The Ghost Town Mystery

July 1, 2008
Gr 2-5-These stories have easy-to-read texts and colorful, expressive illustrations on every page. In "Ghost Town", Max is apprehensive about meeting a ghost when his class takes a trip to an abandoned mining town. The students visit the bank, general store, boarded-up mine, and old house. With effective use of foreshadowing and suspense, he and Sara encounter an apparent presence, and Max's confidence increases when he discovers the "ghost's" true identity, leading to a satisfying conclusion. Fact boxes about the gold rush and patterns of community development are included, as are simple questions and activities. In "Bay School", Bailey creates a secret blog, "Ruler of the School," to inspire change at her elementary school. She and her friend Joel open the blog on each workstation prior to computer class to bring it to everyone's attention. Bailey suggests to her growing readership that spray paint art "should replace those boring hallway posters" and "cheerleaders love my idea to change our mascot from a bull dog to a basset hound." Her suggestion that students weigh their backpacks and wear a sign with the weight on their backs draws mass student involvement and leads to praise from the principal and new lockers from the PTAunrealistic developments in contemporary schools. Facts about communication are provided on some pages, from talking, writing, and emailing to the sharing of ideas. Unfortunately, there is no mention of Internet safety or cyberbullying."Laura Scott, Farmington Community Library, MI"

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