My first impression of this picture book was, “I cannot believe this book was published for young children to learn and read from.” I do not like this book. I do not like the illustrations. Basically, everything involved represents evil and death. I feel depressed, scared, and lonely after reading this. The words were so graphic and sinful in nature that I wouldn’t possibly surrender my students to this. It is far less than encouraging and in fact supporting bad behavior. The author talks through each letter of the alphabet through poetry on a page and here are some excerpts that I find a little disturbing, especially for a first or second grader:
N, nightmare, seal your fate.
A, apple, delicious, malicious, one bite and you’re dead.
D, demons, the devil, devil, devil, with it all!”
I, an icy stabbing so swiftly done, the victim scarcely felt it.
P, pet, finds the neighbors quite nutritious.
R, rope, to be a hangman’s noose.
V, viper, virulent, villain, venomous, vile, darting poison with a snaky smile.
W, witch, which wicked wickedness, which will we serve? Well, which pretty poison do you deserve?
Most of the pages had bare bones or malicious faces or objects. I know there are numerous scary Halloween movies and books but there is a difference between a scary book and an evil book. What about all of the celebration that comes with Halloween anyways? There could have been something in the book to lighten the mood a little. It was way too dark for my liking.
I haven't read this book because it was checked out but I really wanted to read it for the controversial blog posts. Based on your description of it and the excerpt you gave, I agree that this book would be inappropriate for the classroom. I didn't like any of the quotes from the book that you included in your post, but I especially disliked the quote "A, apple, delicious, malicious, one bite and you’re dead." I didn't like this because it implies that eating an apple can cause death. This is a message that many children will not forget, maybe even causing them to be afraid of different foods (eating disorders...?). I think that any book about evil that is displayed in a graphic and violent way is one that should not be included in any classroom. I liked your idea to point out the celebrations that come with Halloween; good post!
ReplyDeleteI also have not read this book but I completely agree that I would never put it in my classroom. You would probably get so many parent complaints, especially the religious ones because of the talk of the devil. I think that this is definitely a far cry from the typical spooky halloween books. This teaches evil and has no place in the hands of children. I would be interested in seeing the pictures in this book. Also, I think that the words that were used are way too difficult for children to understand.
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