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Babymouse #9

Monster Mash

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Meet Babymouse--the spunky mouse beloved by young readers for more than a decade! Halloween is here and Babymouse wants to have the best costume party ever! What spooky surprises could be in store? This groundbreaking young graphic novel series, full of humor and fun, is a bestseller that’s sold more than three million copies!
 
"Move over, Superman, here comes Babymouse!"— The Chicago Sun-Times

It was a dark and scary Halloween. . . . This year, Babymouse is determined to have the best Halloween costume and the best Halloween party ever. Will Babymouse be the monster of her dreams? Will Felicia Furrypaws come to the party? And is that really the creature from the black lagoon living in Babymouse’s locker? Find out in Monster Mash —the 9th hilarious, action-packed installment of the beloved Babymouse graphic novel series!

DON'T MISS The BIG Adventures of Once Upon a Messy Whisker , the newest, brightest, and BIGGER THAN EVER graphic novel from BABYMOUSE!

96 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2008

86 people are currently reading
909 people want to read

About the author

Jennifer L. Holm

121 books1,723 followers
Jennifer L. Holm is a USA TODAY and NEW YORK TIMES-bestselling children's author with more than 9.8 million books in print She is the recipient of three Newbery Honors for her novels OUR ONLY MAY AMELIA, PENNY FROM HEAVEN, and TURTLE IN PARADISE and a Scott O'Dell Award for her novel FULL OF BEANS.

Jennifer collaborates with her brother, Matthew Holm, on three bestselling graphic novel series -- the Eisner Award-winning Babymouse series, the SUNNY series, and the Squish series. SQUISH is now an animated tv series on YouTube!

For more information, visit her website at www.jenniferholm.com.

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5 stars
1,206 (47%)
4 stars
633 (24%)
3 stars
481 (18%)
2 stars
136 (5%)
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90 (3%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 127 reviews
Profile Image for Anne.
4,745 reviews71.3k followers
June 11, 2014
I had to read this one to my 6 year old in the library the other day.
Which was kind of embarrassing, since she requires me to do the voices when I read. But it's all for the Greater Good, right?
Right?

Anyhoo, Monster Mash was a riveting addition to the Babymouse library. Really.

Our intrepid hero must decide if it's better to Be Yourself or to be one of the cool kids. In the end, she decides she's rather be cool.
Kidding!
She finds out that it's not much fun pretending to like stuff that you don't, and she kicks the Mean Girls to the curb.

We clapped at the end!
Well, we made quiet clappy hands. After all, we were at the library!
Profile Image for Kelly.
372 reviews14 followers
September 4, 2020
Lovely Halloween children's book with a great message about always being true to yourself and following your own heart. Don't try so hard to fit in because you are perfect the way you are! Those who matter are the ones who will see and appreciate that!
Profile Image for Calista.
5,432 reviews31.3k followers
October 27, 2017
2.5 Stars. It's a little too old for a 6 year old, at least my 6 year old. Still, this is for kids, probably 8-10 depending on your kid. Some of the pictures were too gory for my niece and nephew. The story was good.

Babymouse has some mean kids who invite themselves to her Halloween party. They encourage her to do bad things like TP a house and egg a house. Babymouse is too scared to stand up to them at first. Then she finds who she is and she does stand up to them.

So the story is good. I am not a big fan of the art. I might try another one of these when the kids are a little older.
Profile Image for Amelia.
44 reviews3 followers
June 20, 2018
This book was really good. The only thing I did not like about it is that it was very boring in the beginning and pulled me into the story at the end of the book. And I like books that is interesting all the way to the end of the book other than that, this boom was really good. So I gave it 4 STARS!
Profile Image for Travis.
Author 6 books61 followers
January 3, 2009
My worst Halloween costume ever? A member of the hip-hop group (I prefer “crew”) Kris Kross. What can I say? It was the early 90s and I was a fan. In later years I realized that the costume you pick says a lot about your personality. Pick a police officer? You’re trying to be cool. Pick a recently popular figure in the media? You’re trying to be funny. But that’s mostly just for guys. Girls have a whole other set of unwritten Halloween rules, and in “Babymouse: Monster Mash” we see how those rules can have an impact on your social life. Full of the same wit that has been an unfailing hallmark of the Babymouse series, “Monster Mash” is a graphic novel full of the sort of real-life friend troubles that younger readers will identify with.

