Duck & Goose, Honk! Quack! Boo!

As Halloween arrives, Goose’s nerves are getting the best of him, especially after Halloween-loving Thistle (first seen in Duck, Duck, Goose) tells Goose and Duck to “beware the swamp monster.” Even a superhero costume doesn’t help Goose summon much bravery, especially after the swamp monster shows up during trick-or-treating in the forest. Readers won’t share Goose’s fear—Hills leaves big visual clues about who’s under all that green swamp muck—and before the story is over Goose and Duck deliver a small scare of their own. As in the previous books in this series, Hills’s understated writing and serene paint-and-pencil artwork treat these friends’ emotions with respect. He has a little fun at their expense as they race, wide-eyed, away from the swamp monster, but readers will understand that being frightened is completely natural and that, sometimes, the sources of those fears aren’t “that scary after all.” Ages 3–7. (Aug.)