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Mouse's Firsts
Mouse's First Halloween
Join Mouse on a spooky fall night. He hears bats flying, leaves falling, and children singing, "Trick or Treat!" What can it mean? Find the answer in this sturdy board book edition of the best-selling picture book.
34 pages, Board Book
First published September 1, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 103 reviews
October 2, 2018
Now perhaps author Lauren Thompson's presented message that one need not be worried about and frightenend of everything (of so many things) is an important lesson to be learned by young Mouse (and indeed by everyone). However, and logically speaking, considering that bats and kittens do indeed both tend to kill and eat mice, Mouse does in fact have more than ample reason to be leery of, to be very frightened of those two entities in particular (the encouraging, the heartening dictum and advice of Mouse's First Hallowee quite notwithstanding). Combined with the fact that I have found Buket Erdogan's accompanying illustrations, whilst most definitely colourfully evocative, unfortunately at the same time also rather too blurry and indistinct for my own personal aesthetics (and in particular the facial expressions of basically ALL of the living beings, from animals to humans, they are in my opinion so artificially grinning that they to my eyes appear both fake and even potentially creepy), I really cannot say that I have all that much enjoyed Mouse's First Halloween, and that while I do appreciate Lauren Thompson's attempt to show that Halloween is really not all that frightening or rather that Mouse should not be so scared of rustling leaves, falling apples and the like, the unfortunte truth of the matter that two of the featured entities of which Mouse is supposed to not be so much frightened anymore (the kittens and the bats) are in fact animals of which ALL mice are or should be intensely afraid, well to me, that kind of defeats the entire purpose of Mouse's First Halloween.
October 7, 2018
I agree that Mouse's First Halloween was rather befuddling to the adult audience who is familiar with the food chain. I wonder why the author did not make them be fake bats and cats -- like Halloween decorations or statues -- that would have made a lot more sense! I do appreciate the concept that what we think will be scary may not be scary at all and it's certainly one that can appeal to young children (especially at Halloween) I'm not sure this one really wowed me (I liked Mouse's First Valentine better) but this might be one where it's more winsome for the target audience than the adults. My almost-three-year-old giggled and giggled and asked for multiple readings.
October 23, 2015
Very quick sing-songy story. The book says for kids aged 2-6. In my opinion, I never really understand how these age suggestions come about. It doesn't really matter what a kid reads as long as he/she is reading. And there's no reason this book wouldn't be good to read to an infant or a one year old. So, to me, the age suggestions are usually arbitrary unless it's a book that will obviously be too difficult for a particular age group.
The story is just about a mouse trying to figure out where various sounds are coming from. Oddly enough, the mouse is not afraid of a group of cats.
Probably wouldn't read for story time. It's not too interesting and there isn't really a story; it's more of a guessing game. But it's a decent book for any kid who might gravitate towards it. It has nice, large pictures and the mouse looks friendly. It would be good for a child who is unsure about Halloween and trick or treating as the mouse realizes the sounds are nothing to be afraid of and he goes home to his parents at the end of the night.
"It's fun to be scared on Halloween night!"
The story is just about a mouse trying to figure out where various sounds are coming from. Oddly enough, the mouse is not afraid of a group of cats.
Probably wouldn't read for story time. It's not too interesting and there isn't really a story; it's more of a guessing game. But it's a decent book for any kid who might gravitate towards it. It has nice, large pictures and the mouse looks friendly. It would be good for a child who is unsure about Halloween and trick or treating as the mouse realizes the sounds are nothing to be afraid of and he goes home to his parents at the end of the night.
"It's fun to be scared on Halloween night!"
October 31, 2013
If the prospect of rhyming all with all, or perhaps just repeating it over and over again, doesn't turn you off, then this is a fun little Halloween book to read little ones. It does a good job of setting them up for a fright, then explaining the creepy and spooky sounds and shapes as mundane things that only seem spooky because of their environment. Today's story hour kids seemed to enjoy it, but the that's all/after all wasn't the most comfortable mouthful or earful for me.
October 18, 2013
A book my 5 yr old as well as my twin 3 yr olds loved. A solid reading level 1 book, this cute story keeps all ages engaged with the bright colorful pictures and cute story. A great addition to any children's library.
October 24, 2012
"Mouse's First Halloween" by Lauren Thompson is a delightful story for young readers. Mouse hears scary sounds as he creeps about on a spooky night. As he walk about he hears "something flying, something moving, and something flapping." Mouse said, "What could it be?" This predictable crescendo of "What could it be?" leads the young reader to wonder and predict who or what is making the noise. The illustrations by Buket Erdogan help the reader to predict what will happen next. "What could it be?, "Not so scary after all," and "Eeek! Mouse squeaked" are repetitive refrains that help emergent readers deepen their meaning of the story. This is a story that readers will want to read more than once.
