Rex tackles the Star Wars universe with his characteristic humor and wit. In bold, yellow text, an unidentified narrator asks Darth Vader what scares him. Practical and unfazed, Vader denies any fears, responding dryly in black speech bubbles. (When Vader scoffs at vampire bites, for example, the narrator notes that vampires can turn into bats. "So, a much smaller thing that bites you," Vader quips.) He doesn't even fear children, despite their exasperating, rambunctious behavior, such as stealing his lightsaber and jumping on his back. Rex's silly tone, goofy creatures, and spry children humorously offset Vader's beautifully charcoaled figure silhouetted against a dark, dreary swamp. When the youngsters leave, the narrator reminds Vader there is one child left e one reading the book. Kids will get a kick out of watching the ending dawn on Vader, while instilling fear in one of moviedom's greatest villains. Even though Vader is masked and cloaked, Rex captures his expressions through simple, effective tilts of his head, especially as he fills the frame in the final pages. Another success (sith-cess?) from Rex.

An unseen narrator attempts to discover what might scare Darth Vader. Lord Vader scoffs at the typical Halloween beasties. Neither a wolf nor a man scares him, so a wolfman won't do it; his armor will protect him from a vampire's bite; and as long as the ghost isn't Obi-Wan Kenobi's or Yoda's, he's fine. Though he's not afraid of a witch, learning that she might curse him makes him morose: "I am already cursed." Unflappable until now, the Dark Lord finally grows agitated and then increasingly annoyed (but still not scared) when the costumed kids who have been trying to scare him remove their masks and use him as a jungle gym. But even when they leave, there's still one left: the one who's holding this book and who's about to close it. That does it! À la Grover in There's a Monster at the End of This Book, the finally fearful Darth Vader tries everything to get the reader to stop turning pages, and the narrator just rubs it in, comparing being closed in the book to being trapped in carbonite. Clever design places the narrator's text in yellow, Vader's sarcastic responses in white on black speech bubbles. The image of the staid Lord Vader fighting off hordes of children will keep kids in stitches.Never underestimate the power of a child, even against the Dark Side. (Picture book. 4-8)