When I was seven or eight I remember asking my mom if it was too early to plan my Halloween costume. It was July. Her answer was, "You can start thinking of ideas, but we aren't going to make anything until September." So according to her, we are in the clear! If you know anyone who is chomping at the bit to break out the bed sheets, pom poms, and hot glue gun, here are some picture books about costumes! Mysterious Mittens : A Moontime Cats Halloween Story Written by Jordan Morris Illustrated by Charlie Mylie Somerville. MA : Candlewick Press, 2026. Picture book. A pack of costumed cats make Halloween mischief around the neighborhood. Carl, Biscuit, Peewee, and Mittens (or someone disguised as Mittens...) climb trees, provoke dogs, and smash jack-o-lanterns on an extra spooky night. The cute illustrations of funny, expressive kitties are rendered in warm, glowy colors on nocturnal backgrounds. The case of mistaken identity makes for an amusing throughline in this story. ...
My Animalitos/Mis animalitos Written by Monica Brown Illustrated by John Parra New York : Ediciones NorteSur, an imprint of NorthSouth Books, Inc., 2026. Pequeño libro ilustrado. In this adorable bilingual board book, Mexican artist Frida Kahlo introduces kids to animals in English and Spanish. As the book goes on, Frida is shown growing from childhood to adulthood while gaining attributes she sees in the animals, whether it be becoming caring like a dog, intelligent like a turkey, or beautiful like a butterfly. The format, which starts each page with "I am" followed by an attribute and the animal will allow kids to "read along" as you share the story. The brightly-colored folk art illustrations evoke the feeling of Frida's work while taking kids directly to Frida's Mexican home. Whether kids are learning Spanish as a second-language or speak it fluently, this book will be reread again and again.