Series / 所属系列: |
| Araminta Spookie
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Overview / 简介: |
| Grade 2–4—Araminta Spookie lives in a sprawling haunted house. She spends her days hunting for ghosts, avoiding her cranky Aunt Tabby, and helping her nocturnal Uncle Drac. In the first book, her aunt wants to sell the house and the little girl does all she can to scare away potential buyers. Things turn out better than expected when the ghost-loving Wizzard family shows interest but decides instead to move in with the Spookies. In the second book, Araminta and the Wizzards' daughter find themselves in danger when they try to retrieve a sword from a cave for the house ghost's 500th birthday. These straightforward stories are filled with exposition and description but little action, until their funny and fitting finales. Reluctant readers may have lost interest by then, however. What the books lack in action, though, they make up for in setting. Kids who use "weird" as a compliment will delight in the charming details of Araminta's life. Trapdoors and secret passageways get her into forbidden places. Frogs, bats, and ghosts are part of the family. Pickering's full- and half-page illustrations and cobwebs dangling from the page corners add the perfect mood. However, Araminta is less interesting than her surroundings. She speaks with a consistent, peevish tone, remaining unchanged throughout her adventures. These books offer few surprises, but will be fun escapism for readers who like their spooky without the scary.—Amelia Jenkins, Juneau Public Library, AK |
Foreign Customer Review / 国外客户评价: |
| Araminta Spookie has grown up in a haunted house and spent her whole life looking for ghosts. As luck would have it, though, she's never found a single one. That's about to change. When her Aunt Tabby has another bad fight with the boiler, she decides to sell the house. Araminta has to think fast in order to keep her beloved house from being taken away by strangers. Every time Aunt Tabby hangs a FOR SALE sign, Araminta finds some way to sabotage it. Unfortunately, Aunt Tabby is really clever too. Ultimately, while searching for a way to save the house, Araminta DOES find ghosts and more of the history of the house.
Angie Sage is also the author of the Septimus Heap books and several other books for children. Jimmy Pickering has illustrated several books for early readers, including SLOOP JOHN B and MY CLOSET THREW A PARTY.
MY HAUNTED HOUSE is a simple, straightforward tale that cruises through a lot of fun details. Araminta's Uncle Drac sleeps hanging upside down in a sleeping bag in the tower with thousands of bats. Aunt Tabby is both a loving supporter as well as Araminta's problem. Jimmy Pickering's drawings scattered throughout the book brings the action and the characters and the spooky old house to vibrant life.
This book is recommended to beginning chapter book readers as well as parents who like to read to younger children who have the imagination and language skills for stories they can't quite read on their own. |
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