Happy Halloween! Read Dr. Toughlove’s October 2023 column.
Happy Halloween! Halloween is quickly approaching, so Dr. Toughlove thought it would be a great time to review the book “Vlad the Rad”, written and illustrated by Brigette Barrager.
Vlad, the star of the story, is a vampire. And like many vampires he likes cats, bats, bendy straws, glow-in-the-dark stickers, and bugs (p. 3). But most of all he LOVES to skateboard!
Vlad attends Miss Fussbucket’s School for Aspiring Spooks, but he is not a star student. While his classmates walk through the halls looking scary and sullen, he is on his skateboard wreaking havoc, much to the displeasure of his teacher, Miss Fussbucket. But Vlad feels alive and joyful when he skates, which is the exact opposite of what Miss Fussbucket wants. Even while sitting at his desk, trying to do his schoolwork, Vlad has a hard time concentrating, and is thinking about new skateboarding tricks he would like to try.
After writing “I will not skateboard at school” on the blackboard dozens of times, Vlad discovers the ultimate challenge during a class field trip to the Natural History Museum. Dr. Toughlove doesn’t want to give the story away, but let it suffice to say that the end of the story involves huge dinosaur bones and a skateboard ride that is akin to a roller coaster ride. Vlad creates mayhem on a larger scale than at school, and has a ball doing it! Children and adults alike will get a chuckle out of Vlad’s ultimate skateboard adventure.
Brigette Barrager is the author and the illustrator, and she does a magnificent job in both capacities. Her colorful illustrations capture the absurdity of the situation to perfection. Children will ask to read this book again and again, and each time they do, a new discovery or nuance will be found.
If Dr. Toughlove had to use three words to describe this Halloween-themed book they would be whimsical, charming, and hilarious. “Vlad the Rad” is appropriate for children aged 3-7, and is available at the Queen Anne’s County Library.