Halloween?

Halloween is not my favorite holiday. The dressing up is fun! But, the potential for greed and vandalism does exist. So, sometimes when our children were young we simply went to dinner and a movie on Halloween. There were other times when we participated in church or neighborhood activities on that night. With those ambivalent feelings, how did I come to write a book that ends with a Halloween celebration?

Well, one positive thing about Halloween is that it has the potential for talking about and building community and relationships. Why does the little bear in Grandma’s story want to wear something special when going out with friends? How do we see ourselves? Are costumes just for fun or is there a deeper meaning in them? The answers to these questions could be important.

In Grandma’s story, Bear has 11 animal friends and each of them wears their own unique costume. The illustrations are line drawings, artfully done in tone on tone, with just a splash of color. It is a beautiful and FUN book, IF you celebrate Halloween.