In his first children’s book, comedian and actor George Lopez showed kids that when it comes to the chupacabra, the fearsome mythical creature in Latin folklore, there really is no reason to be afraid.
But a floating piñata?
Well, Lopez may do for the piñata what Stephen King’s “It” did for clowns thanks to his latest children’s book “ChupaCarter and the Haunted Piñata,” which was released last month.
“I don’t want to scare any kids, but the idea that a piñata would have its own thoughts and be able to give and take, I thought was very spooky,” Lopez said during a recent phone interview.
The book is the second middle-grade release from the comedian and co-author Ryan Calejo. It’s a follow up to “ChupaCarter,” which was published last summer and tells the story of 12-year-old Jorge, a young awkward boy who feels lonely and a bit resentful after being sent to live with his grandparents.
The boy has a vivid imagination and quickly befriends a young chupacabra named Carter. He isn’t a monster at all, but instead turns out to be a good pal and even a snappy dresser.
The second finds Jorge feeling more at home in his new town, hanging out with his friends Liza and Ernie, and of course Carter, the chupacabra. But Jorge’s ideal world is suddenly threatened by a haunted piñata who floats around town setting eerie fires.
The inspiration for the floating piñata came from a real life incident that scared Lopez a bit. He said he was at a Day of the Dead party a few years ago and there was a sugar skull balloon floating around that seemed to have a mind of its own.
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“It was in the middle of the room and it turned as we all went to take a picture and the face of the balloon was pointed in the opposite direction,” he recalled. “But when we took the picture and we saw the balloon, his head was between our shoulders almost like it was a person.
“It turned…
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