September 25, 2017
This book can be a little tricky to read out loud at first because the rhythm changes on every other page: half the pages are written in alternating rhyme (ABAB for the most part) and the other half do not rhyme at all. Once you get a few pages in, however, you find that the narration follows a really repetitive pattern, which makes it easier to read out loud. The illustrations are Halloween-esque without being scary, and indeed the whole book serves to point out the things that aren't scary on Halloween - handy for people with young kids who aren't such big fan of the Fright Night aspect of the holiday.
October 29, 2018
This was just ok. It was kind of cute and has a nice message that should resonate with kids, but I expected it to be cuter.
The main issues I had were with the writing and the content, the actual scares. The structure was that this little mouse noticed all of these things which were frightening at first, but upon closer inspection there was always a rational explanation and it turned out to not be scary. I'm not a fan of repetitive writing, but I admit that it would be easy for read-alouds and kids can pick up the thread easily and say the words from memory. It always asked what it could be, and then revealed whatever it was, saying "That's all. Not so scary, after all."
The rhymes were very rudimentary and simple:
"One spooky night when the moon was bright, Mouse crept around, and this is what he found..."
"And they sang, "Trick or treat! Giggle and fright! It's fun to be scared...on Halloween night!"
I thought the giggle and fright was out of place and didn't fit at all. That's not something people say on Halloween at all.
I'm not a fan of onomatopoeia and this was full of it, describing the sounds of the things Mouse was afraid of. I personally wouldn't want to say these words aloud, like "Flit!" and "Eek!"
The scares themselves weren't as Halloween as I would have liked. Every time I flipped the page, I expected it to be something really spooky, and I was disappointed when it wasn't. There were bats, which was the best, a scarecrow, a jack o'lantern, and trick or treaters, but there were leaves, apples, kittens (which would be scary for a mouse!), which weren't that successful for me.
The trick or treaters gave him a piece of candy corn, which he took back to his parents, so that was pretty sweet. He survived his first Halloween and saw what it was all about. The illustrations are full of deep, dark colors and I wish they had been brighter and showed more variation, because things were a little muddled and all the pages had the same color scheme. They were cute though, especially all of the animals and the scarecrow.
The main issues I had were with the writing and the content, the actual scares. The structure was that this little mouse noticed all of these things which were frightening at first, but upon closer inspection there was always a rational explanation and it turned out to not be scary. I'm not a fan of repetitive writing, but I admit that it would be easy for read-alouds and kids can pick up the thread easily and say the words from memory. It always asked what it could be, and then revealed whatever it was, saying "That's all. Not so scary, after all."
The rhymes were very rudimentary and simple:
"One spooky night when the moon was bright, Mouse crept around, and this is what he found..."
"And they sang, "Trick or treat! Giggle and fright! It's fun to be scared...on Halloween night!"
I thought the giggle and fright was out of place and didn't fit at all. That's not something people say on Halloween at all.
I'm not a fan of onomatopoeia and this was full of it, describing the sounds of the things Mouse was afraid of. I personally wouldn't want to say these words aloud, like "Flit!" and "Eek!"
The scares themselves weren't as Halloween as I would have liked. Every time I flipped the page, I expected it to be something really spooky, and I was disappointed when it wasn't. There were bats, which was the best, a scarecrow, a jack o'lantern, and trick or treaters, but there were leaves, apples, kittens (which would be scary for a mouse!), which weren't that successful for me.
The trick or treaters gave him a piece of candy corn, which he took back to his parents, so that was pretty sweet. He survived his first Halloween and saw what it was all about. The illustrations are full of deep, dark colors and I wish they had been brighter and showed more variation, because things were a little muddled and all the pages had the same color scheme. They were cute though, especially all of the animals and the scarecrow.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 29, 2018
This was definitely on the more juvenile side. This would be for very young kids, around kindergarten age.
There’s a lot of repetition throughout, which I don’t like in books. After a few ‘what could it be’s’ and ‘that’s all. not so scary after all’ I was heartily sick of those phrases.
The lessons I took away from it is that there’s an explanation for every sound you hear, and that things aren’t so scary as they first appear. Wow, that rhymed. Also, that there’s a lot going on on Halloween night. Bats flying, leaves falling, scarecrows waving, apples falling, scampering kittens, jack-o’-lanterns flickering, trick-or-treaters knocking on doors.
