The Best Halloween Picture Books of 2025
Happy spooky season, everyone, and welcome to our annual roundup of the best Halloween picture books! I love writing this list, because Halloween is the best time of year, and spooky picture books are the best picture books. It’s science.
As always I have to grapple a bit with the question of what makes a book a Halloween book. And the formula I’ve come up with is relatively simple. Scary picture books are so few and far between that I think they automatically qualify as a Halloween book. Of course if there are traditional Halloween creatures involved like witches, ghosts, or monsters of any kind - that has to count too.
Perhaps most importantly, if a picture book is actually about Halloween and trick-or-treating, that is going to get it some serious bonus points on my scale. For that reason, you might actually see some of my pure favorite picture books of the whole year beaten out by more purely Halloween books. Nothing makes me happier than a new book taking a stab at capturing the magic feeling of trick-or-treating with a beautiful 2-page spread.
Once again we’ve settled on the magic number of unlucky 13 for the Halloween list. It was actually pretty competitive this year and we had to make some very tricky decisions for that cutoff at 13. Huzzah to all the creators out there who love spooky things and helped kids and families celebrate Halloween together for years to come. Thanks for scaring us and capturing the magic of the season.
13. The Haunted Scavenger Hunt
Written by Steve Patschke and Illustrated by Roland Garrigue
This is an interesting one because I just think it makes a really fun spooky read aloud. A group of friends are going on a haunted scavenger hunt on Halloween night, and the joke is that they just keep doing the absolute wrong thing - just like in scary movies when you’re yelling at the characters on the screen. Whatever you do - don’t go inside that door! So, what do they do? They go inside the door! And that’s exactly how the book is structured - in a repetitive almost sing-songy way that little kids will get a kick out of.
So it’s a fun read aloud, and it’s also really good at building the tension. The art is fun and spooky at the same time, and the kids find themselves in environments that will appropriately make young readers nervous about what they’re going to find. Don’t go down that dark hallway! Don’t open that box! Just good clean spooky fun.
12. Luna and the Witch Throw a Halloween Party
Written by Aubrey Plaza & Dan Murphy and Illustrated by Hannah Peck
Personally I think it’s the illustrations that really make Luna and the Witch Throw a Halloween Party shine. What a great looking book. It’s a cute idea that Luna wants to be a witch and is trying to convince the witch to teach her. And the bulk of the story is the witch has bad ideas for the party like eating spiders and Luna has better ideas like eating candy. But at the end of the day the illustrations are really phenomenal and really bring the world to spooky life.
My favorite illustration is the block with the trick-or-treaters and the witch’s house tucked in between the apartments. I also like keeping an eye on what the witch’s cat is up to in most of the pictures. And I think the text shines when the witch actually casts some fun spells. Undoubtedly this is a picture book that’s celebrating Halloween the right way and is throwing its hat in the ring to be a memorable family Halloween title that comes out each year.
11. We are Already Haunting Here
Written by Gideon Sterer and Illustrated by Charlie Mylie
This is another title where the illustrations truly shine. This is a really good looking book. And I don’t even have the words to describe what Charlie Mylie’s art style or medium of choice is. Is it watercolors? Pastels? Charcoal? I have no idea because I don’t know these things - but I love how the backgrounds look in this book. It’s just so dang handsome - trust me on this.
The story is about a ghost trying to find a place to haunt but it keeps getting turned away everywhere it looks. I guess you could say it’s a book about kindness and empathy at the end of the day - and that’s always a welcome message. It’s a cute story with good atmosphere and very enjoyable all around, but I’m telling you, the art is tremendous. Going to keep a sharp eye on Mylie’s work from now on.
10. Keyana Loves Halloween
Written by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley and Illustrated by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow
You might say to yourself hey this sounds like it might be some sort of generic Halloween book I can ignore. Two kids trick-or-treating on the cover and “child’s name loves Halloween” as a title. Sounds like it could be a board book for babies with absolutely no meat inside. Not so fast my friend! Keyana loves Halloween is a great tribute to Halloween, and I’ll tell you why. Unlike the cover, the interior illustrations are full of detail to discover - and this is really a great Halloween story.
