Tony Baloney is a very believable and relatable character, somehow managing to wrap into one Halloween all the struggles so many children struggle with in agonizing over the perfect Halloween costume:  he doesn’t want a costume patched together from odds and ends, or a hand-me-down costume from his big sister, or to have matching costumes with his younger siblings.  Instead he breaks into his savings to go buy the perfect pirate costume.  Unfortunately, he disregards the rules his teacher has set down about what is allowed at school, along with his parents’ warnings to take care of his costume if he wants it to last until Halloween.  In his enthusiasm, he ends up sabotaging himself by wearing it out before the big day and getting his sword confiscated by his teacher.  Yet in the end, he finds he’s able to put his creativity to work, with a bit of help from his family, and still have a good time in an odds-and-ends homemade pirate costume after all.