Review by New York Times Review
Stillwater the panda makes a return appearance in this glowing, autumn-tinted Halloween story. With a jaunty yet slightly eerie silver fox mask perched on his head, Stillwater announces that he is a ghost: "What are you going to be?" As in Muth's earlier books "Zen Shorts" and "Zen Ties," that question resonates in both comic and profound ways, while an early fantastical two-page spread of trick-or-treating children outlandishly garbed as astronauts, rabbits, ghosts, witches and a tiny jailbird - no television characters here - offers pure delight.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [October 10, 2010]
Review by Booklist Review
Following the Caldecott Honor Book Zen Shorts (2005) and Zen Ties (2008), Muth offers another gentle, reflective story about Stillwater, the Zen Buddhist panda, and his three young friends, siblings Michael, Karl, and Addie. It's Halloween, and after the candy-collecting fun, Stillwater promises another treat: a visit from a storyteller, who looks a lot like the kids' panda friend. Is that Stillwater? asks Karl. Yes . . . no! . . . I don't know! whispers Michael. That theme of duality is at the heart of the storyteller's tale about a young woman who seemingly lives in two places at once. In an author's note, Muth discusses Zen koans, and as a whole, this title feels more like a vehicle for the meditative tale rather than a developed, integrated story. But Muth grounds the book's esoteric elements with humor, everyday details from a child's world, and extraordinary watercolor-and-ink scenes that contrast the fiery shades of autumn with silvery moonlight and utilize a ghostly, simplified palette to amplify the koan's elemental mysteries. A beautiful, contemplative offering.--Engberg, Gillian Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In the third of Muth's contemplative series, Stillwater the panda comes dressed as a ghost to join Addy, Michael, and Karl on Halloween. After trick or treating, they travel through the misty night to Stillwater's house. There, another panda (which one is Stillwater?) shares a ghost story, painted in black ink and based on a Zen koan, which questions the nature of identity. Haunting in multiple senses of the word, this tale should captivate thoughtful readers, as Muth's watercolors convey a world of infinite possibility and gentle enchantment. All ages. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-6-It's Halloween, and the three siblings introduced in Muth's Zen Shorts (2005) and Zen Ties (2008, Scholastic) are working on their costumes when Stillwater appears at their door. The panda invites Addy, Michael, and Karl to meet him after trick-or-treating to hear a ghost story. The walk through the forest is filled with mystery. Stillwater himself-who said he would be a ghost this Halloween-is at times almost transparent, and his round, white bamboo lantern mimics the full moon. Inside his house is another panda who looks exactly like Stillwater. His story, which is told in words and brush-and-ink drawings, is based on an old Zen koan, or puzzle, about a young woman who is with her husband in a faraway land and yet very ill and at home with her parents. It invites listeners to consider duality, or perception vs. reality, and is at the same time a wonderfully haunting tale that's perfect for Halloween. When the story ends and the illustrations return to the earlier complex, evocative watercolors, it isn't clear whether Stillwater and the storyteller are two entities or one. The children and readers are left to consider this and other mysteries as both tales come to a close. Muth's artistic gifts are so breathtaking that they will draw in even those whose attention spans are not at first up to the demands of the text. The book functions on many levels, from seasonal Halloween story to ghost yarn to deep philosophy, and succeeds spectacularly on all of them.-Susan Weitz, formerly at Spencer-Van Etten School District, Spencer, NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
On Halloween, panda Stillwater (Zen Shorts, Zen Ties) goes trick-or-treating with the kids, then leads them to his house where "a panda who looked exactly like Stillwater" tells them a ghost story based on a Zen koan. Though the text is stilted and hard to follow, Muth's accomplished watercolor and ink illustrations are effectively mysterious and eerie. Copyright 2010 of The Horn Book, Inc. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
