°Book Review°

Stitch Head by Guy Bass, illustrated by Pete Williamson, is an imaginative and wonderfully gothic middle-grade novel set in the crumbling Castle Grotteskew. In this castle, the eccentric Professor Erasmus creates monsters, but his very first—Stitch Head—is different: shy, loyal, and desperate not to be forgotten.

Top 5 Reasons to Read Stitch Head:
Lovable Main Character: Stitch Head’s mix of loyalty, courage, and vulnerability makes him instantly memorable.

Imaginative Worldbuilding: The eerie yet whimsical setting of Castle Grotteskew will captivate anyone who loves spooky adventures.

Brilliant Illustrations: Pete Williamson’s gothic artwork amplifies both the humor and heart of the story.

Relatable Themes: At its core, it’s about wanting to belong, being yourself, and the power of friendship—timeless messages for all ages.

What Stood Out
Unique Premise & Setting: The blend of madcap science and a gothic castle makes for a fun, atmospheric adventure. Stitch Head’s quest for recognition is relatable and sincerely told.

Inventive Characters: The cast is full of colorful personalities—like the excitable Creature and bumbling monster-hunters—providing lots of humor and heart.

Vivid Illustrations: Pete Williamson’s art brings every spooky hallway and quirky monster to life, perfectly matching the story’s eerie, playful mood.

Humor & Heart: Despite its creepy setting, the book radiates warmth, showing that even misfits can find belonging and purpose.

Universal Themes: The story explores loyalty, identity, and the courage to stand up for yourself—a message that hits home for readers young and old.

Stitch Head’s longing to be seen reminded me of shy kids in any big classroom, hoping for a moment in the spotlight. It’s a story about bravery in small moments—something I’ve witnessed in students who find their confidence through friendship and unexpected heroism.

Perfect for Fans of Spooky Fun: If you (or your kids) like a little creepiness with a lot of laughs, this is a perfect pick!

Stitch Head is a gothic romp ideal for fans of Tim Burton or Roald Dahl, blending spooky thrills with real heart. It’s about finding your place in a quirky world, and learning that even “monsters” can be heroes.

Can We Talk About How Adorably Spooktacular This Is?!

I cannot get over how much fun this book was! Reading Stitch Head with my first grader was an absolute delight—pure magic from start to finish. 🧪💜

Meet Stitch Head, the very first creation of a curious young scientist. Once his loyal sidekick in wild experiments, Stitch Head is suddenly cast aside when the scientist’s father pressures him to become the next “mad genius.” Locked away while new monsters come to life, Stitch Head quietly watches from the shadows... until one night, everything changes.

Enter: a circus ringleader with a crew of creepy creatures and a thirst for spectacle. When he learns the town avoids his circus because of the mad scientist’s own monsters, he hatches a sneaky plan to capture them for himself. But he didn’t count on Stitch Head—who cleverly turns the tables! With help from his monstrous friends, Stitch Head launches a hilariously spooky plan to terrify the townspeople and send the ringleader running!

This origin story is heartwarming, eerie, and packed with unexpected teamwork. The message is clear: not all monsters are scary, and some of the best friendships are forged in the strangest of places. My daughter was totally hooked—and she’s already begging for the next book in the series! 🧟‍♂️✨

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Random House Children’s for letting us join this thrilling, laugh-out-loud ride. We laughed, we gasped, we cheered. It was truly a spectacular adventure we won’t forget!

✨✨Onto the review✨✨
What a cute graphic novel! If you love Tim Burton Claymation movies, or Coraline, or Hotel Transylvania you’re going to love this book! Our main character Stitch head is a long forgotten creation of a mad scientist and he’s desperate for his master to notice him. He makes friends with his masters new creation and they work together to save the castle from an angry mob!
This was such a cute- feel good book! I think this is good for kids ages 7-10 this could be a fun read for the family during Halloween!
Thank you to Toppling stack tours and the author for sending me this book in exchange for my honest review! If you would like to follow the rest of this tour and see posts by other creators you can check out the schedule here; https://topplingstackstours.com/ #StitchHead #TopplingStacksTours #GuyBass

Packed with quirky creatures created by a Frankenstein-esque mad scientist, I found the book more charming than creepy. These misunderstood misfits just want to belong, and they’re far less frightening than the townspeople think. The story is both humorous and heartfelt, with gothic-style illustrations reminiscent of Tim Burton’s movies. It’s a fun, spooky adventure exploring themes of identity and belonging.

