The Best Halloween Ever

The six Herdman siblings appear in two other novels by Barbara Robinson: The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (1972) and The Best School Year Ever (1994). The Herdmans are known for being unruly, wild, and unexpectedly creative in all three books. In The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, the antics of the Herdmans include burning down a toolshed and smoking cigars, while in The Best School Year Ever, the siblings make the kindergarten gerbil disappear and hex a bus. Described as the worst children in the world in the series, the Herdmans nevertheless have a funny, sympathetic side. As Beth notes often in The Best Halloween Ever, the Herdman pranks do not cause any lasting harm. All the children who are victims of their naughtiness emerge unscathed. Furthermore, the Herdmans often end up enhancing the event others fear they may destroy, whether it is a Christmas pageant or a candy-free school Halloween.

The Herdmans live in a ramshackle house at the bottom of a hill, have little interest in school, and often indulge in rude behavior, such as writing swear words on the shell of a schoolmate’s turtle. They are being raised by a single mother who works two jobs to support her family.