Wake the dead

I'm sure all of us in our lifetime have been told, "Be quiet or you'll wake the dead." It must be one of those mandatory lines in the required parent's manual. If you're a parent, perhaps you've even shared this tidbit with your children and if so, you'll want to read Wake the Dead by Monica A. Harris.

Henry is having a loud day. When he plays, he’s loud. When he walks, he’s loud. When he talks, he’s loud. Everything he does is loud. And Henry, like most children, ignores his family's warnings that if he's not quiet, he'll wake the dead. So, eventually, Henry does just that! Before you know it, the dead emerge from their coffins and push open their mausoleum doors to find out what the racket's all about.The dead look in the beauty salon, the library, city hall, and the post office. They search the entire town and finally catch up with Henry, who happens to be teaching his dog how to roll over and play dead.

Henry attempts to put the dead back to sleep, but the dead are wide awake! He tries to tire them out with a game of Kick the Bucket and some other games, then he throws a party. But when its really late and the moon is dead center in the sky, Henry announces that it's time for a bedtime story. Henry finally lays the dead to rest after a second read and heads home after learning his lesson.

This is one of those rare books that will appeal to both young readers and adults. The text is full of fun wordplays such as 'bone-dry mouths,' 'the noise was dead ahead,' and 'the dead worked their fingers to the bone.' The illustrations are entertaining and add visual humor to an already amusing story. For example, when Henry reads the dead their bedtime story, you'll realize he's reading 'Goodnight Goon.' When you and your young readers reach the end of this book, you'll both be wishing it wasn't "Dead End."

Additional Information:
Reading level: Ages 4-8
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: Walker Books for Young Readers; Original edition (August 1, 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0802789226