Los Gatos Black on Halloween

Based on the 2006 picture book written by Marisa Montes and illustrated by Yuyi Morales, the mixed English and Spanish Los Gatos Black on Halloween is an atmospheric (and appropriately spooky) seasonal poem in which brujas (witches), fantasmas (ghosts), esqueletos (skeletons), and sundry ghouls, zombies, vampires, mummies, and werewolves gather together on Halloween night to invade a haunted mansion and kick out the jams with a monster's ball—until a surprise knock on the door interrupts the festivities. In the accompanying bonus interview, Montes notes that the various words for the creatures of the night take on additional menace in Spanish, which is absolutely true, especially as delivered by pitch perfect narrator Maria Conchita Alonso, backed by the eerie music of Otmaro Ruiz. Featuring optional read-along subtitles, Los Gatos Black on Halloween deftly mixes iconographic and fluid animation (nicely done by Cha-Pow!) to serve up a fun and scary holiday treat. Recommended. Aud: K, E, P. (R. Pitman)