Today’s Book Blogger Hop question is: If you went trick-or-treating with your favorite book characters, who would it be?

Well, since I haven’t been trick-or-treating in about twenty years, I’m going to assume that this question also includes an appropriate age adjustment in the imaginary scenario, and go from there!  With that, I would definitely have to say that pretty much any of L. M. Montgomery’s characters would be brilliant to trick-or-treat with.

I can’t think that any of them ever did in any of her books (maybe it wasn’t so much a Canadian thing?  A time period thing?  Or it just didn’t make much sense in a rural community with widely-spread farmhouses?) but if we also assume a world where that’s happening and the geography makes sense…I feel pretty sure that her heroines, particularly Anne and Emily, would spend weeks before Halloween coming up with and creating elaborate home-made costumes, probably based on literary or historical characters, and then get very into the role-playing on Halloween night.  And that sounds like quite a lot of fun!

Who would you choose to trick-or-treat with?  Does it make a lot of sense, or do you have to make some assumptions? 😉

Today’s Book Blogger Hop question is: Would you consider giving out books to trick-or-treaters instead of candy?

That’s a cute idea, but I’m not sure how actually feasible it would be.  My first thought was that books, as a rule, cost much more per unit than candy, so it’s not that economically feasible.  But on the other hand, in my neighborhood it’s a busy Halloween if we get a dozen trick-or-treaters, so that may not be that much of an issue after all.

The possibly bigger trouble is that it’s impossible to predict the age, gender or interests of the kids who show up at the door, so having the right books would be a challenge.  People talk about liking “books” generically, but the truth is that pretty much everyone has a limited selection of books they actually like, and kids of different age groups are even more complicated.  While not every kid likes every type of candy, it’s much more universally appealing.

And then there’s the issue of expectations – we all know what the kids are coming to the door for, and it’s not books.  I wouldn’t really blame a kid who wasn’t happy to not get chocolate, or even assume that they don’t like books – only that they’re here looking for chocolate!

I think books could be an awesome party favor, and I give lots of books as gifts, but it makes more sense in a situation where you know more about the numbers and the identities of the recipients.  So probably not the best choice for trick-or-treaters!