Hugo's Haunted Handbook

Written and illustrated by Dave Whamond

Owlkids Books

978-1-77147-587-7

32 pp.

Ages 5-8

Releases March 15 2024

 

Who better to help others get rid of their unwanted ghosts than Hugo? After all, he got rid of his ghost. Or did he?

From Hugo's Haunted Handbook, written and illustrated  by Dave Whamond

Hugo's first instruction is to ensure that you really have a ghost, so he has devised three simple experiments. The first involves cookie crumbs, the next uses a camera, and finally there's locating any ectoplasm.  (He also notes that the pros use EMF Readers.)

From Hugo's Haunted Handbook, written and illustrated  by Dave Whamond

So, if you have a ghost, the next step is to learn about them. Did you know that they watch us, have bad days, get static cling, and love practical jokes?

Darn! They short-sheeted me again! You guys...

The problem for Hugo isn't that ghosts are necessarily scary; they are just annoying. (No one wants to be interrupted in the bathroom!) So, Hugo has 5 useful tips that the reader can use to get rid of their ghost forever.

With Tip #1, to yell "Bam shicka lam shicka boom boom bam" three times, Hugo gets to work. Trouble is that the ghost doesn't seem to respond as Hugo wishes.

Yep, still here.

Now what? Hugo tries several other fixes, all things that kids can do. (Okay, cooking up the Ghoul Begone potion might be tricky if you can't get your hands on maggot snot or aardvark poop, though raisins always seem to be plentiful when you're a kid.)

From Hugo's Haunted Handbook, written and illustrated  by Dave Whamond

Sadly, Hugo's ghost gets his feelings hurt with Hugo's claims about the supernatural being. Will their relationship ever be the same? Or should it?

Hugo is so earnest in his endeavours that it's hard not to take him seriously. But, with his quirky suggestions, coupled with an uncooperative ghost who is always peeking out, listening, commenting, and just being present, Hugo doesn't quite cut it as an aficionado at ghost elimination. What's worse is that instead of getting rid of his ghost, Hugo has offended the little guy who thought they were friends. By turning the tables on Hugo and his ghost, author-illustrator Dave Whamond just adds another dimension to an already amusing interaction, taking Hugo's Haunted Handbook from funny to side-splitting.  

From Hugo's Haunted Handbook, written and illustrated  by Dave Whamond

Dave Whamond can always get his readers laughing, both through his text filled with word play, and his cartoon illustrations. (Check out Muddle School, Alien Nate, and Nick the Sidekick for three previous examples.) With a ghost who feels down–"You haven't said BOO all day!"– or who complains about getting Cheeze Doodles' orange dust all over his white outfit, or with Hugo remembering their game of Hide-and Ghost Seek, Dave Whamond plays with his words and makes us laugh. But then the words are accompanied with Dave Whamond's comic artwork and all the scenes become wilder and yet still familiar. Kids, and their parents, will laugh at the scary recorder practice, the "ghost slime" at the bottom of Hugo's backpack, and Hugo lamenting the ghost ruining his sales pitch. 

If you have a ghost, reading Hugo's Haunted Handbook might be helpful but it might just offer suggestions to being a good friend, still an admirable endeavour. Now, about those monsters.

How to Make a Friend

Written by Stephen W. Martin

Illustrated by Olivia Aserr

Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

978-1-328-63184-8

32 pp.

Ages 4-7

July 2021

Most kids would love to know an easy and sure-fire way to make a friend. If only it was as easy as following a set of instructions. Then again, maybe it is.

From How to Make a Friend by Stephen W. Martin, illus. by Olivia Aserr

Where to start? How about the library? That's where our earnest young girl finds a book that she's sure "with the right power tools and a basic understanding of Advanced Robotics" will help her face the challenge of making a friend. She's very meticulous, wearing her lab coat and safety goggles, and even asking her parents before handling plutonium (!). And she knows to make important decisions about the type of friend she wants i.e., what will they be able to do with her, before she gets started. That, and always measuring twice and cutting once, seems like wise advice.

From How to Make a Friend by Stephen W. Martin, illus. by Olivia Aserr

Of course, her friend is not exactly as she envisions. The tea parties, hide-and-seek, and water fights don't exactly come off as planned. (How can a friend bigger than a car really hide?) And sometimes a friend doesn't want to play or wants to play with others, and that's OK. What's not OK is when your friend starts doing the wrong stuff and you need to cut them loose (or switch them off).

Don't feel bad. Some friendships just don't work out...

From How to Make a Friend by Stephen W. Martin, illus. by Olivia Aserr

But trying to "make" a friend may be just the stepping stone this little girl needs to make a human friend that works out a little better.

Canadian-born Stephen W. Martin, now a resident of California (why, oh why?) may couch his tale of making a friend in the premise of a child building a robotic one, but all his advice, from acceptance of their differences, the possibility of them making other friends, and even abandoning them when the friendship goes awry, is all valuable and highly valid. Friendships are not easy. They are a lot of work and sometimes the work doesn't pay off. But there's always an opportunity to learn what you like or don't like in a friend and How to Make a Friend will give kids a chuckle while teaching them important lessons about friendship.

Olivia Aserr, an LA artist of books and animation, gives How to Make a Friend fabulous digital artwork that is bold in colour and shape and daring in its approach. This little girl is fierce. She doesn't just create a life-size friend; she goes big, really big. Even her lab is sophisticated. And she takes every step as a learning moment about what she wants and doesn't need in a friend. Not only is she intelligent, she's astute, and Olivia Aserr asserts this about the child time after time.

While your children may not have the capabilities of making their own robotic friend at home, Stephen W. Martin guides them through a process that will help them make one smartly but in the old-fashioned way.