It’s October and Babymouse is thinking about Halloween. When her mother gives the okay to a post-trick-or-treating party, Babymouse can’t wait. She starts inviting guests, but the invitee list soon gets out of hand. She even invites Felicia and her posse (a.k.a. the cool kids). But these new friends soon start making demands that our heroine isn’t eager to go along with. Although she wants to go as either a warewolf or a zombie, Felicia insists Babymouse choose a prettier costume (it’s a rule). Next, Babymouse is forced to ditch her true friends and trick-or-treat with Felicia and the gang. When trick-or-treat turns into T.P.-ing and egging houses, Babymouse realizes that no friends are worth getting in that much trouble for.

Once I started reading, it was hard to put this one down. Babymouse books have a way of keeping the reader engaged all the way through. Be it with daydream sequences, humorous situations, or moments of genuine feeling, the plot never plods.

The illustrations, created in ink, as inventive as ever. This is the first Babymouse book to forego the pink color scheme in favor of an appropriate pumpkin orange. I think this was a smart move. Not only does it instantly I.D. this as a halloween title, but the absence of pink might also result in more boys picking it up.

Entertaining through and through, “Monster Mash” is a book you should have on hand.
Profile Image for (NS) Lisa.
55 reviews
October 17, 2009
Babymouse prepares for Halloween, but every time she tries to enjoy herself, mean cat girl Felicia Furrypaws is there to run the fun. Felicia Furrypaws tells Babymouse that girls have to wear pretty costumes (even though Babymouse wants to go as a zombie), that trick-or-treaters must coordinate their costumes (even though Babymouse hates dressing up as a fairy), and that Babymouse has to invite Felicia's friends to her party (even though Babymouse is pretty sure the girls are evil). But when the bullies make Babymouse vandalize houses on Halloween, Babymouse realizes they have crossed a line. Can she stand up to them and have a happy Halloween?
This 9th story of the Babymouse novels continues to entrigue readers from 3rd through 8th grades.
Profile Image for Haleigh Chacon.
34 reviews1 follower
November 1, 2016
Babymouse #9 Monster Mash by Jennifer L. Holm is a funny,spooky,great book to read if you are into the babymouse series.It was a easy holiday book that includes babymouse and her adventure on halloween.But when a popular cat comes around and tells babymouse what to be for halloween and to prank people,babymouse feels terrible.I love how babymouse still is herself in a humorous way that I loved.Each moment I would laugh at babymouse's jokes.Reading the comic book was very interesting to read since it was about babymouse's expirence during halloween which I've never read before.I rate this book five stars because it is funny,interesting,and overall awesome.Jennifer L. Holm wrote a great comic book for halloween that is now one of my favorite books.
Profile Image for Michael.
815 reviews93 followers
October 31, 2015
This was all about an important lesson for Babymouse about peer pressure and Halloween. Felicia Furrypaws is again her antagonist (the narrator notes the irony of a repeated lesson for Babymouse from book #1), and it is a hard lesson indeed. It was not all fun and games, but it was a realistic slice of childhood. Any lesson that involves zombies must be a good one!
Profile Image for Meredith.
2,111 reviews21 followers
September 11, 2010
Another great Babymouse, this time in orange! Whoever said orange is the new pink was seriously disturbed. JK, it totally works for Halloween. I found the ending to be especially satisfying.
Profile Image for Rebecca.
2,756 reviews36 followers
January 27, 2014
Enjoyed this, but not as much as the 2 previous volumes. I liked the way Babymouse got up the courage to stand up for herself in the end.
36 reviews16 followers
May 1, 2016
meh. i've never really been a fan of baby mouse, so it was meh.
16 reviews
January 27, 2022
Review of “Babymouse Monster-Mash”


