(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Gris Grimly. The tale of the headless horseman, slightly condensed, is reimagined here with humor and vigor. Irving's challenging, boisterously florid language is most effective when read aloud, but Grimly's Halloween-hued panel and spot illustrations, with their emphatic movement and caricaturized figures, parse it into comprehensible tidbits. The comically amplified emotions and warm hues balance the text's horror, helping mute the scare factor.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2007

(3) 1-3 Illustrated by Gary Kelley. Irving's classic tale of schoolteacher Ichabod Crane and his encounter with the headless horseman is presented in its entirety. This tall volume is well designed, with plenty of white space around the text. Unlike other illustrators of this story, Kelley doesn't exaggerate the physical attributes of the protagonist or turn him into a caricature. Instead, the color art is naturalistic, atmospheric, and quietly eerie.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(3) 4-6 Books of Wonder series. Illustrated by Arthur Rackham. Irving's classic story, first published in 1819, was produced as a gift book in 1905 with illustrations by Arthur Rackham. This handsome facsimile edition contains thirty-four of the original fifty-one color plates.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander

(3) 1-3 Moses modernizes the language but preserves the integrity of Irving's original story. Folk-art paintings rendered in autumnal hues suit the story's Revolutionary-era setting and the pastoral vistas of the mountains and aptly convey a colorful cast of characters, from shrewish wife to good-natured layabout to mysterious band of revelers.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute