Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse: Graham Howie's haunting tale for little ones!
About Author
Graham Howie's new picture book Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse explores friendship and belonging in a surprising setting, just right for Halloween!
Graham Howie was born in Edinburgh and since he was little, has always been a doodler and story creator. He studied visual communication at Edinburgh College of Art and he loves to illustrate with bold colours, textures, and shapes. As well as creating picture books, he has written and illustrated for the Beano and the Dandy.
Graham lives in East Lothian with his family and when he's not making picture books, he enjoys bird watching and playing tennis.
Interview
October 2026
Graham Howie shares his haunting Halloween tale, Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse
Just in time for Halloween, Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse (OUP) is a story about friendship and community, but packaged with all the thrills of Halloween! Featuring a ghost, a ghoul and a dark, creaky house, this gently scary story is perfect to share with little ones on autumnal nights.
ReadingZone caught up with author and illustrator Graham Howie to find out what inspired his story about two argumentative ghosts, a lonely mouse and a house on a hill . . .
More about Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse (OUP): Little Mouse lives alone in a dark, creaky old house. He dreams of having friends so when two unexpected housemates arrive, Little Mouse is excited. But Ghost and Ghoul are so busy arguing that they barely notice Little Mouse at all!
Review: "The perfect, gently scary story for Hallowe’en, Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse is a spook-tacular read!" - Sue, ReadingZone
Halloween Activities: For those of us who hate the idea of 'Trick or Treat'-ing, stories like Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse offer wonderful possibilities for engaging children with fun activities, for example:
- Children might enjoy inventing a range of 'spooky' events or games, leading to their gaining certificates in Horrifying Haunting like Ghost and Ghoul.
- They could create their own board game, Ghosts and Ghouls, based on Snakes and Ladders, or play 'pin the hat' on either Ghost or Ghoul.
- The illustrations in these stories give endless ideas for decorations - and for baking a cake like Little Mouse, or perhaps some Ghost or Ghoul shaped biscuits! Great fun! (Ideas by Sue Wilsher, teacher)
Q&A with Graham Howie: Exploring themes of friendship and belonging in Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse
"The story is about friendship and belonging and I hope that it helps to spark discussions around how
sharing, learning and working together can foster friendships."
1. Hello Graham, thank you for joining us to talk about your new picture book, Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse! What kinds of stories do you enjoy creating, and what helps inspire new stories?
Hello there and thank you for inviting me to talk about my new picture book, Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse.
The kind of stories that I enjoy creating are stories where the main characters learn something about themselves or teach the other characters in the story something about themselves. I also love to create stories which have a little twist at the end.
2. So, what happens in Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse?
In Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse, a small mouse lives in a big old spooky house. Little Mouse is lonely and hopes for visitors. One evening, Ghost and Ghoul come across the house and decide that they both want it for themselves, and argue about who will have the house - ignoring Little Mouse completely, until a surprising twist leads to Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse discovering they have more in common than they thought!
3. It's a perfect Halloween read - but why did you decide to write a (not too) spooky story for young children?
I decided to write a not too spooky a story for young children as I enjoy these kinds of stories myself. I'm a big fan of Jan Pienkowski's Meg and Mog series.
4. Can you tell us about your character, Mouse, and the challenges he faces in the story, especially around being heard. Is that why you chose a mouse for this character?
The character of Little Mouse has the biggest emotional journey in the story. He begins the story being lonely, then moves to being excited about having visitors and possible friends, to being disappointed at being ignored, and then ultimately happy at helping his new friends and being welcomed as a friend.
I instinctively chose the character of a little mouse to have this role in the story as the imagery of a tiny mouse in a big house works very well as a visual metaphor for loneliness.
5. Although the main characters include a ghost and a ghoul, the story is really about friendship and belonging. What kinds of discussions do you hope this could prompt?
The story is about friendship and belonging; I hope that it helps to spark discussions around how sharing, learning and working together can foster friendships.
6. You have illustrated as well as written this picture book - how do you decide on the 'look' of your characters, and does this happen before or after you've written them?
When I am making a picture book such as Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse, the design and look of characters is generally worked on at the same time as writing the story. When I decide I have a good idea for a story, I start fleshing out the story and I will also work on character designs at the same time as the story evolves.
7. How do you encourage your readers to empathise with Mouse being ignored in the story?
I encourage my readers to empathise with Little Mouse by having Little Mouse being relentlessly positive in the story, despite being ignored. This gives him an admirable quality and the reader wants him to succeed in making friends.
8. Do you have a favourite moment in Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse?
My favourite moment in he story is the most dramatic moment - when Little Mouse scares off Bear with his huge shadow - and Ghost and Ghoul realise how scary Little Mouse can be, even though Mouse is so small.
9. Do you have any more picture books underway? For children who enjoy Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse, do you have other picture books they might enjoy?
I am currently illustrating my next picture book which I have also written. And I am also writing a chapter book for young readers.
For children who enjoy reading Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse, I would highly recommend the Meg and Mog series of books.
10. What kinds of things keep you busy when you're not creating new stories?
When I am not creating picture books, my two-year-old daughter keeps me very, very busy. Luckily she loves picture books too, and we have a great time reading them.
Creative challenge from Graham Howie: In Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse, Ghost and Ghoul have a scare off competition where they each try and do scary things to scare Bear. Can you think of any other things that Ghost or Ghoul could do to scare Bear?
Graham Howie's School Visits: I am doing a promotional tour with my book, Ghost, Ghoul and Little Mouse, with sessions comprising games, readings and drawings around my book and ghosts and ghouls in general. Schools can get in touch with me if they are interested in me visiting their school at [email protected]
Ghost, Ghoul, and Little Mouse: A Halloween Tale of Friendship and Fun
