(2) PS It's Halloween, and the Very Busy Spider is looking for her friends, and, one by one, from beneath flaps, they each appear. The sky changes from blue to purple to a warm black as the friends are located, and the only actual holiday motif to be found is a carved pumpkin being nibbled upon by, natch, the Very Hungry Caterpillar. Reviewing a foldout board book from a PDF requires a leap of faith, but this one looks like simple, un-scary fun for the youngest Halloweeners.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2020

(2) PS This board book has a spread for each night of the holiday, with a lit menorah keeping count while the Very Hungry Caterpillar and friends engage in various holiday activities: "We eat!...We play with dreidels!...We eat again!" The book is informative with a fair amount of detail--there's even some Hebrew and Yiddish vocabulary--though the background provided is understandably brief (and miracle-focused). Each spread, illustrated with Carle's signature cheery collage with plenty of white space, shows the Caterpillar exploring the holiday landscape (don't try shinnying up a lit shamash at home!). A friendly, helpful introduction.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2020