What do you think?
Rate this book
Ten Timid Ghosts
This bestselling counting book for beginning readers is filled with ghosts, a witch and spooky fun!It's Halloween, and ten timid ghosts in a haunted house have a a mean witch has moved in and is planning to scare them out, one by one! Young trick-or-treaters learn to count down from ten to one as each ghost flees from the witch's silly costumes and homemade props. When the homeless ghosts gather in the woods, their fear turns to determination and they plot to get their house back. Will the ghosts frighten the witch away in time for Halloween night?
32 pages, Paperback
First published August 31, 2000
6 people are currently reading
450 people want to read
About the author
Jennifer O'Connell
5 books4 followersJennifer O’Connell’s picture books include The Eye of the Whale – A Rescue Story, winner of the Green Earth Book Award, and the New York Times bestseller Ten Timid Ghosts, which has sold more than a million copies. When she learned about Lawrence Anthony’s profound connection with a wild elephant, Jennifer was inspired to tell their remarkable story in her most recent title, Elephants Remember. The dogs she has known throughout her life have made her keenly aware that other animals think, feel, and communicate. Jennifer lives with her husband and their mischievous dog in Bethesda, Maryland. She loves to paint and present programs and workshops about the magic of creating picture books. Visit her at JenniferOConnellArt.com and on Instagram @JenniferOConnellArt.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 98 reviews
October 26, 2017
I love the illustrations - beautiful. It was a warm cozy feel to it.
A Halloween counting book. Also, a book about not sharing. A witch tries to move into a house full of ghosts and she scares them off one by one. What would have happened if she tried to live with them? Was the house for sale or is the witch simply stealing the house? Well, never fear, the ghosts get together and take their house back.
Good for 2 year old and above. My nephew enjoyed the witches costumes.
A Halloween counting book. Also, a book about not sharing. A witch tries to move into a house full of ghosts and she scares them off one by one. What would have happened if she tried to live with them? Was the house for sale or is the witch simply stealing the house? Well, never fear, the ghosts get together and take their house back.
Good for 2 year old and above. My nephew enjoyed the witches costumes.
October 16, 2020
A great simple counting rhyme for little ones to enjoy over Halloween.
The enjoyable tale sees a witch move into a haunted house and over the course of the night finds inventive ways to rid the place of the timid spirits.
Each page has fun illustrations as the witch scares the spooks one by one.
This is perfect for children of all ages.
The enjoyable tale sees a witch move into a haunted house and over the course of the night finds inventive ways to rid the place of the timid spirits.
Each page has fun illustrations as the witch scares the spooks one by one.
This is perfect for children of all ages.
October 18, 2021
"Ten timid ghosts in a haunted house ~ a witch moved in and wanted them out," begins this rhyming romp of a tale, which follows a clever, and not-very-nice witch, as she uses one wily stratagem after another, to evict the current ghostly residents of the house she desires. Fortunately, the tenth and final ghost to be scared out of the house, and into the nearby woods, is nobody's fool, and convinces her companions to turn the tables on the witch, and reclaim their home...
With a rollicking rhythm just made for reading aloud, a count-down narrative, from one to ten, that makes use of a repetitive structure that younger children will enjoy, and cute illustrations that are jam-packed with little details that reveal the witch's scheming, Ten Timid Ghosts is an immensely fun little book. Just a little bit spooky - but not too frightening - it would make an entertaining Halloween book (despite the holiday never being mentioned) for the younger set!
With a rollicking rhythm just made for reading aloud, a count-down narrative, from one to ten, that makes use of a repetitive structure that younger children will enjoy, and cute illustrations that are jam-packed with little details that reveal the witch's scheming, Ten Timid Ghosts is an immensely fun little book. Just a little bit spooky - but not too frightening - it would make an entertaining Halloween book (despite the holiday never being mentioned) for the younger set!
October 11, 2011
Adorable! In this rhyming Halloween counting book, a clever and mean witch tries to move into a haunted house but ten ghosts already live there! The witch devises schemes to scare away the timid ghosts (kids will probably have fun searching the illustrations and finding all the ways the witch is tricking the ghosts) but the last ghost isn't quite so timid, and she is rather clever herself. Does the witch get to stay in the house? Read this fun little story and find out :-)
August 20, 2021
"The witch saw the ghosts and howled with fear. She tore out the door screaming, Get me out of here!"
