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Little Goblins Ten, co-author Pamela Jane’s Halloween book for children, has been receiving rave reviews  but there are no kitties in this spooky retelling of the classic rhyme Over in the Meadow.  But, kitty-lovers take heart!  The Christmas sequel, Little Elfie One will be out from Harper in 2015 – and there will be kitties in it – ten to be exact!  Like Goblins,  Elfie will be illustrated by NY Times best-selling illustrator, Jane Manning.  In the meantime, enjoy Goblins!

                                                  Reviews

“Numerous titles interpreting “Over in the Meadow” have been published, but trust the team of Jane and Manning to conjure up an impressive new vision in time for Halloween…Even though this is essentially a counting rhyme, the author elevates the reading and listening experience with interactive rhyming text that is rich with alliteration and strong action words: The monster “scared and he scampered,” ghosts “hid and they haunted,” witches “crowed and they cackled” and bats “swooped in the shadows.” The story begins and ends with the green-horned monster mommy and her little monster one -“‘Trick or treat?’ asked the mommy; / ‘Treat!’ cried the one. / So they skipped off together / For some Halloween fun!” Truly satisfying.”—starred, Kirkus Reviews

“‘Over in the Meadow’ gets a Halloween makeover in this picture book…Manning’s muted blue-green, brown-orange illustrations fill the spreads with kid-friendly monsters. Libraries in need of monster-filled Halloween tales may consider this as an additional purchase.”—School Library Journal

“In a gently spooky spin on “Over in the Meadow” that counts up to 10, various ghouls and beasts groan, swoop, and haunt. Jane has fun playing within the nursery rhyme’s parameters, whether peeking in on a family of zombies (“ ‘Stare!’ said the mommy; ‘We stare,’ said the three”), howling werewolves (dressed in patchwork overalls), or a rattling “father skeleton/ And his little skellies eight.” Manning’s quirky and expressive monster families are 10 kinds of cute.”—Publishers Weekly

“The classic counting rhyme ‘Over in the Meadow’ goes spooky in this Halloween riff, which should endure well past Oct. 31. Beginning with its opening ‘big mommy monster / and her little monster one,’ readers are rewarded with ample humor and wit. Manning’s ghosts, zombies and dragons look as if they’ve just emerged from a color-saturated waterworld. And there’s a sweetness to the parental-offspring interactions in the playful, alliterative text.”—New York Times Book Review

“The rhymes are infectious and use creative verbs for the action of each creature. “We stare,” say the zombies as their big green googly eyes pop out of their weird purple faces. The fun and silly watercolor illustrations are wonderful. Even creepy creatures like the “little skellies eight” and the “little batties nine” have friendly faces.”—Common Sense Media