If your babysitter is a bruja by Ana Siqueira, illustrated by Irena Freitas

I've recently been trying to get my "holiday" books to circulate more year-round, and especially with requests for monster books from some kids, have moved most of my witch, monster, and ghost books into the Tales/Fantasy picture book neighborhood. This new book fits in nicely to that collection.

Bright, modernistic shapes illustrate this witch story with a Hispanic flair. If your babysitter, shown as a young girl with fair skin, brown hair, and a mole, "zooms in on a broom, black sombrero on her head," she might be a bruja, a witch!

A nervous little girl, who appears to be biracial, her brown hair in two puffballs on her head, navigates her new babysitter who turns out not to be so scary after all, but definitely magical. The pages are full of turquoise greens and rich oranges, decorated with swooping ghosts and skeletons, and a delightful mix of imagination and magic; the bruja chases the girl through a "castle," which is a garden playscape, and puts her in a "cauldron" which is her bathtub.

This is not specifically a Halloween story, although it references the holiday with the bruja showing up on Halloween eve, scary decorations, and jack o'lanterns. The story is sprinkled with Spanish, including frequent repetitions of "ay caramba" and words that are explained by the context like delicioso or cocodrilos. The story is also available in a fully bilingual setting or just in Spanish.

It was interesting to see the depiction of a bruja, very close to the Western idea of a witch. I had always though that it was almost more of a spiritual situation, admittedly mostly going on middle grade fantasy. I would be chary of accepting this except that both creators are from Brazil, so I think it's reasonable to accept this as an authentic depiction of a bruja.

The story is lighthearted with just a mild hint of fear as the girl leads the bruja/babysitter on a grand chase and one gets the feeling that even the little girl doesn't really think her babysitter is a bruja; it's all just in good fun. I did find the illustrations somewhat cluttered and busy, so perhaps this might be a better choice for one-on-one reading, especially if dealing with a mixed group that would get upset about a book featuring a witch of any nationality.

Verdict: A fun addition to Halloween and fantasy/witch picture books, this is one I'm happy to add to my fantasy picture book section. It would also be a fun read for a kid feeling a little trepidation about a new babysitter, as long as they don't have any serious fears that will be triggered. The Latinx twist is a nice addition and makes this a unique addition to most holiday collections.

ISBN: 9781534488748; Published August 2022 by Simon & Schuster; Review copy provide by publisher; Donated to the library