5 stars

Few things bring this reader more joy than a charming picture book, but a picture book with a dash of horror?! Well. That may just be unbeatable.

Readers learn an important and moderately horrifying historical tale of a jam sandwich that is minding its own business when a young vampire mistakes that vibrant strawberry jam for a different substance and takes a bite. We all know what happens to those who survive a vampire bite...

This is an extremely charming book with a riveting story, adorable while sinister images, and age-appropriate horror, which I hadn't even considered an option prior to this experience.

Having taught children's literature at the college level for a couple of decades, I'm pretty accustomed to picture books with MESSAGES, and while this one does not necessarily deliver in the same way as many of its contemporary counterparts in this respect, it does come through with many high notes.

This was a blast to read, and I can't wait to recommend it to students (and buy a copy for in-class entertainment).

This book is Fangtastic‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️

I love the illustrations being detailed with a little creep factor. The characters (narrator) was whimsical with a dash of suspense, and the storyline was to bite for. I also loved the idea of introducing young children to not scary spooky stories to Amp their interest in reading. I absolutely recommend this book to all ages, including the young at heart or vampire lovers.

Whats a vampire to do if he wants strawberry jam? Well find out now! This was such a charming and sweet story about a vampire who craves strawberry jam and his advice for anyone who wants to avoid the vampire jam sandwich that is going to steal all your jam! Its a cute read and the art was adorable.

Release Date: June 24,2025

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada | Tundra Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

If you love silly/goofy picture books about vampires then this book is perfect for you! Vampire Jam Sandwich is perfect for reading to little ones and I can’t wait to order it for work so I can read it for story-time!
If you’re a surprise/guest reader for an elementary school, a children’s librarian, or even just the parent/guardian of a kid and are reading a bedtime story this is going to be perfect for you.

Once upon a time a vampire took a bite of a jam sandwich . . . and a legend was born. Now the vampire jam sandwich roams the streets, looking for MORE JAM. Will yours be next?

I absolutely loved this book, a great story for Halloween, without being too scary. The kids in my classroom are going to love this book and I can already see how I can integrate making a jam sandwich (instruction) and keeping it away from the Vampire Jam Sandwich (or is it?.....)

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for this ARC copy

can’t wait to add this to our library’s shelves! this will be a huge hit with my students, a perfect mix of clever and creepy!

If your kids are fans of the delightfully eerie world of Creepy Carrots by Aaron Reynolds, then they’re in for a fang-tastic treat with Vampire Jam Sandwich. As a parent of a six-year-old girl who adores all things spooky, I couldn’t be more thrilled to have stumbled upon this gem.

In a market often devoid of children’s books with just the right amount of spooky charm, Vampire Jam Sandwich fills that void beautifully. It strikes the perfect balance between spooky and playful, making it an ideal choice for kids who enjoy a hint of the macabre without veering into nightmare territory.

This story is highly creative. The illustrations are wonderful. It is difficult to find age appropriate "scary" stories for the children in our library and I think this will work for them. I will definitely be recommending this to our purchaser.

OMG, this book was so cute! The story focuses on a vampire who got spooked after one bite of a jam sandwich... which created a Vampire Jam Sandwich. The illustrations were hilarious, and I would have loved the mildly creepy vibes as kid. I would definitely recommend this to anyone with kiddos in the picture book age range or anyone who just wants a fun vampiric sandwich read!

Thanks to NetGalley, Casey Lyall, and Penguin Random House Canada for the chance to review!

I thought this was a really sweet introduction for smaller children into the massive world of vampire mythology. The basic story is a vampire transfers ‘the curse’ to a jam sandwich, so now the jam sandwich must spend an endless lifetime looking for jam?
My 7 year old enjoyed this, a cute pre spooky story.

This story was so cute! As a teacher, I think that this book is a perfect quick read aloud for elementary students up to about 4th grade. The illustrations are "dark" but really cute. It is an adorable, original idea and while the top is vampires, this story could be read at any time in the year.

I read a lot of books to my children and I'm so sorry to say I would absolutely not read Vampire Jam Sandwich to them. Here is why...

The cover (the vampire jam sandwich) and the main character are really creepy looking. The cat is super cute which helps. The jam looks like blood, which I understand is the whole point, but it's an advanced idea with a not as age appropriate format. It's a picture book, with limited words, but the topic is about vampires that bite people and drink their blood. I know I wouldn't want to have to explain any of this to my kids (at ages 6 and 5).

As far as the text goes, there was one line that I got hung up on: "... contents sucked dry..." Feels more like the jar was sucked dry, not the contents inside. The ending felt eerily similar to The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry and the Big Hungry Bear, but I do appreciate the humor with the spelling of T-E-R-R-A-N-C-E.

Ultimately, the whole book made me uncomfortable just imagining reading it to my own children and felt like a story line for an older youth demographic.

Such a cute story. Kids love vampires and this is the perfect mix of vampire and fun. I could see many teachers reading this book to their students. The artwork is wonderfully perfect and I do enjoy the use of vocabulary introduced to students as well as figurative language. There are many questions a teacher can ask to enhance a child’s inferencing skills such as (the jam was not ….). We all know what that means. I have many younger kids for speech therapy and I believe I will be using this book for our therapy sessions. My only objection is that I wish ithe story was just a bit longer. Other than that I liked it very much

I’ll be pick up this book as soon as I’m able to! I loved the artwork and the story itself was unique and interesting. I’d happily read this one again and again to the children at my school as I feel they’d really enjoy it

Such a fun story and a kid friendly way to have the “dark” element of a vampire in a kids book. The illustrations were delightful and I found myself engrossed in all the little details. The twist at the end was silly in the best way! I can’t wait to read this to my kids.

An absolute delight! Vampire Jam Sandwich is the perfect little kid spooky story, without being too spooky. A vampire, possibly named Terrance, sneaks into a kitchen for a tasty snack & takes a bite of a jam sandwich. And you know what a bite from a vampire means? A VAMPIRE JAM SANDWICH. Obviously. The artwork is unique, using primarily beige, brown, white bringing our focus to the pinks/reds of the jam! A story that kids will want to read again & again! The perfect addition to bookshelves for October, for letter J days, & for those days when you just need a sweet treat!

I thought this was a really cute take on the vampire mythology. What if a vampire transferred the curse to a jam sandwich, so now the jam sandwich must spend an endless lifetime looking for jam? The pictures were cute too. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

"The story goes that long ago, a vampire
-- possibly named Terrence --
snuck into someone's kitchen and took
a bite out of their jam sandwich."

This was a cute horror story without any horror for a silly child. The meta interaction with the narrator at the end was well done and it could be a good book to help a little kid feel brave enough for spooky stories (even if they're not there yet).

The art style was just okay, but didn't really hit for me. I think I would've liked a little more detail or color or something to make it more visually appealing.