Can you imagine a little mouse celebrating Halloween? Well if you read Jennifer L. and Matthews Holm’s “Babymouse Monster-Mash” you can!
I think you should read this book because it’s spooky, adorable and really funny and pretty creative! This is why I think people around the world should read this book.I recommend reading “BabyMouse monster-mash” because it has hilarious text , and is very cute and it can relate to real life problems too! Just like on page 20 babymouse had drool, whiskers everywhere, bed hair and bloodshot eyes and that was really funny! “Babymouse Monster-mash” is also very cool because she can get revenge and be clumsy most of the time. Just like on page 88 she gets revenge on her mean bully! I also like the story because it is set up in comic strips which makes it easy to read. Just like throughout the book there are speech bubbles and pictures.
In conclusion this is why I think you should read “BabyMouse Monster-mash” . Because the story is good because the story has comic strips and chat bubbles. It also is the most hilarious book and can relate to real life problems too! This is why I think you should read this awesome book. By Grace.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Morgan.
43 reviews4 followers
November 23, 2011
This was a very cute little graphic novel. I picked up the Halloween one because I am a huge fan of Halloween, and I don't have very many holiday-themed books at my disposal/read library. This was very interesting. Instead of being a pink book, which it looks is the standard of Babymouse novels, this one is in orange! Very festive.

It talks about peer pressure and the wanting to conform. For example, for Halloween, Babymouse wants to either be a Warewolf, a Mummy or a Zombie. However, one of the popular girls greatly disagrees with this, insisting that Babymouse has to be something "prettier" because she's a girl. I think that this idea is something that most girls have one conflict or another with. I know personally I really wanted to be the "cutesy" costume when I was younger, rather than the scary ones.

The thing about this book, and from the reviews that I have read of other babymouse books, is that Babymouse is always pressured into changing her standards to that of the popular crowd, but always chooses to be good and right at the end, and understands that being with the popular crowd doesn't make you a good person. The reason for this is because the popular girls start egging/TPing houses and Babymouse decides that this is not the right thing to do.

This is definitely a series that will lend itself to girls, but it could be good to have in a classroom where a lot of girl drama is happening.

The only reason that I didn't give this a five would be because of its audience restrictions, as well as the fact that I didn't find the pictures that endearing. When looking at graphic novels, I personally want pictures that aren't so cartoon-y, but to each their own. I think that children will like it, and that is all that really matters. :)

Overall, good read.
67 reviews
December 4, 2008
Trading in the typical pink-hued pages for bold splashes of orange, Babymouse is ready to celebrate Halloween! She and best friend Wilson are excited to make scary costumes and have a great party after trick or treating. But when mean and popular Felicia Furrypaws decides to attend Babymouse’s party, she sets up all sorts of rules, effectively trampling on all of her hopes for fun. Babymouse gets pressured into dressing up as something pretty and playing pranks on the neighbors. Young readers will cheer when Babymouse stands up to the bully in the end and finally gets to have some real Halloween fun the way she wants. For this special Halloween installment, Babymouse’s daydreams are filled with appropriately spooky references to monster films, MacBeth, and sinister personalities, while maintaining their characteristic fresh and funny approach. Even Babymouse’s miserable night of trick or treating is a nod to Charlie Brown, although she hauls home a bag of dental products instead of rocks. Of course it doesn’t matter if children don’t get the allusions; none of this will diminish the enjoyment of another sparkling installment about our spunky heroine.
Profile Image for Allison.
1,483 reviews3 followers
October 28, 2008
Holm, Jennifer L., Babymouse #9 Monster Mash , 96 pgs. Random House Books for Young Readers ~Language G, Sexual Content~G, Violence~G
It’s Halloween and Babymouse loves scary costumes! She can’t decide whether to be a mummy, a zombie, or a werewolf. She is super excited about her Halloween costume party, but then Felicia hears about it and invites herself. Babymouse is again stuck between being herself and being what the ‘popular’ girls say she should be. If you haven’t experience Babymouse, jump right in and join the fun. This special Halloween edition differs from the black, white, & pink coloring of the previous Babymouse books, replacing the pink with orange for a spooktacular read!
Upper EL/ MS. Essential Allison Madsen~Youth Services Librarian-SJO Public Librarian
Profile Image for Becky B.
9,333 reviews184 followers
June 9, 2016
Babymouse is having a Halloween Party. She’s all excited, but then Felicia gets herself invited and starts taking over all Babymouse’s Halloween plans turning them into nightmares.

