A Ghost in the House

Wright, Betty Ren

ISBN 10: 0590436066 ISBN 13: 9780590436069

Publisher: Scholastic, 1991

Synopsis

Strange things happen when twelve-year-old Sarah is alone in the house with Great Aunt Margaret, who appears to be the victim of a ghost seeking revenge for a death in the past

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Reviews

Grade 4-6-- Life seems perfect for 12-year-old Sarah Prescott when her family moves into her great-aunt's big, old house. For the first time in her life, she has a beautiful room of her own with a fireplace. But Sarah's world suddenly crumbles when Aunt Margaret returns from the nursing home and reclaims the perfect bedroom. Not only does she have to help care for the disagreeable invalid, but also Sarah can no longer have sleep-overs, and she is blamed for the strange events that occur whenever she and her aunt are alone in the house. Objects move, things fall off shelves, steps are heard in the attic, and it's always cold. Gradually the elderly woman realizes that the ghost of someone she knew as a child has returned, seeking revenge for a tragedy that occurred more than a half-century earlier. Readers who believe in ghosts will enjoy Wright's spine-tingling descriptions as Margaret and Sarah join forces to overcome their fear and protect themselves. Those who can't suspend disbelief will still find a good story about an intergenerational relationship that grows and a family's ability to pull together to face a problem. --Jeanette Larson, Texas State Library, Austin
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Sarah's dream has finally come true--a beautiful room with a fireplace in a big house in the suburbs. But when financial troubles hit her family, that dream becomes a nightmare. Her ailing, cantankerous Great-Aunt, owner of the house, comes to stay--and with her, strange and frightening ghostly visits. Sarah and her aunt are forced to bond together--first, in self-defense; and then in friendship. This finely crafted, spine-tingling ghost story from the author of The Dollhouse Murders and Christina's Ghost offers such chilling occurrences as unexplained footsteps, objects moving of their own accord and Aunt Margaret's wheelchair spinning wildly. These episodes are masterfully balanced with a touching, true-to-life story of the awkward friendship between Sarah and her dour aunt--who surprise themselves by discovering in each other a kindred spirit. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Sarah's joy in a promising new life is threatened when her father loses his first good job. The family's financial crisis is somewhat alleviated by having a great-aunt come to live with them--with the result that Sarah must give up her dream bedroom and stay with crotchety Aunt Margaret while both parents are at work. Difficulties increase as strange events begin to occur and Sarah's mother refuses to consider Sarah's suggestion that there is a ghost, implying that Sarah is lying, and forcing her and Aunt Margaret to cope alone with the escalating violence of a malevolent spirit that turns out to be from Aunt Margaret's youth. Afraid that she too will be doubted, Aunt Margaret keeps her own counsel, resolving to return to her nursing home. In a final hair-raising encounter, Sarah helps rout the ghost, which also leads to everyone's realization that they truly are a family. Many of the motifs here will be comfortingly familiar to Wright's fans: a successful meld of family living and the satisfyingly scary supernatural. (Fiction. 8-12) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Edition details

• Publisher: Scholastic
• Publication date: 1991
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0590436066
• ISBN 13: 9780590436069
• Binding: Library Binding
• Number of pages: 164