The Fright Before Christmas

Bunnicula and Friends #5

by James Howe, Jeff Mack (Illustrator)

It's Christmas Eve and something is stirring...

Howie the dachshund puppy jumps in fear every time he hears about the big, jolly man in the bright red suit who will be coming down the chimney. Harold the dog and Chester the cat can't understand why anyone would be scared of Santa -- especially when there are Christmas ghosts to worry about.

Late that night, the animals hear strange noises coming from the basement. Who is causing the spooky sounds? Is it a ghost? Is it Santa? Or is Bunnicula the vampire bunny going to turn this very merry Christmas into a very scary Christmas?

Genres: Christmas, Childrens, Picture Books, Fiction, Mystery, Holiday, Dogs

48 pages, Hardcover

First published October 3, 2006

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

James Howe has written more than eighty books in the thirty-plus years he's been writing for young readers. It sometimes confuses people that the author of the humorous Bunnicula series also wrote the dark young adult novel, The Watcher, or such beginning reader series as Pinky and Rex and the E.B. White Read Aloud Award-winning Houndsley and Catina and its sequels. But from the beginning of his career (which came about somewhat by accident after asking himself what kind of vampire a rabbit might make), he has been most interested in letting his imagination take him in whatever direction it cared to. So far, his imagination has led him to picture books, such as I Wish I Were a Butterfly and Brontorina (about a dinosaur who dreams of being a ballerina), mysteries, poetry (in the upcoming Addie on the Inside), and fiction that deals with issues that matter deeply to him. He is especially proud of The Misfits, which inspired national No Name-Calling Week (www.nonamecallingweek.org) and its sequel Totally Joe. He does not know where his imagination will take him in the next thirty-plus years, but he is looking forward to finding out.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Calista · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even at Christmas Chester and Harold are obsessed with ghosts. Bunnicula is even innocent in this quick little story for Christmas. The gang is all here. He takes the stories from the BUnnicula books and makes them into an easy reader. I do like the characters here. Howie is really scared of Santa Claus. If you like animal stories and looking for a beginning reader, this is a fun series.

This is my 30th book by James Howe and I'm still a fan.

[Perrilyn Pringle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh Howie, always so dramatic :]

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

We've really enjoyed all the books in the Bunnicula series, from the Ready-to-Read books in the Bunnicula and Friends series, to the original Bunnicula chapter books, to the Harold and Chester stories, which are at a reading level in between the two. We've read all of the books in this series now and we're slowly working our way through the other books and our girls have loved them all.

This is a fun Christmas-themed tale about things that go bump in the night. It's a funny story that is good for beginning readers who are just starting to read chapter books. It's not too long and has lots of colorful illustrations. We enjoyed reading this story together.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know I am super biased in my rating and review of this book. It is a nostalgic one for me that I got when I was young. I've always liked the story of Bunnicula, but never finished the series as a kid. I still love books meant for all ages.

This story is as simple as a picture book can be, but with a little more text than a typical picture book. I really love it. The story is cute. The artwork is really beautiful as well.

[H. Givens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story and art, the same kind of tone as the main Bunnicula series but much simpler -- not quite a picture book, but one of those "easy reader" type things with big text, not a chapter book. Might be nice as a bridge to the longer books for little ones who want to read on their own.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This isn't bad. The pictures were cute, but it was Bunnicula characters watered down to an extent that made me frown. Bunnicula isn't that tough! However, it did get a little four year old asking me to read him the "real" Bunnicula books, and it gets the high position of Last Book I Read To A Preschooler As Said Preschooler Gave Me His Flu The Day Before Christmas Eve, so it will be forever etched in my memories.

[Susan Katz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ever since a friend of mine found some odd colorless vegetables in her garden, each with two little marks in it ("It couldn't have been birds," she kept saying in puzzlement), I've viewed the Bunnicula books somewhat differently. In any case, it's always good to see Harold and Chester boldly confronting the world's evils - this time ghosts on Christmas Eve and this time in a picture book to share the fun with younger readers.

[Christa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let's face it, after the original Bunnicula book, the bunny wasn't really part of the story, and even if he was, as a 6 year old, I was still not into vampires. I enjoyed the dogs and cats much more, so the fact that they have their own series excites me more now that I know there are other holiday books.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bowie is afraid of the man in the red suit that comes down the chimney. "What does he want?" he asks nervously before running away. However, what are those noises in the middle of the night? Could it be the ghosts that also visit during Christmastime? Chester and Harold are set to find out!

[Raina · Rating 3 out of 5]

My nephew Gavi loved it. I did all the voices!

[Carole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bunnicula and friends are at again. The dog writes these books, but the cat is the brains of the outfit and Bunnicula is a vampire rabbit.

[Tiffiny · Rating 3 out of 5]

My 10-yr-old son read this one on his quest to read everything Bunnicula.

[Marian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I will probably forever be a sucker for the older Bunnicula books. Mums brought these home for Widget and they're cute with just enough story to keep even the non-kidlets reading them interested.

[Gabriel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Howie is afraid of Santa because he thinks Santa takes bad puppies and he did three accident things. But it all worked out at the end.

[Mo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute illustrations. The cat looks like a fox, the white dog looks like a lamb, and the dachshund is quite fluffy. Bunnicula's creepy with the red laser eyes.

[Moniquekaba · Rating 4 out of 5]

语言水平高点，故事果然要生动点

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fans of Bunnicula and smaller children will enjoy this Christmas themed story. Howie is for whatever reason afraid of Santa Claus and Harold and Chester are determined to find out why.

The story itself was cute and I liked the illustrations for the most part. Howie’s reasoning for being afraid of Santa Claus is totally Howie.

I loved the book reference to ghosts that Chester mentions as well. Bunnicula is only seen once so this is one of those stories that focuses on the animals, but it’s still a nice addition to the series.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first I read in this series for younger readers. I didn't find it as humorous as the middle grade books as it is missing its wit, but he pictures were cute (in my old version- the updated ones don't look as cute to me) and the story suspenseful. I'd like to read more in the series to get a better feel for it.

I marked as lower grade as it is all about chasing a ghost. Might be scary for some little ones.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book since I first read it in elementary school the one in picture has a different illustrator. In my opinion the one illustrated by Leslie Morrill are the best they are out of print though so tricker to find but worth it.

[Lauren M · Rating 5 out of 5]

2nd Grade

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

My daughter fell in love with this series, when I read Bunnicula aloud at Halloween. She has read several other books in the series on her own since then. We decided to flip roles this time, and she read this one aloud to me. This was an easy/early chapter book so it wasn't too much for her to read aloud at a time. It wasn't very "Christmasy", but it was a cute seasonal read.

[Spencer · Rating 4 out of 5]

2022

2021
Gift from Harper's grandmother

[Nikki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny Christmas tale of animal friends -- one of whom is a vampire rabbit! We loved this series.