There’s the element of guessing what mouse saw based on where he was looking and what sound he heard. Kids would probably have fun with that.
I totally thought the thing flapping on a pole was a flag, but it ended up being a scarecrow.
Even though they were kittens, a mouse would definitely be scared of cats.
He hears trick-or-treaters, who give him a piece of candy corn that he takes back to his parent’s house.
It ends with the kids singing “Trick or treat! Giggle and fright! It’s fun to be scared on Halloween night!” which is no Halloween chant I've ever heard.
It captured the mouses Halloween, how he went around scared of everything, hearing a bunch of different noises, and how it can be fun to be scared, especially on Halloween.
The illustrations were ok. Very cute and geared toward real little kids. The kittens looked more like stuffed animals than real kittens.
This was just ok. I felt like there could have been more sounds that were specifically heard on Halloween night. Most of these were more fall than Halloween.
There’s a lot of repetition throughout, which I don’t like in books. After a few ‘what could it be’s’ and ‘that’s all. not so scary after all’ I was heartily sick of those phrases.
The lessons I took away from it is that there’s an explanation for every sound you hear, and that things aren’t so scary as they first appear. Wow, that rhymed. Also, that there’s a lot going on on Halloween night. Bats flying, leaves falling, scarecrows waving, apples falling, scampering kittens, jack-o’-lanterns flickering, trick-or-treaters knocking on doors.
There’s the element of guessing what mouse saw based on where he was looking and what sound he heard. Kids would probably have fun with that.
I totally thought the thing flapping on a pole was a flag, but it ended up being a scarecrow.
Even though they were kittens, a mouse would definitely be scared of cats.
He hears trick-or-treaters, who give him a piece of candy corn that he takes back to his parent’s house.
It ends with the kids singing “Trick or treat! Giggle and fright! It’s fun to be scared on Halloween night!” which is no Halloween chant I've ever heard.
It captured the mouses Halloween, how he went around scared of everything, hearing a bunch of different noises, and how it can be fun to be scared, especially on Halloween.
The illustrations were ok. Very cute and geared toward real little kids. The kittens looked more like stuffed animals than real kittens.
This was just ok. I felt like there could have been more sounds that were specifically heard on Halloween night. Most of these were more fall than Halloween.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 7, 2020
This is the most average book you can possibly imagine. It's literally not good in any way, the illustrations are dated and dim in color, the layout of the text looks like your coworker Paula did it in Microsoft Publisher, the story is whatever - but TEDDY LOVES IT SO MUCH. We have read it every October night (7 times so far) and this morning he brought it into my room to wake me up and read it back to me. He has the whole thing memorized. So, I might not see the appeal, but my toddler is way, way into it!
October 28, 2010
Definitely NOT one for Book Time. Perfect for PreK, even toddler. The pictures are so cute it is impossible for this book to be scary. And the story is simple and cute as well. Good for really young children who might have some Halloween fears. A good fall book, too, with the leaves and apples.
10/26/10 & 10/28/10 This worked well for both groups even with the minuscule numbers on Tue. and huge numbers on Thu. I think they loved the squeaking. And, yes, I make a good squeaking sound, thank you. I liked this better than Mouse's First Fall. More to see and do in this one. And the older children were able to make better guesses than the young infants.
10/26/10 & 10/28/10 This worked well for both groups even with the minuscule numbers on Tue. and huge numbers on Thu. I think they loved the squeaking. And, yes, I make a good squeaking sound, thank you. I liked this better than Mouse's First Fall. More to see and do in this one. And the older children were able to make better guesses than the young infants.
October 28, 2022
I'm not as enamored of the "Mouse's First" series as a lot of storytime librarians seem to be, but this one was a winner. The prose has a nice rhythm, kids can guess what most of the "scary" things are, and it offers a nice way to talk about that sometimes we enjoy things being scary, especially when we know that in the morning we'll be able to see that they're not so scary after all.
May 25, 2019
Mouse’s First Halloween by Lauren Thompson is about a little mouse on halloween night who initially is scared, but realizes that there is nothing to be afraid of and that getting a little scared on halloween is fun. There are a lot of Again and Agains in this short book. Many times, the mouse is scared and he goes ‘eek’ but then realizes ‘that’s all, not so scary after all’. Also the some of the text is in a fun display that almost represents the word, which I thought was pretty clever. There was also a lot of onomatopoeia, which gave a unique feel because there is not a lot of onomatopoeia in older kid books.