Perfect for upper elementary to early middle school monster lovers! The art is moody and fun, the humor lands, and the story has real heart.

***ARC from NetGalley***

I was not familiar with this property when I requested the ARC, but I am beyond delighted to have discovered it.

Stitch Head: The Graphic Novel is the origin story for the main character, Stitch Head and his creator, the mad scientist. Stitch Head appears to be a young boy, with large, soulful eyes. His "job" is to keep the scientist's creations from running amuck and drawing attention to the castle and endangering his fellow "creations."

The illustrations are vivid and beautiful. It has the feel and atmosphere of the original Universal Monsters franchise. Geared toward children, it is scary with a small "s" and for kids that like gross out humor and creepy crawlies, they will love this.

Highly recommend. Hopefully the other books in the series will be adapted to graphic novels.

Stitch Head was Professor Erasmus’s first creature creation. Years have passed and Stitch Head has long been forgotten by his creator, but the professor continues to create monster after monster while Stitch Head yearns to be remembered. While he waits for this to happen, he takes it upon himself to quietly intervene to make sure that the professor’s monsters aren’t too vicious or harmful. When an evil circus ringmaster appears at the castle door with an offer too good to refuse, Stitch Head thinks he may finally have found a way to feel like he belongs. While readers may pick this one up looking for frights, they’ll find a deeper exploration of themes of family and belonging mixed in with the creatures and chaos. Combining Frankenstein, Pinocchio and Tim Burton vibes, the story’s fabulous stylized artwork and mix of a little bit of scary with a lot of heart will have lots of fans.

Thank you @guybassbooks, @pete.williamson.illustration & topplingstackstours for having me on this book tour!

📖 Book Review 📖 The Summerween fun continues with the adorable fun graphic novel! The world is filled with loneliness (and not just for monstrous creations) and we’re all looking for some sort of companionship. Guy Mass and Pete Williamson have created a middle grade graphic novel that normalizes this dilemma in an emotionally heartfelt story that is sure to endear itself to readers of all ages.

Stitch Head is a very lovable character. Always trying to do the right thing in hopes of protecting his master. This was a cute story with a great friendship buildup. I highly recommend to anyone with a love for out of the norm characters!

This one totally reminds me of Frankenstein but for the younger set. It's spooky, heartfelt, and packed with lovable monsters who are more misunderstood than menacing.

Stitch Head is such a tender, loyal character. He’s been forgotten by his creator but never stops looking out for his fellow creatures. His emotional journey hits just the right balance between eerie fun and self-discovery.

The creepy castle, the mad scientist, and the wild mix of monster personalities all give it major classic horror vibes but softened with humor, heart, and just the right dose of weird.

Perfect for readers who want spooky without nightmares, and especially great for fans ready to explore monster stories with meaning. I can’t wait to read more of this six-book series!

Stitch Head is a graphic novel for kids aged 8-12, with a kooky cast of monsters. one manipulative carnival showman, a mad scientist and an angry mob. The main character, Stitch Head, reminds me of a neglected child, who wants nothing more than to be seen by their parent. Or, in this case. Master. He needs hugs. Lots of them.

I loved the friendship that develops between Stitch Head, his master’s 309th creation and Arabella Guff, a townie. They make a great team as they work together to save the Castle from the angry mob and the dastardly showman.

The colorful illustrations are well done and add life to the story. The text itself is middle grade bathroom humor in parts (which boys will snort over I'm sure) with bits of pure wisdom sprinkled in. One in particular stuck with me: "What humans fear, they destroy."
That line is a gem.

Thank you to NetGalley and Toppling Stacks BT for the opportunity to read this book. All opinions are my own and are freely given.

Stitch Head is so fun to read, I think my students will especially love this book. It has all the fun spooky elements, but keeps it fun and silly + it’s an easy read!

The character Stitch feels so much like Pinocchio; as the stitched together little creature that exists in a world with like made characters by the same young “mad scientist”, who is one day whisked away and forced to “grow up” by his older father the Mad Professor Grotteskew.