At the heart of this story is the love of dressing up for Halloween and that creative process - and it has this wonderful scene in a deep dark closet full of possibilities. It kind of reminds me of that scene in Garfield’s Halloween Adventure when he sings about what he could dress up as - and you know if I think about Garfield’s Halloween Adventure that must be a good sign. It’s a great story that nails the Halloween atmosphere.
9. To Catch a Ghost
Written and Illustrated by Rachel Michelle Wilson
This is a very high-quality picture book all around. You can just tell the production value is off the charts. Great secret cover, great endpapers, great delayed reveal of the title page. This book is fun to read. It’s funny and it’s just well-crafted. It has some wonderful two-page spreads - like our main character sitting face-to-face with a ghost on those funny animals on giant springs you find on playgrounds.
Basically the structure of the book is a new kid in school explaining to us, the reader, how to catch a ghost for show and tell. She knows how important show and tell is and she knows she has to make a big splash and make a good impression. So of course her plan is to catch a ghost - and the instructions are extremely enjoyable. I suppose the only thing holding this book back from climbing the charts this year is being a bit more Halloweeny or a bit spookier.
8. Pumpkin Dad
Written and Illustrated by Pascal Lemaitre
Now this book - Pumpkin Dad - absolutely cracks me up from beginning to end. This is 100% a hilarious concept - and it’s executed so well. Quite simply, a little girl is pretending to be a witch, and she pretends to cast a spell on her dad. Her father then puts a pumpkin in his chair in a quick sneaky swap, and she actually thinks that she turned her dad into a pumpkin.
Then she takes her pumpkin dad on her bike to the hospital - but loses it on the way! At a pumpkin festival no less! The bulk of the book is then her telling people please don’t drink my dad or please don’t eat my dad. It is chaotic fun and just an absolute delight. It’s pretty short and simple but not a single word is wasted. I foresee it making a lot of kids laugh and I really think it will stick in people’s memories.
7. Hansel and Gretel
Written by Stephen King and Illustrated by Maurice Sendak
One of the absolute most exciting picture books of the entire year also finds itself on the list of the best Hallowen picture books of the year - and for obvious reasons. Hansel and Gretel is just about one of the creepiest kids stories every written, and of course it features a very famous Halloween character - a witch! And perhaps one of the most famous witches of all time.
It’s hard to choose what’s cooler - that this book is written by Stephen King or that it’s illustrated by Maurice Sendak. But I think the fact that they managed to use Sendak’s art for the opera in such a cool way is the highlight here. The images of the witch stealing children and the image of the gingerbread house itself are liable to haunt you in your dreams. I mean what more needs to be said - it’s a witch that eats children.
6. Aggie and the Ghost
Written and Illustrated by Matthew Forsythe
Yet another one of the vest picture books of 2025 finds itself onto the list of the best Halloween picture books of 2025. It’s no secret we are very big fans of the work of Matthew Forsythe, and this book about a boy who is a bit disgruntled about living with a ghost is high-quality stuff. Of course ghosts are classic Halloween material, but the only reason this book doesn’t finish higher is once again lack of spookiness and Halloweeniness.
Ultimately this is more of a comedy, and a very good one. There is some absolutely wonderful absurd humor in here, and it’s perfectly quirky. There is even a tic-tac-toe battle - but, as one of the ghost-onlookers wisely points out, humans are very bad at tic-tac-toe. Aggie and the Ghost has undoubtedly made it’s way onto our list of the most endearing ghosts in picture books - right up there with Simon and Gustavo.
5. The Slightly Spooky Tale of Fox and Mole
Written by Cecilia Heikkil and Illustrated by Polly Lawson
Humongous bonus points here for actually being scary. It’s so rare these days for a picture book to be scary, and this book has some very scary images in it. it begins with a scary story told between friends in a cozy room by a fire. The atmosphere is really wonderful in this book. It’s quite impressive world-building to be honest. I love the atmosphere of the cozy homes and pastures. It’s really very beautifully made.
