Items related to The Promise (M Books)
"Promise me that if I ever get lost, you'll come and find me." Bob had many reasons to keep Valerie happy. She was pretty, he loved her, and she was seriously ill. But when Valerie dies, she holds Bob to his promise, beckoning him to follow her. A superb turn on a ghost story by the award-winning author of Blitzcat.
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From School Library Journal:
Grade 6-8-- Westall falls far short of his abilities in this lackluster novel about a boy haunted by his deceased girlfriend. Bob, 14, admires sickly Valerie's beauty, but doesn't get to know her until her family invites him to tea. He visits her occasionally and circumspectly so he won't be ridiculed by his male schoolmates. He and Valerie experience a small romance characterized mostly by Bob conducting her on little excursions, without her parents' knowledge, outside the garden walls. In an emotional moment, Bob promises to find Valerie if she ever gets lost, not knowing she will use this in her ghost form to try to take him with her. Told in a tone that's disappointingly dispassionate, the story inspires no sympathy for its characters: not Valerie, alive or dead, nor Bob, even when he's being drained of life's energy so he'll join her in the cold otherworld. Only Valerie's father is a convincing human being in a collection of otherwise ho-hum personalities. Bob sometimes seems to be 17, other times 12, especially when he continually refers to Valerie's developing breasts as the "bulges" under her blouse (sweater, dress, robe, whatever) or when he's concealing his affection for Valerie from his buddies. Even the horror element is flat. Valerie's ghost isn't scary or sinister, nor is the plot suspenseful. She doesn't even begin her haunting until over two-thirds of the way through the book, and most readers won't get that far. --Ellen Ramsay, Amphitheater High Sch . , Tucson, AZ
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Publishers Weekly:
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
What starts out as a fairly conventional love story finishes as a ghost tale, blending the horror of war with the sepulchral chill of the supernatural. Bob's friendship with beautiful, sickly Valerie soon becomes romantic. When Valerie dies, only Bob knows that her willful spirit still lingers among the living. What Bob does not fully realize, however, is that this spirit is determined to leech away his own life force. Westall's gripping tale is good, spooky fun--and thought-provoking as well. The authentically depicted setting--northern England, at the time of World War II--serves to anchor the ghostly goings-on firmly in the real world. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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- PublisherNelson Thornes Ltd
- Publication date1996
- ISBN 10 0174323395
- ISBN 13 9780174323396
- BindingHardcover
- Rating
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The Promise (M Books)
Published by
Nelson Thornes Ltd
(1996)
ISBN 10: 0174323395
ISBN 13: 9780174323396
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Hardcover
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Used; Acceptable. Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. The book is perfectly readable and fit for use, although it shows signs of previous ownership. The spine is likely creased and the cover scuffed or slightly torn. Textbooks will typically have an amount of underlining and/or highlighting, as well as notes. If this book is over 5 years old, then please expect the pages to be yellowing or to have age spots. Seller Inventory # CHL9412647
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