This book was really cute and many children would like this book.
This book was really cute and many children would like this book.
August 21, 2020
This is a delightful book! Mouse is a little unsure of all the sounds they hear on what seems to be a spooky night. Maybe the kids can help solve the mystery! What goes flit, flit, flit? And rustle, rustle, rustle? Hmmm - maybe it's not so spooky after all! I think this is a great book to explore how we sometimes feel afraid of things because we don't know what they are. But then once we figure it out -- it's not quite so scary after all! A great book to share with toddlers and preschoolers. And so much fun to try to guess what is making the different sounds!
December 2, 2018
This was a cute Halloween book about a mouse seeing/hearing different things and getting frightened and then realizing it's not actually something scary. I caught L (almost 4 at the time we read this) whispering to herself, "Not so scary after all..." when she did get a little nervous on Halloween. Very Cute! I'd check this one out from the library again.
October 19, 2019
Mouse ventures out on a dark, spooky Fall night, and experiences sights and sounds that he's never witnessed before. But upon a closer look he discovers that the sights and sounds are not what he thought they were. Halloween will do that sometimes, especially if it's your first like it was for mouse.
October 22, 2020
Mouse keeps hearing different sounds throughout the night/book. He doesn't know what they are right away, but a turn of the page reveals different parts of fall/Halloween - leaves, bats, trick-or-treaters. Having little ones guess what they think Mouse is hearing is a fun way to add excitement to this story.
October 29, 2025
10/29/25 Decent 3.5-star choice! A few of the "scary" items could be guessed from the previous page (bats, cat), which made for a fun guessing game with the kids, but most were total mysteries. What IS making a plopping sound, Mouse? An apple. An apple goes plop. Who knew?? But overall it's cute and not too long - my favorite criteria in a storytime book.
August 2, 2017
Age: Infant-Toddler
Mouse listens to the sounds of Halloween with trepidation but soon finds out that they are everyday objects and friends. Perfect to read-aloud for the younger crowd with fun sound effects throughout. Can skip items if the crowd is squirrely.
Mouse listens to the sounds of Halloween with trepidation but soon finds out that they are everyday objects and friends. Perfect to read-aloud for the younger crowd with fun sound effects throughout. Can skip items if the crowd is squirrely.
October 22, 2017
It's Mouse's first time to experience Hallowe'en and he is frightened by everything he sees and hears. Each fright turns out to be "not so scary after all."
Set in rhyme and with wonderful illustrations this is a fun book for young readers.
Set in rhyme and with wonderful illustrations this is a fun book for young readers.
February 26, 2022
My girls aren't scared of Halloween, aren't scared of much really. But this book has lovely Halloween imagery and is an excellent way to introduce nervous children to the idea that nothing is really as scary as it may seem.
June 11, 2022
Very cute! I love the repetition of '"eek!" Mouse squeaked.' and 'not so scary after all.' I also liked the onomatopoeia words throughout. This would be great for young kids who might be a little scared of Halloween.
August 29, 2022
So, no Minka in this book either.
It's basically the same as the Christmas book, except in this one Mouse wanders around in the Halloween night and encounters scary things. Not as good as the Christmas one, but OK. I can imagine kids would like it. I didn't.
It's basically the same as the Christmas book, except in this one Mouse wanders around in the Halloween night and encounters scary things. Not as good as the Christmas one, but OK. I can imagine kids would like it. I didn't.
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September 21, 2022I read this book to my one-year-olds at work and they loved it! It was a super cute story that went beyond the trick-or-treating of Halloween. I think the way it showed that not everything is something to be scared of is very important for young children. The illustrations were really cute too!
October 23, 2022
I'm a mouse. What was that noise? Oh, it's just a bunch of kittens... nothing to be afraid of.
I think the book was trying to tell little kids to not be afraid of too many things, but it got tedious fast.
I think the book was trying to tell little kids to not be afraid of too many things, but it got tedious fast.
October 6, 2017
Read this one with my PreK for H week, and they loved it! Great interactive book for storytime!
October 15, 2017
Josie x 3
October 25, 2017
Good for storytime, especially with the repetition of guessing what Mouse is hearing.
October 25, 2017
Very cute! Love the illustrations. I used this one in Halloween storytime on 10/25/17. The kids love saying, "EEEEK!" with Mouse. :)
October 30, 2017
A Halloween favorite for years for our family. Very cute and sweet. Teaches children not to be afraid of spooky Halloween sounds and sights.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 103 reviews