Howliday Inn (Bunnicula Series)

Not a great place to visit, and you wouldn't want to live there

The Monroes have gone on vacation, leaving Harold and Chester at Chateau Bow-Wow — not exactly a four-star hotel. On the animals' very first night there, the silence is pierced by a peculiar wake-up call — an unearthly howl that makes Chester observe that the place should be called Howliday Inn.

But the mysterious cries in the night (Chester is convinced there are werewolves afoot) are just the beginning of the frightening goings-on. Soon animals start disappearing, and there are whispers of murder. Is checkout time at Chateau Bow-Wow going to come earlier than Harold and Chester anticipated?

While their family is away, Harold and Chester, a dog and a cat, are boarded at Chateau Bow-Wow where Chester becomes increasingly alarmed by the strange behavior of his fellow guests and the sudden disappearance of one of them.

Not a great place to visit, and you wouldn't want to live there

The Monroes have gone on vacation, leaving Harold and Chester at Chateau Bow-Wow — not exactly a four-star hotel. On the animals' very first night there, the silence is pierced by a peculiar wake-up call — an unearthly howl that makes Chester observe that the place should be called Howliday Inn.

But the mysterious cries in the night (Chester is convinced there are werewolves afoot) are just the beginning of the frightening goings-on. Soon animals start disappearing, and there are whispers of murder. Is checkout time at Chateau Bow-Wow going to come earlier than Harold and Chester anticipated?

Children's Literature

Originally published in 1982, this fantasy novel, by the author of Bunnicula, describes the unexpected experiences that Harold (a dog) and Chester (a cat) encounter when their family goes on vacation without them. Against their will, the two animals must spend a week at Chateau Bow-Wow, a less than desirable kennel. During their first night at the kennel, an unearthly howl keeps the animals awake, prompting Chester to call the place Howliday Inn. In addition to the howling, animals begin to disappear, including Chester. Harold desperately tries to solve the mystery, which involves kidnapping and potentially murder. Punctuated with clever dialogue and unusual characters and situations, the book will amuse young readers. A Bunnicula Book. 2001, Aladdin Paperbacks, $16.00 and $4.99. Ages 7 to 12. Reviewer:Rebecca Joseph

James Howe is the author of more than seventy books for young

readers, including the popular and award-winning series about Bunnicula

and his friends. Among his other books are the Pinky and Rex series,

The Misfits, Totally Joe, and the Sebastian Barth mysteries.

James did not enjoy camping when he was a boy, but he did always wish he

had a pet skunk. He still does wish this at times, but for the most part

he's happy with the dog and two cats who share his home in New York State.

James Howe says:

"Back in the Olden Days, before there were such things as cable television

or DVDs, I loved staying up late at night to watch old horror movies on TV.

My favorites were the ones about hollow-eyed vampires and torch-bearing

peasants, or those with mad scientists whose accents fell somewhere

between Upper Mongolia and the Bronx. Nighty-Nightmare came out of

the affection I still feel for those movies and the laughs — along with

the chills — they gave me. Chester's story of how Bunnicula traveled from

Transylvania to America is a spoof of just about every old horror movie

I ever saw!"

Lynn Munsinger was born in Massachusetts. She has illustrated more than ninety books for children — bringing Wodney Wat, Tacky the Penguin, a porcupine named Fluffy, the Teeny Tiny Ghost, and Ogden Nash's Custard the Dragon to charming life. Her watercolor illustrations have been praised for their "classic quality" (Publishers Weekly) and "mix of wry humor and affection" (Booklist).