New Halloween Books for Kids 2026: A Lonely Ghost, a Lumpy Pumpkin and a Candy Dragon

Somewhere in an attic, a trunk creaks open and an old map slides out of a book. Down the street, a lopsided pumpkin is rolling, very slowly, after a child who did not choose it. And in a bedroom, a small dragon in a homemade costume is drawing a map of every house on the block.

Those are scenes from Magic Story's three new personalized Halloween books. In each one, your child's name and illustrated likeness take the lead role, and each brings a different kind of Halloween night: a treasure hunt, a contest that goes gloriously wrong, and a candy haul that gets out of hand.

The Treasure of Hollow House: for the kid who wants an adventure

The map reads The Treasure of Hollow House, and it points to the creepiest house in town. Your child rounds up the Treehouse HQ crew: tall, snack-carrying Stretch, who scares easily; Ziggy, who has a gadget for everything; and Fitz, who finds most things cool. They bike down foggy Hollow Lane, where the jack-o'-lanterns flicker on by themselves.

Inside, the surprises keep coming. A portrait's eyes move (it is only Pickles, a round gray cat). A candlestick lever tips the floor into a slide. A gourd organ asks for the song every kid knows, and the reader gets to guess it. Then a glowing figure appears in the tunnels and everyone runs. Everyone except your child, who stops and asks, "Are you... scared of US?"

He is. His name is Bix, a kid ghost who has watched children scream and run away every Halloween. The town's Halloween Lantern only shines for friends, and it has been dark for a hundred years. When two big kids in monster masks steal it, your child turns the crew's quirks into a plan to get it back. Then they cut eye holes in a dust sheet so Bix can go trick-or-treating for the first time: a ghost dressed as a ghost.

Why this one: it treats courage as staying, not charging in. The note on the last page, signed by Bix and Pickles, says simply, "Thank you for staying." Ask your child why they think the hero stayed when everyone else ran, and what their own job on the team would be.

The Pumpkin That Followed Me Home: for the planner

Your child has a perfect plan to win the Halloween Pumpkin Contest. They have a tape measure, a magnifying glass and a level, plus a scarecrow costume with every straw cut to the same length. Pumpkin after pumpkin is rejected for being too tall, too flat or too freckled. Meanwhile a warty, lopsided pumpkin named Lumpy keeps rolling into the way, and then rolls all the way home after them.

The chosen pumpkin, The One, gets a bubble bath with cucumber slices and a face drawn with a ruler and a protractor. One hiccup during carving, and SPLOOSH. With only Lumpy left, your child looks at those bumps and admits, "Maybe we're BOTH a little lumpy." They carve him just for fun, and every wart becomes a nose or an eyebrow.

In a town square full of identical perfect pumpkins, one kid asks whether Lumpy is a potato. Your child claims him proudly anyway. When the lights go on, Lumpy's bumps throw shadows across the wall: a bear, a rocket, a dragon. Judge Grimsby, who has not smiled in forty years, smiles. Lumpy wins the first-ever Made-Me-Smile Prize.

Why this one: it is very funny about wanting things to be just right, and the planner gets the happiest ending of all. On the last page, your child crosses PERFECT off the checklist and writes LUMPY. After reading, choose the bumpiest pumpkin you can find and shine a flashlight on it in a dark room. What shapes appear?

The Candy Dragon: for the trick-or-treat strategist

Your child slept in the dragon costume. By morning, OPERATION CANDY MOUNTAIN is ready: a map of every house on the street, rated with gold stars. Trixie, the tiny ghost next door with the other walkie-talkie, asks to come along. The dragon insists on going alone.

Then the hoarding begins. A whole TAKE ONE bowl goes into the pillowcase. Joke glasses provide a disguise for repeat visits. Smitty, a small dinosaur, hands over ten chocolate bars for one candy corn. The dragon turns Trixie's walkie-talkie down and ends the night on a pile of 1,001 candies, higher than the bed, refusing to pay the grown-ups' Candy Tax.

Up there, it is lonely, and there is a tummyache. When the dragon turns the walkie-talkie back up, Trixie's bag has broken and she has lost all three of her candies. The biggest bar goes to her first. Then comes OPERATION CANDY SHARE: the TAKE ONE bowl gets refilled, and Smitty gets his ten bars back plus one more "for interest." The last kids on the street get a candy storm.

Why this one: the dragon does not stop at feeling sorry. They go back and set right each thing they took. The final note to the Candy Tax Collector reads, "DRAGON TAX. PAID IN FULL." Ask your child why the mountain stopped feeling like treasure, and what they would put in their own Operation Candy Share.

How spooky is spooky?

You know your child's dial best. The Treasure of Hollow House has creaks, a dark tunnel, a glowing figure and two masked big kids, even if the ghost is the most frightened one there. The pumpkin and dragon books are comedies built around costumes, a contest and a lot of candy. Browse the sample pages together and let your child decide what feels fun.

Ordering your Halloween book

• One-time hardcovers. Each new title is a personalized hardcover for $44.99 in the US, plus shipping and tax. Prices can differ by shopping country.
• Free preview first. Create a free preview of your child's character, then browse sample pages with an example character to review the story. No credit card is needed.
• Ordered individually. These three are not currently Magic Story+ monthly picks, so choose them on their own pages: The Treasure of Hollow House, The Pumpkin That Followed Me Home or The Candy Dragon.
• Plan around delivery. Books are printed after you order. Check the delivery estimate at checkout if you want the book in hand for Halloween.

Looking for an older favorite? The Jack-O'-Lantern Express sends your child aboard a glowing pumpkin train with a skeleton conductor, across three chapters. It is also part of the library for Magic Story+, the membership that sends a new personalized hardcover every month, $24.99 plus shipping and tax in the US, until you cancel.

For a grandparent who will miss trick-or-treating this year, a book with the grandchild's name on the cover is a lovely way to be part of the night.