(courtesy IMP Awards) It may come as a surprise to those seeing a blog full-to-bursting of Halloween posts this October that this reviewer is not one for horror. That may seem to be a small and niggling liability in a season devoted to horror, both its manifestation and banishment, but Continue Reading
Halloween
Halloween picture book review: The Little Ghost Who Was a Quilt by Riel Nason (writer) and Byron Eggenschwiler (artist)
(courtesy Penguin Books Australia) There is an inestimable delight to opening a picture book and falling into a story which delivers imaginative and poetic wordplay and vividly arresting, often gorgeous illustrations; it doesn’t matter whether you are reading them to endlessly eager nieces and nephews (in my case) or simply Continue Reading
The Halloween short and the short of it: The haunting impact of Night of the Living Dread
SNAPSHOTWhen a power cut ruins Ruby’s bedtime routine, she finds herself haunted by some unwanted guests. The only way for Ruby to get a peaceful night of sleep is to confront her visitors. (courtesy Laughing Squid) What’s scarier than zombies and vampires and aliens and ghosts and werewolves and any Continue Reading
Happy Hell-o-ween: Family Guy Halloween special 2026 review
(courtesy IMDb (c) Hulu/Disney+) Who of us hasn’t at some time declared that their life is hell? Yep, I see your raised hands – all of us in fact have uttered those words at some point; it’s a common lament, one that thankfully with no fire, little brimstone and no Continue Reading
Halloween movie review: Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Soggy Bottom
(courtesy IMP Awards) In a bid to sell this movie to my full-on horror loving friend – turns out I didn’t have to sell it too hard; who doesn’t love some Aardman whimsy as it turns out – I told him it was Halloween-adjacent, embracing the season quite clearly but Continue Reading
Halloween book review: Alice by Christina Henry
It’s quite the thing these days to take a classic novel as inspiration, or even an ancient one in some cases, and take it to new and exciting places that honour the original work and author but explore new territory. In many cases, it’s done brilliantly and originally well, as Continue Reading
The spirit of Halloween future: Teaser trailer for 2026’s Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom
(courtesy IMDb) SNAPSHOTShaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom sees the residents of Mossy Bottom Farm looking forward to Halloween – until the clumsy Farmer trashes the Flock’s beloved pumpkin patch! When Shaun turns into mad scientist to help fix the problem, things rapidly spiral out of control… With Continue Reading
Halloween retro animated movie: Coraline
(courtesy IMP Awards) There’s often admittance by people that they are “late to the party”, as if watching or reading or whatever something long after it’s come out – or sometimes, mere weeks, such is the frantic and unforgiving pace of the modern digital age which eats its newly-released young Continue Reading
Halloween book review: The Last Bookstore on Earth
(courtesy Penguin Books Australia) Any time any author decides to take a well-established genre, give it a good shake-up and reshape its form entirely is a good time. Especially when it comes one as well-trafficked as the end-of-the-world genre which has been pretty much full-to-bursting with zombies and aliens and Continue Reading
Halloween Family Guy special 2025: “A Little Fright Music” (review)
(courtesy IMDb) Halloween is definitely the one festival of the year where you are fully and absolutely allowed to get your freak on, to let loose, defy assumptions and expectations … and lie to your wives about going trick or treating? Hmmmm, not sure the last one is really part Continue Reading