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Billy Bones: Tales from the Secrets Closet

  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 8, age appropriate for kids over 9; suggested age 9.

  • Is it any good?

    4.0
  • Common Sense says

    Playfully spooky, cool, and full of imagination.

Why We Rated This on for Ages 9 and Up

The good stuff

  • Messages:

    Not an issue.

What to watch out for

  • Violence:

    Death tries to take a soul and the person describes it, a pet is killed, a young boy is starved to death and he is described to be wasting away, but there's no death scene. A group of people are threatened by a man with a shotgun.
  • Sex:

    Not an issue.
  • Language:

    Not an issue.
  • Consumerism:

    Not an issue.
  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    Adults drink alcohol.

What Parents Need to Know

This review of Billy Bones: Tales from the Secrets Closet was written by Terreece Clarke

Parents need to know that there's a murder and attempted murder in this book. Lots of talk of the afterlife and death, but it isn't graphic or particularly scary.

Families Can Talk About

Talk to your kids about the media in their life. We have more tools and tips that can help
  • Families can talk about lies and secrets. How can lies make life harder? What about secrets? Is there ever a way to keep a secret safe? What are the benefits of releasing a secret?
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More on Billy Bones: Tales from the Secrets Closet

Book Summary

Billy Bones is a skeleton who lives in the secrets closet at High Manners Manor. Billy's parents organize the secrets, lies, etc., of the Biglum family, and they always have lots and lots to organize. When a new family member moves into the manor, things begin to change. New mysteries pop up, including secrets surrounding his own family. Billy and his new friend Millicent must unravel the mysteries before the evil Sir Biglum can wreak havoc on all their lives.

Is It Any Good?

BILLY BONES is great fun. It's spooky, cool, and full of imagination. Readers will enjoy hanging out with ghosts, Death -- who's known as "Uncle Grim" -- and the sinister manifestations that lurk all over the Biglum home. A series of secrets and mysteries are at the center of this story and author Christopher Lincoln guides his audience through them artfully, teasing and revealing clues at all the right moments.

This is a book that kids will have a hard time putting down. If there was ever a way to bring warmth and likeability to the Grim Reaper, skeletons, and ghosts, this book did it so successfully it feels almost normal to find a skeleton drinking cocoa in the closet. The novel has a good pace and a great message: secrets and lies are always exposed to the light of truth.

Publisher’s Details

Publisher: Little, Brown & Co., Publication date: 08/01/2008
Number of pages: 304, Price: $10.99 (paperback)
Read Aloud: 9, Read Alone: 9

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Most Recent Reviews

  1. Kid Reviewer Age 10
    Lives in California
    I rate this title on for age 8 and give it 5.0

    A must read for kids ages 8+.

    A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!!! Great book! Suitable for kids 8 and up if they are strong readers. You may get stuck at the beginning as it isn't the most exciting part of the book, but... READ ON!!! this book is A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!!! I really enjoyed this book; it is good for people who are not creeped out by skeletons or have a religion in which skeletons are bad.

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