Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz (Children's Literature)
An appealing Sendak youngster seeks his mother in a mysterious castle. No text is needed beyond his title question, “Mommy?” set in yellow speech balloons--flame enough to light the dark interiors. As we turn the pages following his entrance, each double page depicts a classic frightening character, each more threatening than the last, rising off the page to try to shock our hero. But inside each fold-in on the right-hand side, our young seeker deals cleverly with his confronter. A fanged Dracula is pacified with, yes, a pacifier. Frankenstein’s creation is manipulated. The mummy is spun and unwound. And the werewolf is caught with his pants down. Finally, as all rise together, our hero is greeted by the open arms of the Bride of Frankenstein as she exclaims, “Baby!” Every scene is filled with multiple, delectable details guaranteed to command attention, perhaps as much for the complex, efficient paper engineering as for Sendak’s imaginative objects and rib-tickling, creative portraits. 2006, Michael Di Capua Books/Scholastic, $24.95. Ages 4 up.

Horn Book (The Horn Book Guide, Spring 2007)
A mad scientist's laboratory provides the setting for this elaborately constructed pop-up collaboration with a sweet and simple premise. A young boy in blue jammies descends into this ostensible den of horrors to look for his mother; along the way he defangs a succession of horror-movie staples. The consummate staging of this production doesn't mask the mischief at its heart. Category: Preschool. 2006, Scholastic/di Capua, 12pp, 24.95. Ages 2 to 5. Rating: 2: Superior, well above average. ( )