This was really adorable with great illustrations. And the rhyming was a lot of fun.
This was really adorable with great illustrations. And the rhyming was a lot of fun.
June 7, 2023
Counting down is underrated as a skill, don't you think, my fellow Goodreaders? How refreshing it is to visit a counting book set in a Halloween world where there are:
* The usual rhymes
* And slightly spooky-mostly comic critters
* Wacky illustrations, rich in detail
* And just enough fun food.
All the while readers are having a low-key introduction to the later pleasures of subtracting, a very young reader's chance to enjoy counting down-down-down.
* The usual rhymes
* And slightly spooky-mostly comic critters
* Wacky illustrations, rich in detail
* And just enough fun food.
All the while readers are having a low-key introduction to the later pleasures of subtracting, a very young reader's chance to enjoy counting down-down-down.
January 8, 2018
This was a December birthday gift from a dear friend. I thoroughly enjoyed the rhyming antics of this little story. :)
October 21, 2023
A fun book that can help students learn how to use pictures to make predictions.
October 17, 2019
I’ve been reading a lot of the Halloween classics to my children this month, and so far to date this is my favorite. It’s ultimately a tale of revenge and who doesn’t love a good revenge tale. Pictures are pretty dope as they are set up with a mystery on each page , can you tell what it is ? Can you see what’s happening ? Ten Timid Ghosts is a winner.
September 18, 2019
I love the bold Halloween colors and spooky fun illustrations. This is a rhyming countdown book about a witch that scares ghosts one by one to get them out of her new house.
October 19, 2017
A great Halloween counting book!
October 10, 2017
This is a Halloween themed counting book. There is a haunted house in which 10 timid ghosts live. A witch moves in and wants them out. She scares each with a different disguise, until the last one discovers the witch's costume coming undone. Then, ten angry ghosts exact their revenge and retrieve the house. This is a fun repetitive rhyming counting book in which small children are able to anticipate how many ghosts are left.
November 7, 2007
Now that my son is older and able to read he has been recommending a number of wonderful books. One of the current favorites among his friends is Ten Timid Ghosts. He spoke so highly of it that we ended up getting a copy to add to our collection.
Ten Timid Ghosts is a counting backwards book like Ten Little Lady Bugs except that it is Halloween themed. Ten ghosts get evicted from their home by a witch who has bought their home. The witch uses a number of sneaky tricks to get them to leave. In the end though, they figure out what's going on and they want their house back!
My son likes the book for all the witch's schemes. She uses puppets and disguises and these make him laugh.
My personal favorite page is the bat she uses to scare away ghost number nine. The fleeing ghost takes the eyes up the stairs to the striped socks of the witch. The spring hanging down from her feet leads to the bat which takes up most of the two pages. It's left wing creates a line that draws the eye from the foyer to the sitting room, by way of a portrait (with a hiding ghost) and a number of other hiding ghosts (like those in Hide and Ghost Seek). This illustration is a good early introduction to the ghosts and their home and that's why I like it so much.
Ten Timid Ghosts is a counting backwards book like Ten Little Lady Bugs except that it is Halloween themed. Ten ghosts get evicted from their home by a witch who has bought their home. The witch uses a number of sneaky tricks to get them to leave. In the end though, they figure out what's going on and they want their house back!
My son likes the book for all the witch's schemes. She uses puppets and disguises and these make him laugh.
My personal favorite page is the bat she uses to scare away ghost number nine. The fleeing ghost takes the eyes up the stairs to the striped socks of the witch. The spring hanging down from her feet leads to the bat which takes up most of the two pages. It's left wing creates a line that draws the eye from the foyer to the sitting room, by way of a portrait (with a hiding ghost) and a number of other hiding ghosts (like those in Hide and Ghost Seek). This illustration is a good early introduction to the ghosts and their home and that's why I like it so much.
October 8, 2016
Busy moms (and dads): This is a great book for October and Halloween! In our house, it’s a favorite book no matter the season. A charming story about ghosts being chased from their haunted home by a witch, it’s sure to be much loved for Halloween, and possibly all year!
