PSSSST! IT'S ME...THE BOGEYMAN

In this lively number from Park (Mick Harte Was Here, 1995, etc.), the Bogeyman goes on an extended rap-rant to set a few things straight regarding his personality and modus operandi. He explains to the little boy whose bed he hides under, whose dark closet he haunts, that he is “stew-spewin’, gravel-chewin’ mad.” A tabloid claims to have photographed him and run a headline: “Evil Bogeyman Bellows Boo.” Well, he wants the tyke to know, he never gets photographed, never says boo (it’s a baby word), and never bellows (“I rarely raise my voice. I’m a professional, Peppie”). But this Bogeyman lets slip his aversion to smelly sweat socks, and the boy, by unloosing a bundle of them, banishes the Bogeyman across the hall, to a sister’s room. This is all just good sheer tomfoolery and jive-talking, with pumped-up wordplay and a gratifying finale. Kroninger’s collage illustrations are technically impressive, but aren’t as convincing as Park’s case for the existence of the Bogeyman. Save this for older picture-book fans; it’s creepy enough to give preschoolers bad dreams. (Picture book. 4-9)