An Eyeball in My Garden and Other Spine-Tingling Poems

by Jennifer Cole Judd (Editor), Laura D. Wynkoop (Editor), Johan Olander (Illustrator)

“For all who bravely dare/ To read this haunted sonnet,/ May you be made aware/ A spell’s been cast upon it. . . .” From spiders to mummies to the elusive Boogeyman, these pages hold a little bit of everything creepy, crawly, and just plain spooky. With a pinch of terror and a dash of humor, readers will be cast into a shadowy world, where creatures lurk and nightmares dwell. Surprises abound on every page, waiting to pull in readers . . . sometimes literally. . . .

Genres: Poetry, Picture Books, Halloween, Childrens

64 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 2010

About the author

Jennifer Cole Judd is the author of a new rhyming picture book, CIRCUS TRAIN, (Two Lions, March 2015, and co-editor of AN EYEBALL IN MY GARDEN, a spooky middle grade poetry anthology (Marshall Cavendish, 2010).

Jennifer dreams of running away to the circus, but for now is content juggling life with a husband, five children, and slightly overweight terrier. Jennifer resides in Texas.

Reviews

[Justin Tate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Awesome as far as looks are concerned. I love the glossy cover, tight hardback design and beautifully eerie illustrations. As for the content itself, I have to dock a few stars. The poetics tend to lean choppy and the rhyming is un-inspired. Still, this could be a fun way to get youngsters interested in poetry, even if they roll their eyes while reading most of them.

Not all are bad, however. I did have a few favorites which I thought were quite witty and a joy to read. Here's my top 5:

- Spooky
- Halloween Night
- Ghost Fish
- Spooky Jack
- Read at Your Own Risk

OVERALL: Beautifully designed book with a mixed-bag of eerie poems. Not every verse will be a crowd-pleaser, but some will be fun to recite by the campfire or during Halloween. Moderately recommended.

[Gary · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was a first reads book that i won. i had no idea what to expect and i was very, very pleasantly surprised. the poems were written by a variety of different poets,and as i tended to procrastinate while getting around to writing this review,there are many i have read a few times and can get different ideas from same poem read on different times which is what i like in poetry that i consider good. the illustrations are absolutely fantastic. each person who has picked up this book and glanced at a picture has not put it down without going through whole book with lots of oohs and aahs. i can not stress enough how much i enjoyed the illustrations,both my themselves and how they added to the words of the poems.any teacher who wants to get a book that students will actually read and enjoy should order this. the only thing i would disagree with is it said for ages 8-12. perhaps the 8 is fine but no limit to the upper age as i passed the 60 mark few years ago and stilled enjoyed reading this book. thanks for the good read. gary

[Tobyann Aparisi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book!! I couldn't wait to read it, and once it arrived, I tore through the package and devoured it, poem after poem! The art is phenomenal. I know this book is probably geared to the young, but I do not care! I love it. The poems are thought provoking, mysterious and fun. I love frogs so I was thrilled to see the last poem is about a frog. The poems were out loud reading enjoyment to the ears. The art is just awesome! I am so honored to own this book. It will be my favorite Halloween and anytime treat for a spooky and fun time.

[Catherine Brennan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recieved An Eyeball in My Garden through giveaways, and it is awesome. Some of the poems made me cringe, they were so creepy. Others made me laugh out loud. This book of poetry is the perfect mix of horror and humor. Truely worth a read.

[B.J. Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

great children's collection of spooky poems. Wonderfully done by members of The Poet's Garage. Pick one up in time for Halloween!

[aubree Noelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poetry is so easy to read, it's also really enjoyable. I love all the story's, they all have details on what the thing is. I also think it's really creative, nobody wakes up and says ima write this book. And make it this good.

[Emmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who doesn't love spooky poetry? This was a really fun collection that I stumbled on by chance. And boy did I enjoy it! These were some delightfully creepy (but never scary) Halloween poems that I think kids are really going to dig.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

The perfect book of poems for little boys, or anyone who loves a spine tingling read.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I'm preying for you."

"An Eyeball in My Garden" is a collection of 44 poems, some funny, some spooky, some quite scary. The poems range from sophomoric to quite good. The black line illustrations are very good and really add to the book.

My favorite of the poems are: 1. Where Nightmares Dwell 2. Camp Creepy 3. Come Closer, Closer 4. Winking Wot Warning 5. Graveyard Hill 6. Beneath the Stairs 7. Mad Scientist 8. Our Neighborhood 9. The Witching Hour 10. Haunted 11. October 31st 12. Swamp Witch 13. The Wishing Well

I tended to like the creepier of the poems. And there are some chillers so I wouldn't recommend this for small children. The synopsis says 4th-6th grade and that's probably about right.

[Michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

My sister-in-law wrote three of the poems, so of course, I had to read it. It has some that I really enjoyed. I questioned some of the editing, it seemed like they would put the same authors next to each other, or at least very close together, which seemed odd to me. But there are some fun ones here. My faves are "Spooky" "Voices" and "Read at your Own Risk." Of course, Christy's are the best, but maybe I'm a wee pit prejudiced!


VOICES
by Jennifer Cole Judd
A murmur down the hallway,
A wail upon the breeze.
A rustle from the patio
A whisper in the trees.

A sigh inside my closet,
Behind my bed a groan,
Why must these ghosts get chatty
Whenever I'm alone?

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a long time I've looked for a book of spooky poems I could read aloud to my kids during October, so I was thrilled when I won this book on Goodreads. The poems run the gambit from silly (Mummy's Menu) to scary (Haunted). While I think the black and white illustrations make the book, be warned: if your child is very young and/or scares easily, this may not be the right book for them. Although it's for kids, some of the poems and illustrations are downright creepy. Still, my kids and I really enjoyed this book. It'll be dog-eared and well-worn by the time Halloween is over!

[Sandra Stiles · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a collection of poems that would be best read around Halloween. "Bedtime Story" by Susie Sawyer was one of my favorites. We read a poem that leads you to believe that a ghost family lives in a house with its human counterparts. As we get to the end we learn that the ghost is actually the grandparent telling the story to the grandchild. This is a group of creepy, crawlie, funny poems sure to tickle the funny bone of all of my students.

[Annette]

oh boy, fun and there is an adult to this farce of fun and gibberish kid language-MOTEL HELL once gorgeous 1952-65 American actor Rory Calhoun...! Do not mention Norman Bates I feel if I had an option to shoot the character before he became a character in a film and book-I wound not film or write of this Theodore Bundy freak...! Now eyeball garden wait for next Halloween scary makings on paper by old lady me. loved the genre

[Wendy Sparrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

The poems in this book were so cleverly done. I found myself smiling frequently as I read. My favorite poem was Hixon House by Susie Sawyer. I don't think any were scarier than some of the more morbid Shel Silverstein poems. I'd let my nine year old son read it...and I might sit beside him and reread them.

[Sydney · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a quick book and easy but a few of the poems are a little creepy... But most are about trick or treating or dressing up if you choose this I would definitely read it to the end after all there are only 64 pages.

[Allison · Rating 1 out of 5]

got bored and didn't want to finish

[Anne Wi]

This was really cute; scary but not too scary. I think this is a great book for all ages.