One of my favorite things is hearing authors talk about their books and their inspiration for them. Whether it be with readings or media interviews, hearing the story behind the book always sheds a new light on an author's work for me. This week I got a real treat when I received a copy of a DVD that Adriana Trigiani has done for her book clubs, which has Adriana talking about not just one book, but all of her books. She also offers readers a tour of Greenwich Village, where she lives and whose Commerce Street formed the backdrop to one of my favorite books of hers, Lucia, Lucia.

Anyone with children may be shaking their heads like me at how Halloween as a holiday has grown since we were kids. We had a costume and a pillowcase for trick or treating and at the house there was a cut pumpkin with a candle. This pumpkin was carved with a knife. Really elaborately decorated homes had cornstalks! Now there are these over-the-top displays with spider webs, large size lawn ornaments, orange lights and store-bought bags for hauling the loot --- and complete pumpkin carving kits.

We're sneaking in one more pre-Halloween newsletter because we just can't resist! Kidsreads.com is a treasure trove of goodies this month. We're ALL about Lemony Snicket, with the release of his last book in his Series of Unfortunate Events --- THE END. We have an excerpt, a review and all the details on the thirteenth and final tale in the strange and spooky saga of the Baudelaire orphans. Our poll is Snicket-based too --- we want to know what you think of the series and of THE END, so don't forget to weigh in.

Remind me when Halloween became such a big holiday. I remember when I was a kid we would dress up and hit the candy trail. Now it's like a national holiday with its own batch of decorations and costumes to beat the band. A friend recently moved to the suburbs and she is in awe of the decorations and what feels like a competition on her block for the most spider webs and other ghoul-like designs! I have a great collection of costumes that I made for my boys over the years and I was oh so happy to loan her the "ear of corn" costume for her 18-month-old son.