LITTLE ORANGE PUMPKIN

A pumpkin gets plenty of excitement on Halloween.

Little Orange Pumpkin sits on the porch with her parents on Halloween night. They review three rules: Remember your manners when given candy; no eating any until getting their OK; stay close. While Little Pumpkin thinks she’s old enough to trick-or-treat alone, her parents believe otherwise. Frustrated and angry, she rolls off the porch, under which she sees a warm orange light. Curious, Little Pumpkin follows it to a hole leading to a wooden door. In front of her is a spooky house. A monster, reminiscent of Daddy, offers a tour. A series of exciting adventures ensue, in which she meets and proves her mettle by engaging with skeletons, goblins, ghosts, a witch (resembling Mommy), a gargoyle, a vampire, bats, and spiders. When Little Pumpkin returns home, her parents assure her that they’re not mad and still love her, even though she shouted. Little Pumpkin concedes that she wants them to observe the third rule: Stay close. This is an enjoyable tale with an uplifting message. Readers will appreciate the Halloween trappings, which form a backdrop for its real story: a child desiring independence, taking those first tentative steps toward it, and being assured of a warm welcome by loving parents. The colorful digital illustrations are animated and filled with non-frightening Halloween characters and symbols. Background humans are diverse.

Halloween might be scary; independence needn’t be.