Help! A Vampire's Coming!

Help! A Vampire's Coming!
By Abby Klein 

For our 1st-2nd grade book club this summer, we're going to be reading this fun little story (amid other activities geared toward that squirmy age group). I sat down with it and a hot cup of tea this morning and stood up about 15 minutes later with a smile on my face.

Freddy is afraid to go to sleep. He has started waking up with horrible nightmares about a vampire who chases him and tries to drink his blood. He doesn't want to tell his parents. Instead, from his friends, he gets advice to sprinkle garlic (in his mom's kitchen he finds garlic powder) around his room and to nail his window shut. When his dad discovers the nailed window, the truth comes out. Freddy's dad and sister Suzie help Freddy train his stuffed animals to be Dream Police and bash any dream bad guys. It works! Freddy can finally get a decent night of sleep.

This is a fun book for kids learning to read. There's enough action and conversation that kids will be entertained. Kids will also learn some good ways to handle nightmares. I appreciate that this book teaches kids that talking to their parents about things that upset them is both helpful and important. I also appreciated the projects and advice in the back of the book for kids to deal with their bad dreams.

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