Scared Silly: A Halloween Treat

Harold & Chester #2

by James Howe, Leslie H. Morrill (Illustrator)

The Monroes leave their cat and two dogs alone on Halloween night, unaware that their pets are about to be visited by a strange figure who might be a wicked witch

Genres: Halloween, Picture Books, Animals, Cats, Childrens, Holiday, Humor

48 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

James Howe has written more than eighty books in the thirty-plus years he's been writing for young readers. It sometimes confuses people that the author of the humorous Bunnicula series also wrote the dark young adult novel, The Watcher, or such beginning reader series as Pinky and Rex and the E.B. White Read Aloud Award-winning Houndsley and Catina and its sequels. But from the beginning of his career (which came about somewhat by accident after asking himself what kind of vampire a rabbit might make), he has been most interested in letting his imagination take him in whatever direction it cared to. So far, his imagination has led him to picture books, such as I Wish I Were a Butterfly and Brontorina (about a dinosaur who dreams of being a ballerina), mysteries, poetry (in the upcoming Addie on the Inside), and fiction that deals with issues that matter deeply to him. He is especially proud of The Misfits, which inspired national No Name-Calling Week (www.nonamecallingweek.org) and its sequel Totally Joe. He does not know where his imagination will take him in the next thirty-plus years, but he is looking forward to finding out.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Stacy ( cr33pycrawlspace )]

Cozy.

[Katt Hansen]

Chester needs to relax. Though seriously - how much of this was him in a panic, and how much was him just finding new and creative ways to torture Howie and Harold? Fun story that fans of Bunnicula will enjoy. :)

[Katherine Loyacano]

Scared Silly: A Halloween Treat is a spooktacular picture book written by James Howe and illustrated by Leslie Morrill. Halloween is usually a fun time at the Monroe house. Harold shares a fur-raising story with his editor about the one Halloween night the Monroes left Harold and his three buddies at home alone. Little do the Monroes know that a strange figure is about to visit their lovable furbabies, causing the whole family to be scared silly.

I adore the Bunnicula series, so to discover that James Howe had also written picture books about my favorite furry friends made me over the moon happy. The storyline is a howling good time with Chester up to his shenanigans, and Harold being the voice of reason. Bunnicula and Howie are precious and included in the nightly adventure. The unexpected visitor adds mystery, suspense, and humor. Leslie Morrill’s colorful illustrations are fangtastic and capture the emotions of the characters perfectly. I loved everything about this picture book. Scared Silly is a sweet treat for readers during the spooky season, especially for fans of Bunnicula.

[Jen]

I read this for ReadORama Fall 2021. It meets the challenge of having autumn colors on the cover.

This is a picture book based on the middle grade series, Bunnicula, by the same author. As always, this is a submission by Howie, the Monroe family’s dog.

The humor from the series is well reflected in this story. I especially loved the humor regarding the witch. The story itself is cute and funny. Bunnicula is also present, which is always great. I loved the parts where Chester was trying to scare Howie.

I adored the full color illustrations, which really brought the Monroe family—especially the animals—to life.

Highly recommend for kids just discovering this series or for people who already enjoy them. I will definitely be checking out the other picture books in this series.

[Pug]

Love Bunnicula books!!!! I'm a sucker for talking animals having adventures, for bunnies who look like vampires, for sarcastic cats saying crazy things, and for doubtful dogs reluctantly following along! And I also love Halloween. And this Halloween story was spooky, funny, cute, action-packed, and just a really fun read. The illustrations were beautiful: the pictures were artsy, the backgrounds gray and spooky, and the animals were super-cute (cuddling up for a nap! aww!), colorful, and expressive.

[Colleen]

I read the Bunnicula books as a kid, and was surprised that they’d made a jump to picture books - but it works terrifically in this goofy story that was just the right side of understandable for my 5 and 2.5 y.o’s - understanding that Chester is teasing the other animals, but also that the pets have then worked themselves up into being overly scared. We read this throughout the Halloween season up until the library started sending stern messages around Christmas time. And I love a good book-series for looping in their interest! Even better that they can then grow into chapter books.

[Emily Bily]

It feels like there are a bit too many characters for this age group. I found myself trying to keep track of names, which was unnecessary in the end.

[Samantha]

3.5 stars.

[Heather]

It's fun to see the characters from the books in the illustrations.

[Ami Morrison]

Super cute little Halloween story! Yay Bunnicula is in the story! :D The art by Leslie Morrill is AMAZING!

[Rissa]

Cute little book for the kids on Halloween.

[Jami J]

Read this to 12 and 8 year old. They liked it, such silly moments and funny dialogue. We especially loved the illustrations

[Dolly]

We enjoyed the Bunnicula story and found this book and another titled Scared Silly (Bunnicula and Friends, #3) at our library. We didn't realize that the two stories we borrowed were basically the same tale with different titles until we read them, but still, we liked the tale and loved the illustrations. We are looking forward to reading more of these stories soon.

[Shanessa (Children Books)]

A fun book told from the point of view of three animals who encounter a rather scary houseguest on Halloween. It has the perfect amount of fright and suspense for young children with a great ending that leaves a lot up to the reader's imagination. Great fun!

[Tate]

This book was too scary for me, but my sister liked it.

[The Styling Librarian]

Cute little picture book, love the characters coming to life in illustrations after reading the books.

[Tiffiny]

Another Bunnicula book my 10-yr-old blazed through.

[Spanish Springs Library Book Buddies]

1. Who walks into the Monroe's kitchen on Halloween night?
2. Who is Bunnicula?
3. Who is Harold, Chester and Howie?
4. Who will save Halloween night?

[Sherry]

Loved it , as always.