Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 06/01/2022 Gr 2–5—In 2009, Dapier was invited to play the drums at the White House during the Obamas's first Halloween celebration. This engaging, rhyming story inspired by that event begins with the Skeleton Drummers receiving an invitation to perform. The cleverly illustrated book, with its pencil, ink, and digitally colored illustrations, includes historical political figures portrayed as dancing ghosts. The Obamas themselves are standout illustrations, coupled with the Skeleton Drummers jamming throughout the event along with the trick-or-treating children. Overall, the lively illustrations add to the lighthearted nature of the story. The vocabulary includes music-related terminology that could be unfamiliar to some, as well as words that are not a part of the average child's lexicon, such as waltz and gloam. However, the musical terminology and unfamiliar vocabulary provide the possibility for further learning opportunities. An author's note describing the lore surrounding ghosts that haunt the White House as well as Dapier's personal experience of playing the celebration add to the book's appeal. Additional back matter includes a list of books and online resources about White House ghosts and hauntings. VERDICT The illustrations and narrative surrounding the most haunted house in America are more than enough to keep readers entertained.—Katie Loomis - Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 09/15/2022 The Skeleton Drummers have been cordially invited to play a Halloween bash at the most haunted house in America, the White House! The bony band quickly prepares its instruments and makes its way through dark underground tunnels to Washington, DC. The members emerge to a costumed crowd of trick-or-treaters that excitedly grooves to the band’s beat all the way to the White House’s doors. Inside, it’s packed with the living and the dead. There’s ol’ Abe Lincoln petting a giant black cat, and First Lady Abigail Adams (now a translucent white) is climbing out of her picture frame! The crowd converges in the Red Room, where the Terror Ball is in full swing, before spilling outside once more. The text’s rhythm and rhyme capture the Skeleton Drummers’ beat, while the cartoon illustrations are a riot of movement and detail forged in Halloween hues. An author’s note reveals that Dapier himself once drummed at a White House Halloween party, and he includes further reading on documented White House hauntings. - Copyright 2022 Booklist.