I sure wish Babymouse had learned her lesson and stood up to Felicia sooner. Even the Narrator tried to remind her of what happened in Book 1, but nope, Babymouse had to learn the hard way. It wasn’t a lot of fun. She almost got herself into some serious trouble, and the “lesson” seemed more like revenge than a lesson. Could have been better. The creature in her locker that steals her book report and freaks her out so bad she'd rather have an F was the highlight of the whole book.

Notes on content: No language issues. No sexual content. Babymouse and Wilson dig out some gruesome Halloween costumes, including a fake eye that pops out of a socket.
Profile Image for Dolly.
Author 1 book671 followers
June 25, 2012
This is the ninth book in the Babymouse series by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm. The plot centers on Babymouse's Halloween experiences: trying to come up with a scary costume, planning a party and giving in to peer pressure. It's a fun book and hopefully shows that Halloween tricks aren't the best way to have fun.

Our youngest really likes these books. They are quick reads and she read two of these books in a day. I'm sure that we'll quickly read through this series.
Profile Image for Amory Blaine.
466 reviews101 followers
Read
November 24, 2016
This is a very similar story to Queen of the World!, but in my opinion the points here are a little stronger. Babymouse wants to be something SCARY for Halloween, but Felicia Furrypaws says girls have to be PRETTY instead. (Ouch!) She drags a twinkly-gowned Babymouse around town, playing pranks on unsuspecting citizens, including . Babymouse feels horrible. Wouldn't Halloween have been more fun if she'd worn her scary costume and hung out with Wilson instead? Babymouse must decide whether it's too late - or too lame - to ditch the cool, mean girls for her own brand of innocent fun - just like in book one!
Profile Image for Lucy.
23 reviews3 followers
November 26, 2011
Halloween is coming up for Babymouse, and she's planing to dress up as a monster. Felicia makes fun of her costume, but Babymouse doesn't care. So on the day of Halloween, all her friends are invited to Babymouse's Halloween party. So goes trick-or-treating with Felicia and Babymouse's Halloween is ruined because Babymouse doesn't like what Felicia is doing. Will Babymouse do the right thing and stop her?
I picked this book up because I like reading Babymouse and I never read this book before.
I finished this book because it was easy to finish and I finished it in a few minutes.
I would recommend this book to people with enjoy reading Babymouse.
Profile Image for Jim.
1,790 reviews66 followers
November 2, 2013
I think I picked the wrong comic to add to my list of Halloween books to read to my six-year-old son.

I can't even figure out what age group this is for.

Did I need to read the previous books? I could understand it, but it was too confusing for my son without a bunch of explanation. But it seemed too young for my 11-year-old daughter.

