Review by Booklist Review
Pumpkin and Beetle are best friends and vampire cats who are on a mission to get their favorite comic's newest volume. However, getting the latest copy of the series is not easy when they don't have any money. In each chapter, Pumpkin and Beetle come up with a plan to make some money, but every time, they run into a new problem and must think creatively together to reach their goals. Of course, anything is possible with the power of friendship. Each chapter builds upon the last, presenting a new obstacle for the friends to overcome, from oversupply (who'd buy crabapples when they're free in the forest?) to quality control (their crabapple muffin recipe is less than perfect). There's lots of humor packed into the chapters, and the bold cartoon artwork in a Halloween palette is big enough for new readers to grasp what's happening. Closing with a recipe for "mew-gical muffins" (with regular apples), this early-reader comic is a great choice for little ones who love Halloween but aren't ready for real scares.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Horn Book Review
In this comic for newly independent readers, Pumpkin and Beetle are vampire cats (not kittens, thank you very much), and they desperately want the latest Frightfuls comic book. But they don't have the $6.66 necessary to purchase it. With their ghost cat friend, Boo, they come up with several ways to raise the money. Unfortunately, no one wants to shop at their crabapple stand or buy their "well-done" crabapple muffins. A serendipitous encounter with bookstore owner Mrs. Owl, who's in need of crabapples for an apple-bobbing station, solves their dilemma. Ho primarily uses one- and two-syllable words to make her work accessible to young chapter-book readers, with occasional more challenging words (Hallowville, elementary). She effectively uses a mix of single-page illustrations, double-page spreads, and different-sized panels to keep the visual interest high. Fittingly, her digital illustrations frequently feature the colors orange and black. But there's nothing here that will give anyone a real fright; even the witches look friendly. Ho treats us to a few pages of the Frightfuls comic once the cats get their paws on a copy, and readers will likely enjoy this mildly spooky mystery. A recipe for "mew-gical muffins" is appended. Marva Anne HintonSeptember/October 2025 p.66 (c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Two young friends start a small business in hopes of achieving their dreams. Though their names may not immediately suggest it, Pumpkin and Beetle are felines--cute, petite vampire cats to be specific. They live in a Halloween-themed village populated by curious creatures; their elementary school classmates include a mummy, a pumpkinhead, a witch, and a wolf. When Pumpkin and Beetle spot a comic book they want to buy in the town bookshop, they realize they need to earn money to buy it. A brainstorming session ensues, and they finally settle on selling crabapples. That idea is a bust ("I can find crabapples in the forest!" one of their prospective customers tells them), so they make various entrepreneurial pivots to create a more exciting product, eventually cooking up some rather burnt crabapple muffins. These, too, are a flop, and Pumpkin and Beetle are close to despair, but a timely barter just might be the solution to their conflict. An enjoyable exercise in persistence, problem-solving, and happy compromise, this graphic novel features succinct text, ideal for readers of many skill levels, while the cartooning is more sweet than spooky. One of the friendly recurring characters is a floating, silently supportive pink ghost cat named Boo--an especially adorable addition. A glimpse into the comic that Pumpkin and Beetle are obsessed with purchasing and a presumably yummier apple muffin recipe round out the book. Feel-good feline fun.(Graphic fiction. 5-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
