Zen Ghosts

Starred review from August 16, 2010
In the third of Muth's contemplative series, Stillwater the panda comes dressed as a ghost to join Addy, Michael, and Karl on Halloween. After trick or treating, they travel through the misty night to Stillwater's house. There, another panda (which one is Stillwater?) shares a ghost story, painted in black ink and based on a Zen koan, which questions the nature of identity. Haunting in multiple senses of the word, this tale should captivate thoughtful readers, as Muth's watercolors convey a world of infinite possibility and gentle enchantment. All ages.

November 1, 2010

Gr 1-6-It's Halloween, and the three siblings introduced in Muth's Zen Shorts (2005) and Zen Ties (2008, Scholastic) are working on their costumes when Stillwater appears at their door. The panda invites Addy, Michael, and Karl to meet him after trick-or-treating to hear a ghost story. The walk through the forest is filled with mystery. Stillwater himself-who said he would be a ghost this Halloween-is at times almost transparent, and his round, white bamboo lantern mimics the full moon. Inside his house is another panda who looks exactly like Stillwater. His story, which is told in words and brush-and-ink drawings, is based on an old Zen koan, or puzzle, about a young woman who is with her husband in a faraway land and yet very ill and at home with her parents. It invites listeners to consider duality, or perception vs. reality, and is at the same time a wonderfully haunting tale that's perfect for Halloween. When the story ends and the illustrations return to the earlier complex, evocative watercolors, it isn't clear whether Stillwater and the storyteller are two entities or one. The children and readers are left to consider this and other mysteries as both tales come to a close. Muth's artistic gifts are so breathtaking that they will draw in even those whose attention spans are not at first up to the demands of the text. The book functions on many levels, from seasonal Halloween story to ghost yarn to deep philosophy, and succeeds spectacularly on all of them.-Susan Weitz, formerly at Spencer-Van Etten School District, Spencer, NY

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2010
Grades K-3 Following the Caldecott Honor Book Zen Shorts (2005) and Zen Ties (2008), Muth offers another gentle, reflective story about Stillwater, the Zen Buddhist panda, and his three young friends, siblings Michael, Karl, and Addie. Its Halloween, and after the candy-collecting fun, Stillwater promises another treat: a visit from a storyteller, who looks a lot like the kids panda friend. Is that Stillwater? asks Karl. Yes . . . no! . . . I dont know! whispers Michael. That theme of duality is at the heart of the storytellers tale about a young woman who seemingly lives in two places at once. In an authors note, Muth discusses Zen koans, and as a whole, this title feels more like a vehicle for the meditative tale rather than a developed, integrated story. But Muth grounds the books esoteric elements with humor, everyday details from a childs world, and extraordinary watercolor-and-ink scenes that contrast the fiery shades of autumn with silvery moonlight and utilize a ghostly, simplified palette to amplify the koans elemental mysteries. A beautiful, contemplative offering.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)