I think I'm missing something but I don't know what. It was cute, but I wasn't really into it and I couldn't pinpoint the intended audience. Unless the intended audience is people who are already fans of Baby Mouse.
60 reviews1 follower
October 4, 2016
Babymouse is set on having the best Halloween EVER. But will the popular crowd and Felicia Furrypaws stand in her way of a spectacular spooky Halloween?
I really enjoyed this quick easy read. Graphic novels like this that cover every day topics are enjoyable to read in a short amount of time. I believe this book would be great for a social/group therapy session. I think a book like this would be great to help clients with social pragmatic issues. The topic of bullying shows up repeatedly throughout this book. It would be a good example to explain to clients proper vs improper behavior.
Profile Image for Brandy.
Author 2 books131 followers
December 31, 2008
I really like that this was orange instead of pink. I like the art and the humor is fun, but I don't know that I could really handle another pink volume. (I say this knowing the next one will probably be pink again, but it's nice to have a break.) We're not breaking a lot of new ground in this volume--Babymouse still bows to what Felicia Furrypaws says until she reaches her breaking point, and then goes back to being herself again. But it's cute and funny, so it gets points for that.
Profile Image for Angie.
2,393 reviews56 followers
July 30, 2012
First ... love the color scheme change.

Second: seriously. The way the narrator and Babymouse talk to each other? Hilarious!

Third: OLD MONSTER MOVIES=perfect Halloween.

Fourth: fairy costumes=blech!

Fifth: I feel like my desk is like Babymouse's locker. It eats things and I cannot find them. It sticks so that I can't open drawers. Said drawers then open 10 minutes later with no one even standing nearby.

Sixth: it's good to have friends who care about you for who you are.
Profile Image for C.E. G.
971 reviews38 followers
October 6, 2012
Augh I love Babymouse. In this particular one, Babymouse wants to be something very scary for Halloween, but she faces pressure from the mean girls to find a girlier and prettier costume.

Again I loved the art, loved the sass, loved the innocent romantic tension between Babymouse and Felicia Furrypaws (not joking, read the series and tell me there's no queer subtext. i don't care if its not intentional). I think Babymouse might be my spirit animal.
18 reviews21 followers
September 20, 2014
My daughter picked this one out at her school library, she loved it! It was the first of the BabyMouse novels that we have read. She loved the narration and illustrations, she even took to developing voices for each of the characters. It was enjoyable to hear her read and really get into the plot. Great message about peer pressure as well. This will NOT be the last BabyMouse book she brings home I'm sure.
Profile Image for Pinky.
1,669 reviews
February 10, 2009
I cannot get enough of these Babymouse books. They are cutie cute cute, funny and impart important messages. In this case: be true to who you are. Babymouse wants to wear a scary costume for Halloween and falls into the evil Kitty's trap and dresses like a fairy and terrorizes the neighborhood until she comes to her senses.
Profile Image for Mari Anne.
1,491 reviews29 followers
October 22, 2012
3.5 stars. Another funny installment of the Babymouse series with a GREAT message about individuality. Loved the message in this story as Babymouse fights the desire to be part of the in-crowd but doesn't particularly like what she has to do to get there and then doesn't enjoy it when she does! Great for early readers in grades 1 - 5.
Profile Image for Holly Mueller.
2,560 reviews8 followers
February 27, 2013
Love! Babymouse is bullied by Felicia and her groupies into being something pretty for Halloween instead of something scary like she really wants. She also gets pulled into toilet papering and egging pranks. After really looking at herself in the mirror, she realizes she needs to be herself. Halloween is much more fun after that.
40 reviews
December 7, 2014
With baby mouse wanting to be one of the cool kids, she of course wants to have one of the best halloween costumes and party of all time! Quickly she the realizes she would rather be happy and not do something she doesn't want to do. This is a great book i always like to think about the message being sent in stories to see if they are good to read to younger children.
Profile Image for Lisa.
224 reviews3 followers
September 5, 2011
Quite cute! My 4 year old enjoyed looking at the pictures and we talked about some of the poor choices the "bad" girls were making. Love the fantasy sequences. Also loved that it wasn't really scary for a Halloween book!
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