Count down from ten to one as all of the ghosts are tricked into fleeing to the woods. The story reads with a sing-song rhythm and has the added benefit of practicing counting (or subtraction) into reading time. It’s told in delightful rhymes and accompanied by hilarious illustrations. The antics of the witch and ghosts always get giggles during our reads!
In addition to the silly actions in verse there are details in each of the pictures, like the box from which the rubber rat came and various hiding places for each of the ghosts in each scene. The older the child, the more they can appreciate some of these more subtle jokes. There’s an important lesson introduced by the story and it creates an opportunity to discuss it with your kids: how to cope when someone is being unkind (or worse). Best of all, there's a lesson in it for any would-be-mean-witches out there: Don't mess with the ten timid ghosts! ;)
Count down from ten to one as all of the ghosts are tricked into fleeing to the woods. The story reads with a sing-song rhythm and has the added benefit of practicing counting (or subtraction) into reading time. It’s told in delightful rhymes and accompanied by hilarious illustrations. The antics of the witch and ghosts always get giggles during our reads!
In addition to the silly actions in verse there are details in each of the pictures, like the box from which the rubber rat came and various hiding places for each of the ghosts in each scene. The older the child, the more they can appreciate some of these more subtle jokes. There’s an important lesson introduced by the story and it creates an opportunity to discuss it with your kids: how to cope when someone is being unkind (or worse). Best of all, there's a lesson in it for any would-be-mean-witches out there: Don't mess with the ten timid ghosts! ;)
September 17, 2013
Read by: Aaron
Author/Illustrator: Jennifer O'Connell
Genre: Fantasy
Interest Level: PreK-3
Grade Level Equivalent: 2.6
Ten Timid Ghosts, like many books for early and upcoming readers, uses rhyme and repetition heavily. Each section begins with the number of ghosts presented in numeral form, and the lead sentence begins with that number, too, but it is spelled out. As with the first sentence, the second remains unchanged until the end of the book. Essentially, the witch uses a host of tricks to scare the ghosts out of the house, but at the end, it's the ghosts that get her to leave. A natural fit would be to read this aloud during October, and more specifically, near Halloween. A fun, yet way to get students on their way to attaining phoenemic awareness.
Author/Illustrator: Jennifer O'Connell
Genre: Fantasy
Interest Level: PreK-3
Grade Level Equivalent: 2.6
Ten Timid Ghosts, like many books for early and upcoming readers, uses rhyme and repetition heavily. Each section begins with the number of ghosts presented in numeral form, and the lead sentence begins with that number, too, but it is spelled out. As with the first sentence, the second remains unchanged until the end of the book. Essentially, the witch uses a host of tricks to scare the ghosts out of the house, but at the end, it's the ghosts that get her to leave. A natural fit would be to read this aloud during October, and more specifically, near Halloween. A fun, yet way to get students on their way to attaining phoenemic awareness.
October 18, 2016
This is a fun counting book. Although, the number wasn't super visible on each page, so it was hard for my 2 year old to see it to point to the number.
I really enjoyed the rhyme to this book and the repetition. The length of the story was perfect for a bedtime book for a toddler. My daughter enjoyed the illustrations. I would ask her if she thought that that was a real mummy, etc and she would say no.
I really liked that the ghosts got revenge on the mean witch who was trying to kick them out of their house. This was a really fun book to read for Halloween. I think it will make our list to try to get each year now.
I really enjoyed the rhyme to this book and the repetition. The length of the story was perfect for a bedtime book for a toddler. My daughter enjoyed the illustrations. I would ask her if she thought that that was a real mummy, etc and she would say no.
I really liked that the ghosts got revenge on the mean witch who was trying to kick them out of their house. This was a really fun book to read for Halloween. I think it will make our list to try to get each year now.
November 18, 2011
Based on a similar style of 8 Silly Monkeys, this book starts with 10 ghosts that leave due to a witch that wanted the house for her own. One by one she gets them to leave. Book can be used to write number sentences and for a subtraction lesson or read the book backwards to show addition problems. Have children make their own book that starts with 10 animals or things and one by one have them reduced until they are all gone. This book should be read to prek-1st graders especially during October.
