The Best Halloween Kids Books

Letters from the Witch: Cackle Crackle by Annie Atkins, illustrated by Taryn Knight 

Many years ago on mine and my husband’s first date, we talked about The Ship of Theseus and he sent it to me in the mail after our date (impecable move). This book reminds me so much of that, with letters and interactive elements tucked in throughout the book, which follows five witches as they prepare for the annual witch convention. 

The Pumpkin Thief by Alice Hemming, Illustrated by Nicola Slater
Squirrel is back (of The Leaf Thief fame), and this time someone has stolen his pumpkin. His theatrical, indignant, wildly overblown response is exactly why we love him. I’ve developed distinct voices for Squirrel and Bird, and my kids cackle at every read of every book in this series.

Dog and Bear: Tricks and Treats by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
A gentle, funny early-reader-style Halloween story about two best friends navigating trick-or-treating together. Seeger's illustrations are so warm and inviting, and while this one is perfect for the youngest kids in the house, my almost-eight-year-old loves reading it, too.

Happy Halloween, Witch's Cat! by Harriet Muncaster
From the same author as the beloved Isadora Moon series, this one follows the witch's cat on a Halloween adventure of her own. The artwork in this book is what really captured me and made me want to add it to our list, and we all loved the storyline as well. 

Trick-or-Treating in the City by Tiffany D. Jackson, illustrated by Sawyer Cloud
A joyful celebration of urban Halloween with apartment building trick-or-treating, ringing doorbell after doorbell of neighbors the kids actually know. Tiffany brings such warmth to this one, and it's a great pick for kids who don't live in the "walk-around-the-block" version of Halloween most picture books depict. 

Halloween in the Orchard by Phyllis Alsdurf, illustrated by Lisa Hunt
I love the calming effect of every single book in this series, and the invitation to learn about another way and pace of life than our own. This pastoral Halloween story set in the middle of an apple orchard as the season turns makes me want to move somewhere with proper seasons (which will absolutely never happen, married to my surfer husband).

How to Make Friends with a Ghost by Rebecca Green
Rebecca offers a step-by-step field guide to befriending a ghost, from how to feed them (mudpies, apparently) to how to keep them close as you grow up. It’s a silly story, but also has some tenderness at the end. 

Spells to Cast on Your Parents by Pete Holmes
Comedian Pete Holmes wrote this book about teaching kids to cast spells that is clever and funny, and its format that breaks the fourth wall and gets kids involved with the book reminds me a bit of BJ Novak’s The Book With No Pictures. 

It's Raining Bats & Frogs by Rebecca Colby, illustrated by Steven Henry
A little witch flies tries to stop the rain from ruining her parade, but it turns out bats, frogs, hats, and clogs have their own issues ;)

Enzo's Very Scary Halloween by Garth Stein, illustrated by R. W. Alley
Halloween tols from the perspective of the family dog, who initially questions the whole idea of Halloween, and then eventually embraces his role as the family dragon.

Christopher Pumpkin by Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet, illustrated by Nick East
This is a sweet story about celebrating Halloween your own way. .Christopher is a very unusual pumpkin. Instead of spooky faces, he grins. Instead of scaring, he plays. The other pumpkins in the patch don't know what to do with him, but he eventually wins them over.

Happy Halloween, Fiona by Zondervan, illustrated by Richard Cowdrey
The famous Cincinnati Zoo hippo Fiona takes on Halloween. This gentle, funny read for animal-loving kids had us all grateful we are humans, and introduced us to a news story we weren’t aware of about the real Fiona.

Herbert's First Halloween by Cynthia Rylant, illustrated by Steven Henry
Perfect for the youngest kids in your house or for a kid who is a little nervous about their first Halloween, but my five- and seven-year-olds love it still, too!

Bruce and the Legend of Soggy Hollow by Ryan T. Higgins
Bruce the grumpy bear is back, and this time he's dealing with a Halloween-adjacent legend and a whole lot of chaotic geese. My kids have zero awareness of the original legend and hadn’t yet heard of the headless horseman, but they love everything Ryan T. Higgins writes, and laughed their heads off at the pumpkin-headed mouse nonetheless. 

Frankenkitty by Maudie Powell-Tuck, illustrated by Mini Grey
Another book that breaks the fourth wall, kids are invited to weigh in on whether Frankenkitty is actually as scary as its creator alludes. After being rejected from the house, Frankenkitty is miraculously saved and forgiven of her sins (or was she?).

The Good, the Bad, and the Spooky by Jory John, illustrated by Pete Oswald
An adorable story about how the things that make us different make us special.

The Halloween Tree by Susan Montanari, illustrated by Teresa Martínez
The story of a Christmas tree farm reject’s transformation into the “trick or tree” and is one of my absolute most favorite Halloween reads. I really can’t wait to open it up for the first time every year, and I know both of my boys feel the same way.

Too Many Pumpkins by Linda White, illustrated by Megan Lloyd
An imaginative and engaging story of Rebecca who has a pumpkin prejudice, but turns her lemons into lemonade - er, her pumpkins into pies. Another I can’t wait to come back to every year!

Gustavo, the Shy Ghost and Vlad, the Fabulous Vampire by Flavia Z. Drago
I love this author so much. Gustavo has been a favorite for years, and we love Vlad just as much, too.

Pumpkin Jack by Will Hubbell
The life cycle of a plant brought to life in a fun fictional story of a pumpkin named Jack.

Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson
A rhyming tale of a kind witch who practices inclusivity on her broom from the author of The Gruffalo.

There’s a Ghost In This House by Oliver Jeffers
So much fun ghost hunting through these beautiful, multi-dimensional illustrations with shrieks and giggles.

The Little Ghost Who Was a Quilt by Riel Nason, illustrated by Byron Eggenschwiler
An adorable story about how the things that make us different make us special. Another absolute favorite of ours for the season. 

I Spy Spooky Night by Jean Marzollo, illustrated by Walter Wick
We have long loved this series and enjoy cuddling up together, spending long stretches of time searching for the riddles in the photos. This book (and every other in the series) will give you hours of entertainment!

How to Draw Cute Spooky Stuff by Angela Nguyen

We picked this up at random while breezing through the library and the boys begged me to buy a copy for their permanent collection. It’s been fun to watch them stretch their artistic skills with illustrations that are on the more-cute-than-scary side of Halloween.

Spooky Silly Halloween Jokes by Chris Cate

This has been really fun to watch my oldest run with, often taking it outside to read jokes himself to all the other neighborhood kids.

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown by Charles M. Schulz and Maggie Testa, illustrated by Vicki Scott 

It’s a classic story that carries nostalgia for the parent reading it, and I love that it’s a bit longer than a lot of modern picture books. We err on the side of mixing in old longer stories with new short pithy modern ones because attention spans are one of the investments I care most about in my kiddos. 

Gilbert the Ghost by Guido Van Genechten 

Such a cute and sweet story about a ghost who’s abandoned for not being spooky, but makes the most of his circumstances and ends up influencing others along the way. 

A Very Brave Witch by Alison McGhee, illustrated by Harry Bliss 

It turns out that most witches are afraid of humans, but one very brave witch is not and she decides on one very brave Halloween to go prove it to herself. 

The Witch's Cat and the Cooking Catastrophe by Kirstie Watson, illustrated by Magdalena Sawko 

The cat mixes up a cookbook with a spell book and accidentally turns his beloved witch into a frog. Whoops! Super fun read. 

Mr. Crump, the Heartless Grump by Pog, illustrated by Stephanie Leon 

My Crump is like the Grinch of Halloween, and his cold heart is warmed through the magic of Halloween teddy bears.