Who Let the Ghosts Out! (Mostly Ghostly, Book 1)
Common Sense Note
The only thing to discuss here is the difference between trashy books like this and real literature.
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Matt Berman
If the summary below doesn't make much sense, don't worry -- neither does the book. About the best that can be said about this book is that it's not as objectionable as Stine's usual. One of the worst writers who actually make it to print, Stine eschews the usual conventions of literature -- character development, plots that make sense, setting, writing technique, occasionally complete sentences -- in favor of stereotyped characters, bogus cliffhanging chapter endings, and the occasional disgusting bits of violence that keep reluctant readers coming back for more. At least this book doesn't have the rivers of gore that have been the highlights of some of his previous efforts, nor is it as scary.
The argument usually made in Stine's favor is that he gets reluctant readers, especially boys, to read, and this is true (though J. K. Rowling has certainly proved that you don't have to write garbage to attract them). Along with making piles of money, it's what Stine is best at. And as long as they eventually graduate to better quality (see Related Books for some suggestions) that's a good thing. So if your child hates to read but enjoys this, don't worry. Wait a year, and if he's still reading nothing but Stine, then you can worry.
From the Book:
His eyes disappeared inside his skin. The gaping mouth slid back over Buster's body. I could see glistening wet, pink flesh -- the insides of his throat.
And then, as the fur peeled back, I saw pale bones and gleaming yellow and red organs. Buster's purple, pulsing heart. His rib cage. His balloonlike stomach. His twisting yellow guts.
Plot Summary:
Max discovers that there are ghosts in his new house -- the ghosts of siblings Nicky and Tara, who don't remember dying. They offer to help Max, a geek despised at school and at home, if he'll help them find out how they died and what happened to their parents.
But an evil being named Phears is stalking them, and he torments Max to find out where they are. Somehow they escape him, so Phears goes after Max again. And it all may have something to do with a mysterious tunnel that has appeared in Max's room.
Related Books:
Graduate from R. L. Stine: High-Quality Horror for Middle Graders
A Fit of Shivers by Joan Aiken
The Velvet Room by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
All on a Winter's Day by Lisa Taylor
The Stones of Muncaster Cathedral by Robert Westall
Mindquakes: Stories to Shatter Your Brain by Neal Shusterman
A Nightmare's Dozen: Stories from the Dark by Michael , ed. Stearns
Clockwork, or All Wound Up by Philip Pullman
Never Trust a Dead Man by Vivian Vande Velde
The Thief of Always by Clive Barker
Full Tilt by Neal Shusterman
The Beasties by William Sleator
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ViolenceA dog is turned inside out, Max is tortured with the feeling that all of his teeth are being drilled. |
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CommercialismVarious movies, video games, rock groups mentioned. |
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