POULTRYGEIST

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)