April 18, 2008
Okay, so when your three year old has you read this over and over and over again AND has the bus driver and aides read it over and over and over again, it is safe to assume he thinks it "was amazing". I found this book especially sweet and found the facial expressions of the clever ghost extremely endearing. I love that the witch travels with a box of disguises designed to spook and scare! A delightful little book that is certain to be read another 14 times - this afternoon, alone!!!
September 22, 2009
This book is fun, with a touch of eeriness that will be just right for most picture book readers.
I like the way that Jennifer O'Connell has herein written a solid learning-to-count book, while not at all making it feel wearisomely academic in its intent. I think that the main point of the book is to provide a good Halloween story for younger readers, and in my opinion Jennifer O'Connell has certainly succeeded in that venture.
I would give one and a half stars to Ten Timid Ghosts.
I like the way that Jennifer O'Connell has herein written a solid learning-to-count book, while not at all making it feel wearisomely academic in its intent. I think that the main point of the book is to provide a good Halloween story for younger readers, and in my opinion Jennifer O'Connell has certainly succeeded in that venture.
I would give one and a half stars to Ten Timid Ghosts.
November 4, 2015
This is quite a fun and gentle Halloween book. Ten timid ghosts live in a house but a witch moves in and wants them all out. The witch uses various methods of dressing up, puppets and so on to scare each of the ghosts out but then the ten timid ghosts get together in the woods to return to the house and scare the with out. Gently fun and interesting to get the kids to think on each page what the witch is doing to make the ghosts scared. Also good counting up to 10!
October 20, 2015
Everything Halloween is included in this read: A haunted house, ghosts, a witch, skeleton, bat, ghoul, cat, owl, vampire, monster, spider, rat, mummy and trick-or-treating. Really, you can't ask for more! But wait, there is more. It's also a countdown so kids learn their numbers from ten to one as well and the words rhyme. The book is a great read-aloud, and kids will love counting down and watching the witch try to scare the timid ghosts out of their house. BOO!
April 25, 2012
When my daughter was younger, she made me read this book to her A LOT! This book is a wonderful tool to guide young ones to be excited about numbers as well as reading. My daughter is 15 now and still remembers this book-we were just discussing it over dinner so I have decided to repurchase the book since it was so memorable to her!
June 26, 2012
My mom always read this book to me when I was little because it was my favorite book and oddly enough, I still remember it! This morning i asked her if she would purchase it for me just because it's so memorable and was very important to me when I was little. I still absolutely love this book and I'm almost 16! Definitely recommend it for children.
May 31, 2013
A great twist on a counting book as the book rhymes it's way from 10 to 1. If you aren't a believer in ghosts this book won't be a good fit for you. In fact, it will be the sort of book you'd want to keep out of reach of your children. Otherwise the idea of timid ghosts is rather cute, if slightly silly.
August 17, 2016
My son doesn't care that it is a Halloween book in August. He just wanted to read this one, over and over and over. I might need to add it to my Halloween collection. Just the right level of spooky, predictive text, and detailed illustrations. Great for counting concepts, imaginative story reenactments, and descriptive words.
October 27, 2010
I really loved this one. The story is great; written in poem form, it manages not to be trite, it has a fun and satisfying ending that manages to demonize neither witches, nor ghosts. :-) Why can't all kids' books be this good?
October 25, 2010
Do you love counting and rhyming? This short, but scary Halloween book is a absolute scream! Jennifer O'Connell's illustrations have tons of detail, such as a stuffed cat and a pincushion spider, which the kids will love to spot while they read the story.
November 11, 2012
Surprised by how much I enjoyed a simple counting book. Ten Timid Ghosts has cool illustrations and a fun rhyming scheme. My son was able to pick up the rhyming patterns and so he "reads" the first half of each page. I read the rest and then he searches and counts all the Ghost-es (his word).
August 19, 2017
I really liked this fun children's book named "Ten Timid Ghosts" it's coloufully illustrated and easy to understand. I'm no child but I still liked the story and illustration's because I'm a fan of the Halloween Season.
October 30, 2007
Fabulous!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 98 reviews