Rowdy roosters Rudy and Ralph cause a lot of barnyard racket, disturbing Clarissa the cow and Sophie the pig. As all the animals prepare for a Halloween parade, a ghostly figure appears in the barn, and the two noisy roosters fear that they've awoken the fabled poultrygeist. The humorous story is accompanied by unpretentious, colorful art depicting the animals decked out in their Halloween garb. From HORN BOOK Spring 2004, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

PreS-Gr 2-Rudy and Ralph, two rowdy young roosters, love making a racket. Though most of the farmyard denizens don't mind the noise, Clarissa the cow and Sophie the pig are notable exceptions. When the animals gather to work on their Halloween costumes, a huge "poultrygeist" suddenly appears and scares them all right out of the barn. Told that the ghost only appears if it is awakened by noise, the two roosters try mightily-but futilely-to quiet down. On chilly Halloween, all the animals return to the warm barn, and the roosters screw up their courage to face the apparition. In a surprise twist, they unmask it and discover that it pays to be more considerate. Splashed with bright colors and featuring big-eyed poultry, the cartoon illustrations bounce across the pages with cinematic perspectives. In art and text, the humor shines in this holiday tale. A Halloween book that kids will crow about.-Marge Loch-Wouters, Menasha's Public Library, WI (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

PreS-Gr. 1. Fowl humor is once again the order of the day, as roosters Rudy and Ralph compete for the title of loudest and biggest. Most of the other animals ignore them, but Clarissa the cow and Sophie the pig insist the rowdy roosters are keeping them up at night. It's nearly Halloween, and everyone is busily making costumes when a huge figure looms up in the barn--the poultrygeist! The frightened animals flee outside, where they have their Halloween parade, but the cold finally forces them back into the haunted barn. The poultrygeist appears again; Rudy and Ralph unmask it as Clarissa and Sophie, leaving the perpetrators to find another way to quiet the roosters--at least for a time. Loud colors and fabulous digitally enhanced textures grab attention, and the silly story will please fans of Auch's Bantam of the Opera (1997) and Souperchicken BKL Mr 15 03. --GraceAnne DeCandido Copyright 2003 Booklist

In the Auchs' eighth "poultry parody," the noisy farmyard animals ignore requests from Clarissa the cow and Sophie the pig to pipe down, until a tall, ghostly figure drives everyone out of the barn the night before Halloween. The animals don't nerve themselves to return until after the next night's parade--whereupon the "ghost" rises again, but turns out to be only Sophie, standing atop Clarissa and covered with feed sacks. Mixing occasional photos into digitally produced farmyard scenes, the Auchs use dark backgrounds to brighten colors, and outfit their furred and feathered cast in amusingly altered costumes. Clarissa finally brings temporary peace to the barn by sitting on the noisiest offenders, rival bantams Rudy and Ralph. Predictable, and a bit thin, but good humored throughout. (Picture book. 6-8) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

The creators of Souperchicken here introduce two crowing roosters who annoy a pig and cow with their noise. When preparations for the Halloween Poultry Parade become too noisy, the "old grumps" frighten the birds by dressing as a "poultrygeist." Ages 4-8. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved