Boo to You!

Boo to You! By Lois Ehlert

Picture book for ages 2-6

3 stars

            These two mice dislike this black cat very much.  The mice have a garden that has a pumpkin patch and they are going to throw a fall party.  They decorated the pumpkins to look very scary, and they invited everyone they knew except for that scary cat.  But the cat shows up and the mice put on their masks and scream “Boo to You!” and the cat leaves them alone to their wonderful party. 

            The first time I read this book I found the pictures fascinating but confusing.  Ehlert uses a unique style of collage that she photographed, color Xeroxed, and combined with various colored papers, hand-painted papers, handmade papers, Italian marbleized papers, and twine and string.  I didn’t even realize the ‘main characters’ were mice until the third page and I actually could tell they were mice.  Also, by the second time I read it I noticed that they were in a pumpkin patch with the vines and the big leaves.  As you can tell, everytime I reread it I notice something new that amazes me.  I decided to bring this book to my two-year olds I work with and read it to them.  They loved looking at the pictures for a long time and they repeatedly said “Boo to You!”  I read it to them three times in a row.

            This book is great for the younger children who are starting to read.  It has minimal words but offers them to expand their vocabulary.  One thing that bugged me a little bit was when the mice called the cat a puss and a creep.  It is very negative language to say to a young child who will most likely repeat it.  This book would be great for an opener to the fall season, and to talk about fall harvest because even on the last page Ehlert offers pictures of about 15 different harvest items.