Ghosts at Sea

November 1, 2016

Gr 4-6-"Your evening prison tour just ended. You walk back past dark, empty cells." These opening gambits precede short accounts of two haunted venues in each slim volume. The publisher's promise that these books "burst with intense action [and] high-speed heroics" is heavily overstated, but there are interesting "shadows of the unknown." Anne Boleyn's ghost, her head tucked under her arm, is perhaps the eeriest figure, and the White House is an intriguing locale of contemporary haunting. Prisons focuses mostly on Al Capone and speculates on what drove him "mad." The busy, occasionally cluttered layout includes short bits of white text and assorted elements (maps, sidebars) in each spread. There's less commentary on ghosts and hauntings provided than in comparable series.

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2016
Grades 2-5 Pirates, ghosts, and adventure on the high seaswhat better combination to interest young readers who have grown up on Pirates of the Caribbean? This title in the Ghost Stories series includes two thin but engaging narrative accounts of ships said to haunt the ocean. The first surrounds the legendary Dutch pirate ship, the Flying Dutchman, which wrecked in a storm going around Africa's Cape of Good Hope. The other tells of the Young Teazer, a privateer ship that exploded during the War of 1812. Enhanced by ghostly backgrounds with color photo insets, each account includes a map showing where the disaster occurred, a History Connection text box, and purported sightings. A short section on mirages and foggy conditions offers scientific explanations for these spectral ships. Entertaining, but light on content.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)