40 years pass bay and Stitch Head’s master has forgotten him by now with countless other creatures superseding him. Until a new creature attempts to push Stitch Head into surprising his old Master; sadly he does not recognize Stitch Head.

Feeling sorry for himself, he finally joins a rag-tag group of Carnival “oddities” led by the dastardly Ringmaster Fulbert; who is obsessed with bringing Stitch Head into his flock of Travelin’ Carnival of Unnatural Wonders… Except it’s all a TRAP! Fulbert leads Stitch Head on so he can finally access the mad inventors castle because Stitch thwarted his way in every time before, so what better way to gain access than to butter up Stitch to get him to leave the door open!

At the end of the story it’s up to Stitch to save the day and the castle from Monster snatching Fulbert!

I highly recommend this graphic novel! The writing and art is perfectly spooky-fun for Elementary and Middle School Students who enjoy stories about monsters!

Great for middle grade readers trying to dip their toes into graphic novels and/or fantasy, and for existing fans of the series to see this world in a new way. The art frames the story wonderfully, with the use of dark moody hues, watercolor, and ink to help imbue a sense of ominous foreboding.

The character designs carry a Tim Burton-esque flair to them (think: big round eyes, gaunt cheeks, everyone looks like they’ve never seen the sun in their lifetime). And the monsters, as scary as they appear, are downright domestic.

The font for the text font, in opposition, is much clearer, making it easy for readers to follow. All of it is a solid combination when it comes to telling a story about how monstrousness isn’t about how we look, but about how we act.

Thanks to Random House Kids and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

𝙶𝚛𝚊𝚙𝚑𝚒𝚌 𝙽𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚕 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠
🌟🌟🌟🌟.5
Stitch Head is a graphic novel for children. It's about a lonely boy who has to defend his master's monster creations from an angry mob, and while doing so, build relationships with a local village girl and one of the monster creations.

This was a good read; I can easily see younger children reading this graphic novel around spooky Halloween time or fall. I highly recommend it.

Thank you, NetGalley, and Random House Children's, for the ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my e-ARC of Stitch Head!

•𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐓𝐂𝐇 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃

1. If you’re a fan of horror and graphic novels, you won’t want to miss this one!
2. Have you ever been forgotten by someone close to you? Stitch Head knows how you feel.
3. Sometimes the friends we need the most are the friends we push away. Stitch Head shows us how to open up and let people in!
4. If your favorite movie was Frankenstein, then pick this one up!
5. And lastly, if you have a middle grader who enjoys graphic novels with a great message, read this one asap!

• 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈𝐓’𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓

Stitch Head was the first creation to be born-- and the first to be forgotten.

He's the adorably monstrous creation of Professor Erasmus Erasmus, a man who has breathed life into over three hundred creatures with all manner of fangs, tails, and eyes. But as good as Erasmus is at giving life, he's equally bad at taking care of it. And so the duty falls to Stitch Head to ensure his siblings don't tear Castle Grotteskew apart.

Despite having a handle on the threats within the castle, however, no one is prepared for the conniving Mr. F-- the ringleader of a traveling circus of wonders and oddities-- to show up at Grotteskew's front door. He offers Stitch Head a new chance at family-- one that will make him known by the whole world and forgotten by no one.

The terms of Mr. F's deal may be glowing, but there's something dark lurking behind his eyes. As Stitch Head will learn, not every monster is a meanie...and some seemingly normal folk can be the nastiest beasts of all!

This was a cute graphic novel that I think young readers who enjoy a spooky story with an underdog will like. But overall, there wasn’t much that made the story stand out.

Ahhhh! This was such a fun read!! The story was a touching adventure that had depth and believable characters. I absolutely loved the artwork and the plot! I can’t get enough of this world and hope to read more from the author soon! This was one I could not put down and is physically getting added to my shelves after release! Thank you so much Netgalley for the ARC!

A very cute a charming book. Great character designs and an overall fun wholesome vibe. I really enjoyed it. The angry mob being riled up by lies and gaslight is a poignant fear.

A great book. Thank you for the opportunity.

This was surprisingly sweet and heartfelt. What is a monster anyway? Poor Stitch Head is a creation forgotten by his maker, an evil genius who is still working hard to create the perfect creature. Stitch Head has to deal with people from outside and questions his own loyalty and place in the world. I hope there are more books about Stitch Head!