Runaway Pumpkin by Lewis, S. D. Schindler (Illustrator)

From the Publisher

A hilarious read-aloud Halloween treat!

When Buck, Billy, and little sister Lil spy the biggest pumpkin they're ever seen, they can't resist. Buck and billy try to roll it down the hill, but the giant pumpkin barrels its way through the family farm and no one can stop it! Kids and families will have a thumpin' bumpin' good time with this rollicking tale of a pumpkin on the run.

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Publishers Weekly

In Lewis's (Chugga-Chugga Choo-Choo) rhyming tale, it is Halloween day when an enormous pumpkin bounces downhill and through the Baxter family farm. At the sight of this "thumpety/ bumpety/ thumpin'/ bumpin'/ round and rolly/ runaway pumpkin!" the Baxters think not of personal safety but of Granny's pumpkin recipes. Schindler (Skeleton Hiccups), in amusing but untidy compositions, gives each person an astonished expression and a thought-balloon flash of pumpkin bread, soup or pie. Crisis averted, the resourceful family carves a humongous jack-o'-lantern while Granny bakes. A solid choice for children who prefer a slapstick celebration to chills and thrills. Ages 4-7. (Sept.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Nancy Garhan Attebury - Children's Literature

A rolling, zipping giant pumpkin runs across the cover of this entertaining picture book. A scared pig, frightened chickens, a jittery dairy cow, and a wide-eyed red haired boy flee from the giant orange pumpkin. A child will quickly open this book to see how the pumpkin came to be bumping along. This tale unfolds when two costumed brothers break the pumpkin from its stem against the better judgment of their young sister Lil, and set it to rolling down the hill. The text is delivered in a progressive manner as the pumpkin rolls from the hilltop, to the pig's sty, the chicken coop, and the bottom of the hill where Poppa comes to the rescue and plows a swirly pumpkin bed to catch the runaway pumpkin. When the pumpkin sped by, various family members pictured Granny's scrumptious pumpkin dishes. Pumpkin pie, pumpkin soup, and delicious pumpkin bread were all desired. Once the pumpkin stopped, Granny was free to bake all the hoped for pumpkin dishes to eat on Halloween night. A repetitive verse, which children will want to repeat, pops up every few pages. The tantalizing verse offers the opportunity for children to request the reading of the book over and over again. Clever and humorous illustrations enrich the text. This selection would work well in preschool and primary grades. The book could best be read at Halloween or any time pumpkins are set free from their stems. 2003, Orchard Books/Scholastic Inc,

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2-A story about an enormous pumpkin that gets out of hand. The Baxter boys make the mistake of cutting it from the vine before they have worked out how to get it safely home. With a repeated rhythmic chorus that kids will love to chime in on, the pumpkin makes its way through the hillside farm, scattering animals and Baxters in its wake. The family members finally manage to get it inside, and Granny cooks up a feast for Halloween supper. Schindler's gouache-and-pencil illustrations are amusing and rich in detail. Children will enjoy seeing the animals' reactions, as the out-of-control pumpkin wreaks havoc on sty and henhouse, and will also appreciate the family's inventive Halloween costumes. This is a fun read-aloud, without the dark overtones of so many of the holiday's stories, but it pays to practice the text once or twice as it can be a bit of a tongue-twister. At the end, readers are likely to be left with a longing for an appendix of Granny's recipes.-Jane Barrer, Washington Square Village Creative Steps, NY Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Lewis and Schindler transform a tale usually associated with Thanksgiving into a "thumpety bumpety thumpin’ bumpin’ round and roll-y" Halloween disaster-in-the-making, narrowly averted by some quick thinking and ending with a hilarious twist. Three children find a huge pumpkin at the top of a hill and cut it loose, with predictable results--but after smashing through one fence after another it comes to rest in Poppa’s hastily plowed field, and everyone rolls it home with visions of Granny’s pumpkin pie, bread, and soup in their heads. Schindler rolls his gigantic missile through autumn scenes done in harmonizing oranges and browns, dresses the entire family in costume, and, after Granny does indeed cook up a storm in the kitchen, places everyone around the dinner table--including the still-intact pumpkin, now a grinning jack-o’-lantern. Lewis shows an all-too-common tendency to drop or add syllables to his rhymed lines at random, but he expertly captures the rumbling drama of the pumpkin’s descent, and sets up the punch line perfectly. (Picture book. 6-8)

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