MY BROTHER'S BUTT IS HAUNTED

A haunted butt? Who could believe it? But the smells don’t lie!

When two siblings spend the night at their grandparents’ new place for the very first time, they are understandably anxious—after all, with its gothic turrets, the house is intimidating. Plus, the neighbors say that it’s haunted. When it’s time for bed, strange noises and smells fill the air, and the kids are sure that an angry ghost is lurking nearby. The tension rises with each page turn as the siblings try to outrun whatever spirit is plaguing them. But as they move from place to place, it somehow stays with them. The protagonist suddenly realizes the source of the odd noises: “The ghost is up your butt!” The kids panic, but the truth is revealed dramatically when Grampa and Gramma open the bedroom door and immediately identify the smell, which isn’t supernatural at all. “I knew chili for dinner was a bad idea,” Gramma says. In Sanchez’s illustrations, green and yellow swirls pop against the muted gloom of the house; readers will positively smell the noxious fumes. From the opening lines—“Tonight is a big stinkin’ deal”—all the way through to the conclusion, this tale will have readers in stitches with its goofy wordplay. The siblings and their grandmother are tan-skinned; Grampa is brown-skinned.

Will have readers giggling from beginning to end.