And the story takes a big turn when it seems that fox is turning into the very monster from the story at the beginning of the book. And this is where the really scary images come into play. It’s scary to see a trusted friend transform into something dangerous - and that’s the spookiest part of this amazing book. Hands down, if you’re looking for a story for this Halloween season that’s legitimately a bit spooky, this is the one to reach for.
4. The Witch in the Tower
Written and Illustrated by Julia Sarda
Julia Sarda is one of our very favorite artists, and this sequel to The Queen in the Cave is easily one of our most celebrated books of 2025. The Witch in the Tower is phenomenal, and will undoubtedly make an appearance in the Dad Suggests Picture Book Awards. Of course it involves witches, which automatically qualifies it for our Halloween list, but it also has moments that are undoubtedly creepy - like when all the other witches show up.
The art is just jawdroppingly stupendous. So beautiful and quirky and wonderful and so much to look at. Simply the best. It includes the same sisters, but this time features the middle sister, Carmela. Carmela feels left out by her older sister, but seeks out a witch and ultimately finds her own community. Honestly I don’t know how to describe it, other than to say it’s like the most amazing and whimsical spookyish dream. It’s a beautiful work of art.
3. This Year a Witch!
Written and Illustrated by Zoey Abbott
Believe it or not, we have another book about deciding what to be for Halloween on this list. Of course it’s a universal question that we all have to deal with every year. And it’s a big deal for Halloween lovers. After all, you only have so many childhood Halloweens. Choosing your Halloween costume is a big deal! And this year our main character is going to be a witch.
Last year she was a bunny, and the year before that she was a mouse. But this year she doesn’t want to be something adorable, she wants to be scary! I love the text in this book just as much as I love the illustrations. The story itself is full of fun, quirky details that bring the character to life - and not necessarily always part of the story. There are plenty of delightful asides and great examples of the imaginative thinking process going on in this kids head and I just love it. Hands down this is one of the very best artistic celebrations of Halloween itself this year.
2. Murray’s Howl-o-ween
Written and Illustrated by E. G. Keller
You know what? I really like the Murray books. Murray’s Christmas book once made our Christmas list, and I kind of knew right away we’d really like this one too - because that one really captured that Christmas atmosphere. At the end of the day, these books are just so high-quality. It might kind of sound to the unfamiliar like one of those series that tries to pump out something for every holiday as a cash grab with little substance, but, I’m telling you, the Murray books are really, really good!
This is a beautiful book, and the illustrations are really quite amazing. They capture so many beautiful things - beautiful landscapes of changing leaves, a charming downtown decorated for Halloween, a corn maze with a spooky scarecrow. And, perhaps most importantly of all, a two-page spread of trick-or-treating that includes a fantastic Charlie Brown Easter egg. I’m telling you, the Murray books really get it. This is Halloween.
1. Spoops: The Little Spirits of Halloween
Written by A.J. Locascio and Illustrated by Laurie Conley
When reflecting on the very best Halloween picture book of 2025, it’s hard to deny Spoops its rightful throne. I mean it’s called Spoops for crying out loud. This is a book about loving Halloween - and it does it so well. And a big part of that is the nostalgic feeling it evokes with the distinct art style. I don’t know exactly how to describe it, but it’s kind of like a modern take on a 50’s art style. And it’s very charming and very good at capturing a childhood Halloween feeling.
The story follows a girl who loves Halloween more than anything, but her parents are dentists who hate Halloween and won’t let her celebrate. And who would come to her rescue but an entire parade of cute little Halloween spirits called Spoops. Not only do they help her get ready for Halloween, but they help her try to convince her curmudgeonly parents that Halloween is about a whole lot more than candy. It’s a special book and it’s obviously made with a great love and appreciation for Halloween - and that’s why it’s the best Halloween picture book of 2025!
I hope you get a chance to enjoy some of the books on this year’s list together with loved ones! Have a very Happy and Spooky Halloween!
