including ghosts, witches, pumpkins, and even sentient candies. The bus driver is a friendly purple monster. After making the rounds, the bus full of creepy creatures is ready for its "next stop: your house!" The text works equally well as a straight read-aloud or sung to the traditional tune. All of the sounds that the bus riders make are fairly obvious: The ghosts go "Boo! Boo! Boo!" and the bats go "Flap! Flap! Flap!" for example. This makes the book participation-friendly even for a crowd that might be hearing it for the first time. Kieley's illustrations sync nicely with the text, and the characters are friendly rather than scary, with lots of playful details. Some of the witches (who display a variety of racial presentations) share a cauldron of cider and play cards on their bus ride, and some of the cats sip from little cartons of milk. One fun additional illustration is the title-page map of the bus route, which includes Sea Monster Swamp, the Scratching Post (where the cats are, of course), and Bat Caves. Little readers will surely enjoy poring over these details as they bounce along through the text. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Exactly as expected, just right for little readers. (Picture book. 2-5)

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September 1, 2021

Toddler-PreS-While there's no shortage of picture book versions of "The Wheels on the Bus," Kieley's seasonal spin on this perennial favorite is a sweet treat. This is a quick tale beginning with a community map and an invitation to climb aboard the Halloween Bus. Each spread features a friendly and familiar Halloween figure, including ghosts, candy, cats, and a cute coven of young witches. The presumably female witches are the only human characters in the book and are depicted with a wide range of skin tones and hair styles. The expressive illustrations set the mood for a cheerful evening with richly saturated colors and subtle textures. The text is a straightforward modification of "Wheels on the Bus" and works sung, chanted, or read aloud. VERDICT A fun and a solid addition to seasonal shelves; purchase where Halloween books for the younger set are in high demand.-Taylor Worley, Springfield P.L., OR

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